One Week in New York

Having lived in New York for a little more than a week, I feel obligated to share a couple reflections: (I apologize in advance if this blog becomes a little Gotham-centric as I acclimate to my new surroundings.)

New York (and when I say New York, I by-and-large mean the Upper West Side, my new home) is at once dirtier and cleaner than I expected. On the dirty side, the mountains of trash bags that accumulate on the sidewalk must be seen to be appreciated; when a few of them break open, the effect is disgusting. On a cleaner note, I'm pretty sure that trash day is every day. The sheer effort that sanitation workers, porters, and building supers go through in order to keep the city clean is really quite impressive.

Everyday, I see a New Yorker treating the city with gentle respect while another New Yorker treats it like a dump. The tragedy and charm of the commons are in full view. At the dog park or at Central Park, I see thousands of New Yorkers using common resources in a manner that is almost delicate. On the way back from the dog park, I see a man toss a wrapper over his shoulder immediately onto the sidewalk.

One block down from me, there is a stable with horses in it. In the middle of Manhattan. The Claremont Riding Academy. Awesome. City kids ride horses while old Puerto Rican men play dominoes across the street.

While walking Maggie Beagle and Molly Beagle, more people have stopped me to say hello in the last week than in the previous 6 months. My dogs seem shocked by the number of dogs they have met since we arrived.