At least once a week my mom tells me about how a friend of hers is SHOCKED that I stayed in the city during the pandemic. And they’re also shocked my mom didn’t demand I leave the city to stay with then in Westchester.
Deciding to stay was never really a decision. This is my home.
NYC is my home and it has been for almost 12 years now. This apartment is my home and has been for a decade. I’ve always said that I’m a lifer here in NYC. Although I don’t know what the future holds, I can honestly say that I don’t picture myself leaving the city to move to the suburbs someday. Sure, I’d love to have a beach house someday (dream big, Kayla!) but I don’t think I’ll ever move to a house in the suburbs.
There is a lot to hate about NYC right now. The cost of living. The heat. There’s not much to do with so many things closed. And for me, there is the loneliness of having so few friends that stayed. But at the end of the day, it’s still my city. The city where I walk into my sushi place and the owner instantly says “Hi, Kayla!”
At this point, I’ve left NYC (safely) three times since March. Two trips to Westchester to spend time with my family and distantly visit friends that are staying with their parents. And a very chill trip to Montauk with a friend. I am grateful for those escapes from the city where I was able to spend time outside breathing in fresh air sans mask. But overall I have no regrets about my decision to stay. Because the truth is where else would I go? I love my parents, but staying in Westchester for more than few days would slowly drive me crazy. At the beginning of the pandemic, I joked that I should’ve gone to LA to stay with my BFF. But even there, I’d still be a guest in someone’s space.
There are moments of normalcy in my day here. Cooking lunch in my kitchen while listening to a podcast. Curling up on my couch to read after taking a shower at night. Walking to Starbucks and then wandering around Soho window shopping after. There are so few things in my life that feel normal right now. I’m not working. I’m spending most of my days alone, only talking to my doormen and the baristas at Starbucks. But I still get those little moments of normal. Life before the pandemic. In my childhood home that I haven’t lived in since I was 18 nothing would feel normal.
It might be a while before NYC bounces back to the vibrant city I moved to back when I was 18 — a city where Broadway shows are just a subway ride away, as are the best museums, food, and even the beach. But this place is still home. Where I can walk everywhere I truly need to go. Where I can get every kind of food delivered to my apartment. And where my favorite restaurant knows my name. This is my home, and I couldn’t imagine being anywhere elsewhere. Even if right now NYC is a challenging place to be.
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