New York is a different Beast

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New York is the wonderful city that I’ve called home for the last 9 years. New York is amazing, but it can crush you to dust if you aren’t strong willed and a self motivator, especially if you come here for your passion. It’s rare to meet a person who lives in New York, who is actually from New York (even more so when they are in their late 20’s and early 30’s). I’ve been having this conversation with other “New New Yorkers” for years. I know, I still have to live here another year before I’m awarded my “New Yorker” card, but I’ve been here long enough to be able to make sweeping generalizations. New York is a different beast. My first few years living here were hard. It’s hard to make friends if you’re not outgoing. People are always on the move and rarely slow down. I’ve had many friends who’ve come and gone in a years time. It’s too expensive, sometimes the people are rude and the Winter’s are brutal. But if you are meant to be here, then it is an awesome city to live in.

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Firstly, I was not equipped my first Winter here, when I was sure my class for the day was canceled secondary to the 4 feet of snow outside. I was appalled when I got an email saying we were just delayed. I mean how the hell was I to make it to my class, 6 blocks away from my dorm, in that!!! I didn’t have “snow boots” or a “heavy coat” in fact I had never seen that much snow in my entire life. How did life not just cease at every level with that much snow on the ground perplexed me. I mean, if there is even a flurry in North Carolina the ENTIRE STATE shuts down…and NO southerners don’t know how to drive in the snow. My dad had to Fedex me my first ever North Face Coat and a pair of snow boots. Till this day, Winter is what I hate most about New York. And since I still don’t have very many winter clothes, because I don’t even like thinking about Winter, it’s great to have pieces that can transition well.

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Photography by LOE

Top: ZARA | Skirt: Shopbop | Boots: Alexander Wang | Leather Jacket: Dallin Chase

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I’ve come to realize that New York is a city of careers and career seekers. People come to New York to make it in their field, or follow their passion or take their business to the next level. It’s a place where a small something can become a big something and get you recognized worldwide. New York is where dreams are made….well that and L.A. but that’s a WHOLE DIFFERENT PERFECT beast. I can’t speak on L.A. though because..well..I’ve never been! It’s on my to-do list though, along with Palm Springs and Joshua Tree. I worked at the Forever 21 in Union Square for 8 months and it was there that I learned just how messy people can be in general. I swear 5 minutes after totally cleaning a space, the clothes would be right back on the floor again. It was also there that I learned to always put things back where I found them. I haven’t taken a sales associate for granted ever since my stint there. I also learned how cut throat New York can be working in retail. It was my first Thanksgiving in graduate school at NYU and I wanted to go home for a few days. But there’s this thing called a Black Out Period, where you weren’t allowed to take days off, and guess what…I was fired so I could go home for Thanksgiving. Thats when I realized this city gives zero fxcks and sometimes you gotta make your own way. I partied during my graduate school days, staying out late and studying until class the next day. I didn’t sleep much. In fact I hardly ever slept. It was normal for someone to call me at 4 am and have a completely normal conversation not of the booty call persuasion.

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Relationships are different here as well. There are a lot of creeps out here. Creeps that are architects and went to prestigious schools and creeps that work at the hard-to-get-into-restaurant of the moment. There are creeps who you aren’t sure are actually homeless or not and creeps that are just creeps. I’ve dated a lot of creeps in this city. But I’m sure there are creeps everywhere, I just feel like since there are more men in this concentrated area, that there is a greater likelihood that they are creeps. Take away what you want from that. I am currently dating an awesome non-creep so there is hope out here and he’s a through and through Brooklyn boy, no license and all. But what I notice about relationships and careers here is that the latter is more important and until that is under wraps, the former probably won’t happen, at least not in this city. It’s funny, there is a lot to dislike about this city but I love it. There’s always something to do, somewhere to go, something new to see. It’s an exciting city, but there are also places in the city I can go, to make me feel like I’m outside the city. The quietness of Fort Tryon park, the morning walk in Chelsea before anyone is awake and that lone car train ride, can always give me that isolation I sometimes need to just be with myself even though we’re basically living on top of each other in this city. Now speaking of Winter…let me get to buying some new winter boots.

Don’t forget to ENTER MY GIVEAWAY for an Alcatel Onetouch Idol 3 Phone and Smartwatch!

xx

Monroe

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3 Comments

  1. Melissa ward
    October 29, 2015 / 8:54 pm

    I’m waiting on your book one day … You’re such an amazing writer love reading your post as much as your style thanks for taking me on my 1st tour of New York and if you’re ever in Florida don’t hesitate to email me 😉 your biggest fan
    Melissa 😉

    • monroesteele
      Author
      October 29, 2015 / 10:10 pm

      HA! Thanks Melissa, I really appreciate these words. And I will definitely let you know as soon as I set foot in Florida!

      xx
      Monroe

  2. November 1, 2015 / 11:49 am

    How do you say ‘Slay’ in French because…. yeah, SLAY! Great post as well. I though about moving to NYC for a long time. I even applied for jobs there, visited, looked at apartments… everything. But being from the south I realize how spoiled I am with amenities that make my life a ton easier and how alone I would be in NYC since I no longer have friends there. It warms my heart when I see another southern girl “make it” there.

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