Color me surprised. Having previously lived in Manhattan for some 25-odd years, the last five on mega-intense Canal Street, this is not a place I have ever considered in any way restful. When I mentioned to some of my ski friends I was considering renting a place in the big city again, they looked at me as if I was in need of counseling. Once one moves to the outer lands, returning seems, if not impossible, at least improbable. My one buddy, who shall remain nameless, put it rather harshly: “Park City is a retirement village for those who made a lot of money and a professional sinkhole for those who fell for the idea they could continue growing from here.” Ouch, but more true than I would like to admit.
The news is my wife and I just rented a small 700 sq ft apartment in a new 80-story tower in lower Manhattan, and I am, well, how should I put this… surprisingly happy. The neighborhood reminds me of the mixed outer arrondissements of Paris: older Asians, orthodox Jewish, low-income housing, and a slew of sharp young people, all of whom hang out in the parks and squares, mix and mingle; it’s not Utah. I get that this ‘hood is not for everyone — the F train station is a rodent wilding zone, and the clockers who hang out at Dunkin’ Donuts are to be avoided.
For all you SuperAge Owls, here is the data: 2 nights of all-time-high HRV, and averaging 8 hours 40 minutes of sleep at a 93% efficiency. In other words, I am sleeping like a rock. The lack of stress is interesting. No car, therefore no car to dig out from the snow, to fill with gas, to drive on snowy roads, to worry about all the car stuff one does like insurance cards, registration renewal, oil check, snow tires. A tiny apartment means a tiny cleaning burden, and very little stuff to worry about. The bounty of in-building services means every night I take a sauna and cold plunge followed by an elevator ride up to my sleepy apt. There is a charming, small food shop 5 minutes’ walk away, Whole Foods for everything else delivers for $10. To up the positive exotic factor, there are maybe a dozen languages heard in the lobby. Oddly, the building is a singular value play. It’s not cheap, this is Manhattan, but it’s less than pretty much any modern building around.
The point I want to make is that the only way I would have known any of this was to actually do it. My past reference was based on what I saw over 15 years ago. Things change, places change and so do people — which I seem to need reminding of daily. The unlikely can have a good outcome. Of course, we will be going back to Utah regularly; there are, after all, ski races to, if not win, at least give a good showing.
Onward and upward,
David
