When I got off the train after work there were a bunch of people (of the 20-something male variety) who looked like they were being chased up lenox avenue. One of them tried to run into a bodega but they locked him out. I'm not entirely sure what was up and I wasn't going to stick around and find out. (I did listen for gunfire and didn't hear any, thank god.) All of which sucked because I really wanted to go to the corner store and pick up some food but after that I was scared to leave the building. Man I'm glad I'm moving out of here.
Work on sundays is always a slog. Even though I don't have to stay until 1 a.m., and even though for me it's more like a thursday. And then I always say I'm going to go home and crash and then I get home and don't feel like sleeping.
So now that it's 2:46 a.m. and I'm still awake ...
Always check the page one last time before you send it to print or this will happen. Or, perhaps, this.
Also, if you've been living under a rock for the past 6 months (in which case I kind of envy you!) Here's the entire democratic primary in eight minutes.
ok I'm going to bed now. Foreals.
Monday, June 16, 2008
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
I have a mover
and it's only costing me $600. Recommended by stefania (aforementioned wise broker) and has pretty good online reviews, so hopefully all goes OK.
Today I went to the management office to get out of my lease. The guy said that because it's so easy to rent out an apartment in the city, there's no reason any landlord here should give you a hard time about getting out of a lease, other than to harass you.
And when I asked if they were going to take post-move-out cleaning costs out of my security deposit (my roommates from eau claire and I are down at least $150), he said, "that's not the way we do things."
There are some advantages to renting in the most brutally competitive market in the country.
Today I went to the management office to get out of my lease. The guy said that because it's so easy to rent out an apartment in the city, there's no reason any landlord here should give you a hard time about getting out of a lease, other than to harass you.
And when I asked if they were going to take post-move-out cleaning costs out of my security deposit (my roommates from eau claire and I are down at least $150), he said, "that's not the way we do things."
There are some advantages to renting in the most brutally competitive market in the country.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Hot damn ...
Two summers ago I lived in Eau Claire and did manual labor for the Menards distribution center. There was a week or two when the temperature broke 100 degrees every day. The Menards warehouses are decidedly not air conditioned. Neither was my house. That was not a fun summer.
So I'm trying to keep a little perspective ... but damn, it's hot in my apartment. I think tomorrow I am going to go out and buy 3 or 4 more fans so I don't have to keep moving my one broken one around with me. But only three more weeks and I'll have air conditioning.
Remember the guy who was banging on my floor because my neighbor was playing loud music all night and he thought it was me? I met him today. He says when he called the landlord to complain, the landlord said, "I really don't think it's coming from her apartment. She works for the New York Times." Apparently, journalists don't have loud parties.* The neighbor, incidentally, also works for the Times. Crazy. And he did apologize for banging on my floor. And I forgive him because he actually put forth the effort to complain. And the noise has since stopped.
Know what I realized today? Once I move, my new place will be the fifth place I've lived (like, for more than a month) this year. And the third state.
*LG, are you reading this??
So I'm trying to keep a little perspective ... but damn, it's hot in my apartment. I think tomorrow I am going to go out and buy 3 or 4 more fans so I don't have to keep moving my one broken one around with me. But only three more weeks and I'll have air conditioning.
Remember the guy who was banging on my floor because my neighbor was playing loud music all night and he thought it was me? I met him today. He says when he called the landlord to complain, the landlord said, "I really don't think it's coming from her apartment. She works for the New York Times." Apparently, journalists don't have loud parties.* The neighbor, incidentally, also works for the Times. Crazy. And he did apologize for banging on my floor. And I forgive him because he actually put forth the effort to complain. And the noise has since stopped.
Know what I realized today? Once I move, my new place will be the fifth place I've lived (like, for more than a month) this year. And the third state.
*LG, are you reading this??
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Home Sweet Hoboken!
I signed a lease Thursday, so I am officially moving to hoboken. Yay!
Next Step: Finding a mover.
Next Step: Finding a mover.
Thursday, June 5, 2008
It's Spiderman ... twice!
I came out of Dunkin' Donuts on my way to work this afternoon and everyone on the sidewalk was gawking at the Times building. I looked up and around the 50th floor, there was a guy. Climbing up one of the tallest skyscrapers in manhattan.
It was crazy. The police had half the block roped off. When I got to work the security guard told me the guy made it to the top and was immediately arrested.
The guy was Alain Robert, a French stuntman who's climbed other skyscrapers before. On the window outside the international weekly, where I was working today, he put up a green banner that said "Global warming kills more people than 9/11 every week."
A few hours later we were watching the footage on the news. After a few minutes we noticed that it said LIVE in the corner of the screen.
A second climber. Seriously. What the hell?!
So we all ran to the corner of the building where he was, but he was up to about the 30th floor by that time. Traffic in the entire neighborhood had completely stopped and people crowded the sidewalks for blocks and blocks. On the news you could see employees standing inside the windows gawking.
This second guy did not seem as sure of himself. He stopped by the windows to rest at every floor, and a few times it looked like he was going to slip. We all cheered as he finally made it to the top — 52 floors up — where the police were waiting on the roof to arrest him.
