Something I have never understood about people who move to NYC. Many of them don’t realize that the city does not give a fuck about you. In fact, the city probably hates you. You are just another body piling into its bloated limits, thinking that this is the place where everything happens. It is. And everything includes all the hardship, and hate, and grime humanity has.

You can visit NYC and have a magical time. But to move there is different. You need to hustle. You need let the city punch you in the face, a few times. You have to earn every little inch that might not amount to much. Honestly, this is why I haven’t moved there yet. I am aware of how hard it is. That city hands out nothing. You have to take it from its clutched fists. It will try to get you to leave. I have seen many people leave because they weren’t welcomed in they way they thought their life deserved to be.

Remember this if you are thinking of going. The city probably hates you. After a few years, maybe it will be tolerant of you. But never expect the city to love you if you can’t be as hard as its steel and concrete. It takes real dedication and lots of time to get there. So put in your dues, or go back to where you came from.

(I felt weird writing this, being I have never lived in NYC, but most of my people are from/moved there. Quite a few have left too. I love being there, but have always felt this way about moving to the city)