Hi Mari,

We moved from the 4th floor on the outside/south of the building overlooking a patch of trees; to the 2nd floor where out bedroom faces that same direction but the rest of the apartment faces the inside 'courtyard'. We don't have as much light which is probably the only draw back. We miss our big sunny southern windows. But we went from 365 sq ft to well over 900 which was a big improvement! I bought a piano, we have a room where my son can stay when he visits. We also don't hear as much traffic which is very nice.

Dear Tritione,
A piano! That is marvelous. Do you get to play? Do you compose?
I told you once that I studied piano all while growing up until I went to college and found out I had no ear. It was devastating to give up music.

I think that NYC is such a cool place to live. I like hearing how people manage.
I don't know how it is to trade less light for less traffic. At least with no traffic sounds you can sleep better. :)

M.

I do get to play quite a bit. I try to stop by 10PM. No official composing, but most of what I do is very improvisational and I try not to play anything the same way twice! It is very therapeutic.

I like living here. There are many reasons. People in NYC tend to be more liberal in their politics and their outlook on things. That suits me very well. I like the diversity. I don't go out a whole lot and take advantage of the many offerings here - but I do occasionally.

My wife and I talk a lot about moving to the backwoods of Vermont or Maine and having lots and lots of dogs :) - but for now I'm pretty happy here. For what our two bedroom apartment cost we could buy a large house and many acres in Maine!

I live in a neighborhood comprised of Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Jewish people in addition to the students, artists and young professionals who have been attracted by more affordable living than many other areas of the City. My neighbors consist of an architect, a buyer for Macy's, a professional flautist, a flight attendant, and a labor rights attorney. We all had dinner together one night at the attorney's and it was really nice.

I miss the stars at night. That's probably the biggest thing for me.

I think maybe New Yorkers are used to seeing or hearing about so many different kinds of things that they don't respond with the same kind of shock or bias to certain things like more isolated people do.

I like the mental challenges of having a conversation with people who speak and think at a pace twice as fast as anyone else I've ever known! Not that they are smarter or wiser necessarily... Just quicker.

Another thing that endlessly fascinates me is how so many people from different cultures and walks of life manage to get along as well as they do in such a small space. Riding the subway during rush hour - I'm just amazed at how tolerant people can be. Of course you see the less positive sides of human nature too - but by and large there are unspoken rules people simply obey that make it tolerable. This gives me great hope!

Thank you for sharing tritone, I love hearing about your home town and such.
bizi