Had the climbers done some research they would have realized that the Times building his a history of things falling off of it. They got pretty damn lucky.
Alain Robert said he chose our building to make his statement because it's a green building. Which, incidentally, is why Renzo Piano decided to do the whole outside in WHITE FUCKING HORZONTAL BARS to make it more energy efficient.
I'm not surprised that someone climbed the building. I'm surprised that it took this long for anyone to try.
It was crazy. The police had half the block roped off. When I got to work the security guard told me the guy made it to the top and was immediately arrested.
The guy was Alain Robert, a French stuntman who's climbed other skyscrapers before. On the window outside the international weekly, where I was working today, he put up a green banner that said "Global warming kills more people than 9/11 every week."
A few hours later we were watching the footage on the news. After a few minutes we noticed that it said LIVE in the corner of the screen.
A second climber. Seriously. What the hell?!
So we all ran to the corner of the building where he was, but he was up to about the 30th floor by that time. Traffic in the entire neighborhood had completely stopped and people crowded the sidewalks for blocks and blocks. On the news you could see employees standing inside the windows gawking.
This second guy did not seem as sure of himself. He stopped by the windows to rest at every floor, and a few times it looked like he was going to slip. We all cheered as he finally made it to the top — 52 floors up — where the police were waiting on the roof to arrest him.
Had the climbers done some research they would have realized that the Times building his a history of things falling off of it. They got pretty damn lucky.
Alain Robert said he chose our building to make his statement because it's a green building. Which, incidentally, is why Renzo Piano decided to do the whole outside in WHITE FUCKING HORZONTAL BARS to make it more energy efficient.
I'm not surprised that someone climbed the building. I'm surprised that it took this long for anyone to try.
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
Update
While I was furiously posting the previous rant, I got a call from my management company about a whole bunch of places that they're showing in Brooklyn in my price range. No broker fees and they can just transfer my security deposit over. So that lowers the panic level a little.
waiting ...
On Sunday I looked at my first apartment, in hoboken. The place, for $65 a month less than I'm paying now, is roomier than my current place even considering that there's another person living there (who seems quite nice). And the building is super-close to everything I would need (ie, the train to manhattan). So yesterday, not having seen any other ones, I went to the management office, dropped $75 and applied for it.
So now I wait.
Apparently, some management companies actually, like, do background checks.
Note to my current and former bosses and landlords: Please say something nice :o)
On the other hand, do I really *want* to move there?
I love hoboken, it's an adorable town, about 2 miles square, with lots of bars and shops and restaurants and a few lovely organic grocery stores. And it's cheaper than manhattan — and closer to most of it than I am now.
But there's still the nagging, somewhat illogical voice in my head that says why are you moving to JERSEY??? Also, the fact (for those of you not up on this, as I'm keeping it off the record*) that I'm dating someone there. Have been for about two months now. Most definitely not long enough on which to make a geographical decision, even in New York. He doesn't believe me when I say this, but the fact that he lives there is not part of my decision to move there except that had it not been for him I never probably would have seen hoboken in the first place.
Oh, and also, there's the fact that I put in 30 days notice to my current landlords and have to be out by July 1.
I think there needs to be some kind of bureau of housing counseling in the city. I could really use some assistance from someone knowledgeable who doesn't stand to make huge amounts of money off me. Seriously, New Yorkers spend more time, money and energy thinking and talking about housing and neighborhoods and apartments and gentrification and rent than anyone else in the damn country or possibly the world. With the possible exception of people whose houses have been foreclosed on them. And they have an excuse.
*To protect the innocent, and the not-so-innocent, this is NOT a dating blog. All personal details are off the record.
So now I wait.
Apparently, some management companies actually, like, do background checks.
Note to my current and former bosses and landlords: Please say something nice :o)
On the other hand, do I really *want* to move there?
I love hoboken, it's an adorable town, about 2 miles square, with lots of bars and shops and restaurants and a few lovely organic grocery stores. And it's cheaper than manhattan — and closer to most of it than I am now.
But there's still the nagging, somewhat illogical voice in my head that says why are you moving to JERSEY??? Also, the fact (for those of you not up on this, as I'm keeping it off the record*) that I'm dating someone there. Have been for about two months now. Most definitely not long enough on which to make a geographical decision, even in New York. He doesn't believe me when I say this, but the fact that he lives there is not part of my decision to move there except that had it not been for him I never probably would have seen hoboken in the first place.
Oh, and also, there's the fact that I put in 30 days notice to my current landlords and have to be out by July 1.
I think there needs to be some kind of bureau of housing counseling in the city. I could really use some assistance from someone knowledgeable who doesn't stand to make huge amounts of money off me. Seriously, New Yorkers spend more time, money and energy thinking and talking about housing and neighborhoods and apartments and gentrification and rent than anyone else in the damn country or possibly the world. With the possible exception of people whose houses have been foreclosed on them. And they have an excuse.
*To protect the innocent, and the not-so-innocent, this is NOT a dating blog. All personal details are off the record.
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