Living in New York City (NYC) has a unique set of great advantages that only us who work and live here may enjoy.  We have so much variety of cuisine choices, highly remarkable array of cultural demonstrations, among the best talent, among the wealthiest sectors of neighborhoods, the most intriguing minds, and the most competitive souls eking out their mortal lives in our midst (just like the rest of us). But, humans that we are (who can’t help but see the flip side of our relative state of contentment), we can’t help but stare at the other aspects we encounter while struggling to make a living here. We see a number of disturbing and annoying disadvantages.

1)    The rates of rents are outrageously out of sync with the rest of the country. The rates depend on which borough you live, but they’re generally among the most expensive in the whole country. The rates can only get you so much space. Most regular folks live here with roommates. Most live in tiny living spaces; a studio is probably equivalent to the bathroom and living room of a regular family in the Midwest, and this is not an exaggeration at all.

2)    It’s easily among the noisiest places to live in. You hear all kinds of unwanted and unnecessary noise all day long. You hear the public bus honking and making stops; you hear trains speeding up; you hear noisy neighbors “wash their linens in public.” You hear all kinds of music that are maddening, and not at all appropriate on certain hours of the day. You hear the police siren at least once a day. And you “hear loud” expressions of varied lifestyles all the time, with how people lead and pursue their lives on and off the streets of NYC.

3)    It’s a dirty place to live in, too. Check the subways – you’d regularly see very intrepid families of rats competing space with humans who take the ride to and fro their destinations. Subway trains and the buses are dirty, too. Facades of certain old buildings are dirty-looking, and remain unkempt, too. You see homeless people plying their trade everywhere in NYC. Certain public bathrooms are dirty. If your standards of cleanliness are higher than most, you’ll have the shock of your life in NYC when you see how these issues are flying all over the place, anytime, in varying degrees.

4)    It’s a very expensive place to live in, to exclude that issue about the rents. You won’t see the giant retailer Walmart anywhere in NYC (unless you venture into New Jersey or Long Island) that will somehow help you stretch your dollar. There’s the presence of other smaller competitors of Walmart but they’re simply not enough (considering that there’s at least 8 million now in NYC). The price of public transportation has been increasing so quickly you struggle with budgeting it with what you receive for your pay. Try buying a pack of cigarettes in NYC – and you’ll promise yourself to stop smoking soon. And there’s a long list of items in NYC that are priced higher by at least 12% than in most places in the USA, and we’re not complaining (we’re narrating the simple fact).

5)    It’s still a place targeted by terrorists of all hues and persuasions. Remember, majority of those who perished in 9/11 originated from NYC.  You’ll live with the reality that any kind of violence brought about by terrorists may happen anytime while you’re in NYC.

But then, despite these lingering disadvantages, we still decide (and prefer) to live here. Great and kind-hearted fellows live within our midst. The burden of our daily struggles is shared most actively and passionately alike (in varying degrees) by every one here, rich and poor alike. We “heart” New York.