the constant seducer

i understand why people don't like new york. there are lifestyle disadvantages (which davis reminds me of every time he has to ride the subway) that can be annoying and tiresome...paying out the nose to live in a shoe box; going through money like it's toilet paper; sweating and freezing in the summer and winter respectively; the nuisance of getting across town or downtown or all around; bad stenches; panhandlers and weirdos. you get the idea. i have my moments of longing to live in a place where re-fills are free and work days are short. but these moments are typically short-lived and my love for the city-life re-surfaces. i recently passed through one of these "freak, i want to move west" moments, and lately i've been wondering why manhattan is able to seduce me more easily than a 20 year old uvsc coed at a park crossing pool party.

while many favor wide-open spaces and small crowds, i find a degree of satisfaction and contentment from living in a densely populated and built environment. sure, the other places offer larger and nicer and less expensive living accommodations. but you manage by making ny your home - central park becomes the backyard, barnes and noble the library, the gym the exercise room, the cleaners the laundry room (they wash and fold my clothes), and the limitless restaurants the kitchen. so while it sounds nice to have a mansion overlooking a lake filled with caramel, the convenience of having everything i need so close, coupled with the qualities that make ny so unique and wonderful, is what seduces me into urban submission.

perhaps it's the a.d.d., but the pace and chaos and culture and energy and buildings do something to me. i'm not easily bored here. there is much to see and more to do. the people are interesting, both to look at and listen to. this past weekend i went with some friends to washington square park. a crowd had formed around a group of singers and musicians. they were talented. but what made the concert so entertaining was what my friend, jordan, referred to as "the battle of the crazies." one drunk dude stood in front of the band and danced awkwardly alone, while another weird dude resembling a sheep herder/bird-watcher paced around the crowd making awkward gawking noises. a bit bazaar? yes. but interesting and funny and different. the culture is as unique as the diversity is endless. and more importantly, the talent and intelligence and beauty and creativity of ny are as exceptional as the city is inspiring. that's why i'm always a bit surprised when ny's seductive powers are powerless to those who find manhattan to be an unbearable home. but maybe it has nothing to do with seduction. maybe i'm just an urbanite at heart.