Why I’ll By no means Transfer Again to Austin After Shifting to New York City

Until I moved to New York City, Austin was my favourite place I had ever lived. I used to be near my household and had a straightforward time making associates. Plus, it is the place my good pug continues to stay with my mother.

The outside scene in Austin was inclusive and thrilling. With free mountain climbing trails within the hills and paths to walk subsequent to the Colorado River, there have been loads of issues to do in nature.

When I went out at evening, the drinks have been low-cost, and stay music was by no means too exhausting to search out.

For a studio house in Austin in 2016, I paid $850 a month in lease.

I paid the identical worth for my first house in NYC in 2019 — besides I lived in a three-bedroom, one-bathroom house shared with strangers.

Since shifting to New York, I’ve lived in 5 flats, starting from $1,650 to $3,000 month-to-month for one-bedroom models.

According to Zillow, the common lease in Austin is at present $2,050, whereas the average in NYC is $3,750.

Nowadays, I pay $2,200 for a one-bedroom house with a small workplace in Queens. It prices me half my month-to-month earnings after taxes, however it’s price it to me to stay right here.

I spent 5 years residing in Brooklyn earlier than shifting to Queens in 2024. It’s price noting that I’ve by no means lived in Manhattan.

I’m not a fan of vehicles. The considered driving a car makes me take into consideration the potential for hurting myself or another person, so I by no means completed studying how.

In NYC, life with out a automobile is not any drawback. While associates of mine complain in regards to the lack of parking, I commend town’s public transportation system.

I was uncomfortable guiding myself by the underground stations, however taking the prepare round New York turned second nature inside weeks of residing right here as a result of I did it each day.

Taking trains within the metropolis has given me a freedom I did not have in Austin, the place I’d typically stroll upward of 20 minutes to the closest bus cease.

Since shifting to New York, I’ve been uncovered to much more residential rooftop settings. Beautiful skyline views are a backdrop for typical summer season social gatherings.

Three of my 5 NYC flats have had rooftop entry. It’s an important spot to hang around with associates or watch the sundown when the climate is good.

Many residents I do know have a rooftop setup at their house.

There’s a lot happening in New York that deciding how you can spend my free time is usually overwhelming.

Virtually each time I need, I can resolve to have an epic day filled with studying at locations just like the Museum of Natural History — or I can sprawl out independently amongst lots of of New Yorkers at Prospect Park, the place there are sometimes folks enjoying music on the garden on a sunny day.

Sometimes, I bump into dance events in parks and on rooftops. These gatherings are all the time a great time, even when I’m not in search of them.

After six years of residing right here, I’ve discovered that my most well-liked weekend actions are native concert events and baseball video games.

NYC is greater than 200 years older than Austin, as is evidenced by the historic structure.

Whether it is million-dollar houses that was once horse stables or an deserted Civil War fortress, historical past lurks round each nook.

I’m all the time pleased to be within the Northeast when fall rolls round — in contrast to in Austin, the place I missed out on the colourful foliage.

When I depart New York, it looks like my life is shifting in gradual movement. There’s an power on this metropolis that’s, in my expertise, unmatched wherever else.

Walking round, you will see folks doing many alternative issues — a lot in order that for those who cease to go searching for a minute, you begin to really feel behind.

This energetic vibe fuels me by my workdays. And being in a metropolis the place potentialities really feel countless retains me pushed.

Since shifting to New York, I’ve been motivated to make my life greater, and it is simple for me to imagine that I’m able to doing so after I see it throughout me.

I’ve been enjoying music since I used to be a child, and I’ll always remember my first present at a neighborhood membership in Dallas in 2012. It gave me probably the most distinctive and invigorating feeling I’d ever skilled. I hopped off stage, shaking and shouting “I’m going to do this forever” on repeat.

The sheer quantity of pushed musicians and venues in NYC made it attainable for me to chase my childhood dream. Since shifting right here, I’ve been in three bands and performed 46 reveals round NYC and the East Coast, from Boston to Tampa Bay, Florida.

With associates everywhere in the US and household from Texas to Guam, I’ll miss my family members regardless of the place I stay, so I’d as effectively stay in one of many coolest locations to go to.

Since shifting to New York, numerous members of the family and previous associates have handed by town for a day or two. Adding a little bit like to my week is all the time a welcome shock.

When I depart town for trip or in any other case, coming residence all the time feels good. Those post-trip blues soften away as quickly as I see the skyline from my airplane window.