Goodbye to all that

I thought this story was great, it really caught what its like to fall in and out of love with NYC. I related to the narrator a great deal. Most people that I know who have moved here from elsewhere, express similar notions to those depicted. A lot of people say when they first move here, that it doesn’t feel real or that it hasn’t sunk in that they live in NYC. The author conveys something similar, like how she doesn’t have furniture and how she keeps a flight schedule. New York is this magical living breathing yet surreal, almost fictional place for many people. People in all parts of the world grow up hearing about NY and longing for it in one way or another. I can see how when you move here with this mindset, at some point the magic fades and it becomes a real place. I have only been here a few years and I have experienced, to a lesser degree, this sense of disenchantment. However, I do not think that I will ever fall out of love with New York. Definitely though, it is not the same city for me that it was initially, and it never will be that place again. NYC still amazes me everyday, and I’m totally grateful to be able to live here.

It was hard to place the time period of the story. Maybe this is a testament to how timeless the experience of moving to New York is. Her writing is very straightforward, she doesn't have to be exaggerated or excessively descriptive to communicate something. Despite conveying sentiments and experiences that I would consider difficult to express, I do not like her writing style. In some instances the way she said something sounded weird or completely wrong, to the point of resembling typos.

I did like her usage of paratactic sentences. For instance, “As it turned out the bridge was the Triborough, and I stayed eight years.” Also, I loved the following paragraph. Part of the magic of New York is in not knowing the names of places, its much more immense when you know next to nothing about it. Overall I really enjoyed the reading.

There's something devastatingly sad about how wonderful New York is, as if anything this great will inevitably break your heart or let you down at some point. Or maybe its that NYC is great all on its own, and it will never really need you as much as you need it.