Top 10 Reasons to Move to New York NOW.

A friend of mine from Atlanta is considering his own move to New York. I have been both selling and, undoubtedly, scaring him to death with my tales of what it is like to move to New York. I would love to have this friend be a New York neighbor of mine, so he often challenges me to "sell him" on New York.

What better way to sell him than a list. I will roll out two or three reasons per posting on our way to number one:

My Top 10 Reasons to Move to New York Now

(10 to 8)

10. Variety. Variety is the spice of life, and let's admit it, Atlanta is not the hotbed of diversity. Walking to work this morning, I saw a midget couple, two well-dressed I-bankers fighting, three bums who blessedly left me alone, a drag queen, and several fashion plates. I passed by people of at least ten different races. I also saw a bunch of people just like me. New York is a true melting pot, and that mix of people creates a wonderful energy. It also affords you the chance to learn about people different from you, and to explore their life experiences right outside your doorstep.

9. Culture. Today, for free or very close to free, I could:

• Watch the latest Batman movie on a giant screen on Pier 54 overlooking the Hudson River;
  
• View some of the oldest known examples of art, saved from destruction by the Taliban, at the Met's exhibit of Afghan art;
  
• See how French Literary figure Louis Aragon resisted the Nazis during WWII in the Public Library's exhibit on literature in Vichy France;
  
• Go to see performances from the top Broadway shows, for free, in Bryant Park at lunch;
• Have a drink on a floating lighthouse bar, the Frying Pan;
• Walk along one of the world's most innovative parks, the High Line, and watch the impromptu "High Line Orchestra" playing from the balconies of nearby apartments;
  
• See portraits of NYC's 18th century citizens at the New York History Museum.

Folks, that list came from four minutes of visiting two websites. I could go on and on.

8. A Renewed Appreciation of Doing Nothing. This city is all about stimulation. It jumps on you the minute you rush out your door. Its sounds overwhelm your eardrums, its sights jiggle your optic nerves. And, I love the stimulation. It makes me feel alive. The list of "what to do" as you can see, is long. When I first moved here, I thought I would be out doing and going every night of the week in order to take it all in.

While I do try to do as much as I can, I have also discovered a new appreciation for the yin to the yang of this City's stimulation: the wonderful feeling of doing nothing. In Atlanta, sitting at home catching up on episodes of my favorite shows, or reading Follet's tome World Without End would be my last choice of how to spend an evening. It meant that nothing was going on. I would be calling up friends, finding out what is happening, and stirring up activities before I would let that happen.

In New York, a quiet evening at home is a divine, re-energizing treat for the soul. It has made me appreciate the beauty of down time. I love New York's yang of stimuli and its yin of self-imposed solitude.

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Come back over the next few weeks as I complete my pitch to my friend and count down to my Number 1 reason to move to New York now.