Feel like the odd one out in my city. Or even in society. (New York: rental)

[Chicano3000X]

I live in Los Angeles. I love this city because it is my home town. It's got it's own unique urban feel. However, when it comes to people bragging about the weather. I think it's overrated. I only passed by NYC, and only other major city I lived in was Chicago. Chicago was really the place that got me into thinking about city life and looking to what makes a city feel like a real city.

Now L.A. has nice weather, but it gets boring tbh. Call me crazy, but I do miss the snow fall, the change in seasons, and getting sporting a new jacket for the winter. Comming back to L.A., the city I use to brag about being from when I was younger, it left me wondering "where is the city?".

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that having giant concrete canyons make a city. L.A. has corridors, has alleyways, graffiti, and everything else you'd expect to find in an urban environment except everything is just trimmed down.

But I just didn't feel L.A. like I use to. started feeling somewhat distant from everyone else there. Noticed that people only came to become actors thinking it was all glamour and the television advertising beverely hills life styles as if that's what represented all of us.

Now what I meant by being the odd one out, society looks to L.A. because they want beaches, nice weather and a suburban type of life style. What L.A. lacks imo, is a down to earth feel. This is where NYC comes to mind. I feel like I've grown a state of mind that leans to towards wanting to in a city where people aren't so obsessed with cars or their front yard.

You New Yorkers seem like real down to earth folks, atleast compared to people here. I'm still trying to find my place here but feel that eventually, I think I'd like to give NYC a try.

How would a digital artist do in NY?

[11KAP]

at least you don't have millions
of people living literally on top
of one another in los angeles,
but if you want to move to nyc,
nobody can stop you. just don't
think it's sweet all the time. lots
of people are struggling out here.

[Chicano3000X]

Originally Posted by 11KAP

at least you don't have millions
of people living literally on top
of one another in los angeles,
but if you want to move to nyc,
nobody can stop you. just don't
think it's sweet all the time. lots
of people are struggling out here.

And that's the same they told me about L.A.

I think I still hear people saying "I told you so!"

[kjeb12]

I'm about to possibly do the opposite move as you. NYC is an amazing place. If you want a change from LA, it is very different, to be sure. I haven't been anywhere in the world with the same energy as there is here, except maybe Tokyo, haha! It is a concrete jungle, though, be sure of that. And 11KAP is spot on. You say you are tired of the "good weather" etc - NY has absolutely stunning springs, and autumns, and Christmastime is incomparably festive. The other parts of the year (especially the gray, cold, slushy, windy winters) get more difficult - lugging all of your stuff through sleet and rain and wind and humid, high temperatures can get very taxing. If you want to get out to any kind of "real" nature, you have to get far out of the city. Otherwise there are some beautiful parks, but it's not wilderness by any means, like you have some of in LA. Prospect and Central park are lovely, though. The High Line is really cool.
I wouldn't say that New Yorkers are more "down to earth" than LA. They are just a different breed of "city folk." New Yorkers are straight-forward, rough-around-the-edges, wry, and friendlier than the reputation. People bond here over complaining, haha. There is a big "been there, done that" mentality here, that can get tiresome. I've lived here over 10 years, and I still get raised eyebrows if I say a restaurant is "amazing." Yes, people aren't as obsessed with their cars or their front yard (barely anybody here has either), but they're obsessed with other things. There are superficial people everywhere. There are also awesome people everywhere...
You'll find NYC to be a tough egg to crack for just about every profession. "If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere" still applies, even more so post-recession. But if you network hard, and you are really talented, you could make a living. You should come to NY and spend some time here so you can actually get a feel for the reality of living here. Look at rental prices on the internet - it's in a league over even LA, in my opinion. Just come out here and spend more than a few days and check out the areas that people actually live in - and that you could afford to live in, as well. It's an amazing place, it really is, you just need to know that it is EXACTLY the same as LA in the sense that underneath the exciting, glamorous exterior, there is a lot of hardship. It seems like we all choose what kind of hardship we want to live with, haha, unless we live in Hawaii or something I guess...