"Living in New York is too expensive. You'll never survive with a minimum wage job."
If I was asked to quantify the number of times I'd heard that statement in the last year, I would not be able to. I have spent the last 12 months of my life thriving in New York City all on a salary of $250/week. I have taken advantage of tons of free programs NYC has to offer: free museums, musicals, movies, concerts, and even meals. As I write this, I am waiting in line to score free tickets to Shakespeare in the Park, an annual production run by a small theatre company in the city that brings Shakespeare to the masses at a beautiful outdoor theatre in Central Park.
My entire life isn't filled with free things and visits to the park, though. There is the obvious bad stuff our parents always warned us about: panhandlers on the subway, getting lost in unsafe neighborhoods, and even a small run-in with the cops in one of the aforementioned neighborhoods, I wouldn't chance my late night subway rides home from work for anything in the world. I wouldn't trade the homeless man in my neighborhood who sits in front of McDonalds for anything. These people-the undesirable aspects of city life have shaped my New York experience. I am much more thankful for the 500 sq ft apartment I share with three other girls, I am more thankful for the chicken and rice I am making for dinner tonight. I am infinitely more thankful for the stepping stone job I recently left, because a job is a job, and this job happened to pay my bills and gave me a little bit of wiggle room too. It hasn't been easy, but I've made it. A whole year on my own. Apart from my parents and from anyone I've known for more than two years. I'm home.
~Kristina, 20, NYC
No comments:
Post a Comment