When you first go to NYC , you were in all probability sent off with a bombardment of frustratingly ambiguous tips : live here , not there ; date out - of - townsman ; avoid the Meatpacking District ; etc . etc . While it ’s no secret that the only real scheme to live on this city of overstimulation is to blanched - knuckle through most of the bad share ( and Eternal Sunshine the more rank day with a strong glass of whisky ) , there are some tips that might help alleviate the focus .
We talk to the sagest seniors at Bronx ’s Kittay House and Mill Basin ’s Sunrise , as well as others who lived out their adulthoods in the city , to get their reflections on what cause for well-chosen New York living . Turns out , it takes more than arent - stabilized apartment .
Stop taking NYC ’s costless , cultural chance for granted“Take advantage of all the awing thing that NYC has to offer – and all the free thing . Really search for those thing and do them . Because , otherwise , why hold out here ? Any time I feel depressed all I demand to do is go to the Metropolitan Museum , and that just inspires me . Because it has the work of the ages . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
Jason Hoffman/Thrillist
Actually spend your money“What I like about New York is , you’re able to find anything and everything you want here . I like to go shopping , I care to travel , that ’s what life is all about . But I do have friends who just lay aside their money [ their whole lives ] . They ’d always ask me , why are you go on so many trips ? Well , money is useless if you do n’t drop it . They have money in the bank , but they have nothing to think on , nothing to talk about . ”– Jane Smith * , 82
Put off marriage“Don’t get espouse new , when you do n’t bonk who you are yet . I got wed at 20 and that did n’t work out . ”– Zelda Fassler , 83
Be your own Commonwealth of Puerto Rico agency“There are a pile of missed chances that I count back on . When you miss chances , you do n’t realize until you look back on them in retrospect . For example , I did n’t know that I needed to connection . I imagine that if I was just a good writer , that somehow I would get my hooey produced . I did n’t know that you needed to socialize in the company of multitude who are in the occupation you ’re in . I remember I just had a certain lordliness where I think the caliber of my workplace would be enough for me to be capable to move up . I ’m bug out to clear that nobody want to push your own work more than yourself . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
treasure your 30s“36 was my favorite age to live in New York . I was divorced , on my own , able to travel . I did n’t have to serve to anybody . I was able-bodied to date and felt very free . That lasted until I was about 39 , when I got married again in the Bronx . ”– Roseanne Zweig , 86
drop a small more fourth dimension connecting with nature“The parks were a salvage thing . I took the tike in the summer to Riverside Park every day . Literally , we would sit there all mean solar day and stay cool . My friends and I would take our bicycles to the park , and well , I just LIVED in the car park . They were an incredible resource and a make unnecessary thing . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
Indulge in your young freedom“When I was arise up , we had hard-and-fast rules of behavior which I adhered to . I think it was a generational thing . My female parent was very controlling . We never used to think of any young woman go out and pay off an apartment of their own , that was unheard of . I think if I were unseasoned at this prison term , I would hold out my aliveness other than . I would have my own position , my own flat . ” – Roseanne Zweig , 86
Make your next veridical - landed estate move a long - full term investment“You need to move to somewhere that ’s low-cost , make champion , and hear to make it a pretty place . [ in general what happens is , ] the artist first moves to the areas they can afford , then what befall is , those areas pop to flourish . And that ’s exactly what happened to me . I first motivate into the flat that I ’m in right now ( decent above 96th St ) when I was fraught withJohnny ( Cryer)in 1965 , and it was a derelict building . It had slug maw in the front threshold , and we had muggings in the elevator . The construction was in severe shape … but I could give it . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
Take a break twelvemonth ( or 20)“I did n’t go to school until my mid-40s . When I was younger , I used to feel stupid – I was embarrassed to tell people I had n’t gone to school . But going to school day afterwards in life was an advantage , because I knew what I was going to do and I knew I require a degree . I was n’t a tike anymore , and I was n’t dream . ”– Zelda Fassler , 83
Never stop hustling“In sure respects , I ’m still in survival mode right now . Like , for a senior like me , I figure out , both Gristedes and Garden of Eden offer 10 % off on Tuesdays and Thursdays , that form of stuff . And you look for what ’s free in the city , like a lot of concerts and stuff and nonsense that goes on in Central Park . I ’ve always existed on that variety of affair . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
Have realistic # relationshipgoals“A mint of life is replete . I never thought I ’d get married , but when I was with this charwoman [ my wife ] , I realized I had a prize . She was so good . Of course we would argue , it ’s only normal . But we would n’t allow it linger . ”– Joe Allotta , 90
“ [ In love ] , you sometimes have to settle , and attempt to see if the other individual can change . There are affair you may change . Like , you’re able to see that they end salute . Or , if their hygienics is poor , you could make them change that . ”– Jane Smith , 82
Lower your expectations“I lie with this sound crazy , but do n’t have dandy expectations . HA ! Just be able-bodied to go with the flow . If something does n’t work out , then , OK , on to the next affair . ”– Gretchen Cryer , 80
- Name has been changed .
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