Monday, August 07, 2017

This Next Chapter Of My Life

As usual, this past June I received my apartment renewal lease in the mail. Now most every year (because I've been a longstanding tenant for 15 years), my rent increases have been minimal; therefore I know I've been fortunate. However, over the past 4-5 years there have been some major inconveniences in my apartment building, such as: getting stuck in an elevator for an hour because the leasing company refused to replace the ancient elevators; the water being turned off several times a month because the water pipes keep breaking in need of repairs; constant false fire alarms because the fire alarm system is old and outdated; frequently broken washers and dryers in the basement, which makes doing laundry frustrating because many of them don't work. The maintenance department in this apartment building is horrendous. Allow me to add here that Philadelphia is a blue-collar city with very strong unions that favor and protect the worker. To get anything done in this city takes FOREVER because union workers know that the longer they take, the more money they make. So they take their sweet old time; not caring how long you have to wait.

So to say the least, I was not at all happy when I read my new lease and saw how steep my rent would be increasing, considering how poor and deficient the maintenance has been. So I went down to the apartment managers office one afternoon to see if they could do something about reducing my rent in September and he said no, but they would be willing to offer me a two-year lease at the increased price so that my rent would be stabilized for two years. Without even thinking, I laughed and said, "No thank you, I won't be living here in two years.", and then walked out of his office.

Boy, was I PISSED. In fact, that same night after dinner when I took my walk, I was steaming mad. But then something dawned on me as I literally heard a voice inside my head say, "Stay calm, and use this next year to actively plan and pursue moving out of Philadelphia. It's time." And then all of a sudden a feeling of peace came over me and I was no longer angry because I could sense that everything was happening as it should. In hindsight, I needed this rent increase to finally motivate me enough to get my ass out of this city and back to the place where I need to be - New York City.

And please know that what's been going on with my apartment building and the rent increase are not the only things that make me want to move out of Philadelphia, it's due to many things that have accumulated over time.

You see, I haven't fully expressed how I've always felt about Philadelphia to you guys and gals because I don't like senselessly complaining about an issue until I can do something to change it. I won't go into everything right now, I'll save that for later posts during this next year.

Let's just say that even though I am a native of this city, I have never, ever felt like I belonged here. The consciousness of Philadelphia and my own consciousness are as different as oil and water. Yet, throughout these past 15 years, I have tried to focus on the things I like, such as the exquisite architecture and rich American history. But I'm at a point where I can't do that anymore, I need to just leave and move on because I am no longer inspired, nor have the slightest desire to live here.

I've been very open and transparent with my job in telling them during my review last month that my wish is to leave Philadelphia and transfer with the company to New York, and they were very supportive of my decision. They don't want to lose me, but they also don't want to stand in the way of doing what I think is best for me or my happiness. They've even offered to help me find a store in New York, which I think was extremely kind and unselfish of them.

In conclusion:

As I've shared with you many times before, my physical body may have been born in Philadelphia, however, my soul was born in New York on the very first day that I ever visited, when I was only 14 years old.

It was at that exact moment New York City became my home.

Now that I'm in my early 60's and feel that I have so much more to experience, I've decided that I want this next chapter of my life to be lived in a place where I have always felt the most alive; the most creative; the most connected.

Do I expect my life in New York to be perfect and smooth-sailing? No, of course not.

Do I realize that New York is extremely expensive and will have challenges? Yes, most definitely.

But do you know what? I don't care. I'm willing to deal with those challenges because of what New York City has always offered me.

Inspiration.

Passion.

Diversity.

Energy.

Growth.

And the belief that anything is possible.

I love you, New York. 💗

See ya soon!

Have a faaaaaaaabulous week, everyone!

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