The City is my...Man Friend??

"If you can only have one great love, then the city just may be mine. And I don't want nobody talkin' shit about my boyfriend." 

- Carrie Bradshaw, Sex and the City

Ahh, dating! That delicate balance of extreme highs, lows, vulnerability, elusiveness, and confusion with which I have a love-hate relationship. 

Based on this assessment and my general experiences living here over the past six weeks, I am dating NYC. We are still grabbing drinks, “feeling each other out” and trying to decide if we may be able to stand each other’s company for a year or so (the dating equivalent of a 2 hour dinner, which is apparently a milestone here in NYC dating life).

So, at this point, the city is what my girlfriends would call my “man friend” – not quite boyfriend status because I haven’t figured out if or how I think he fits into my life yet.

As cities go, I’ve fallen in love before. First I fell in love with what I knew of Phoenix as a child visiting family. Then I fell in love with Chicago over seven years ago and can’t exactly explain to you why I didn’t actually choose to move there this year. And I fell in love with Cleveland slowly yet all at once, as it took me almost all of my adult life to realize how amazing it truly was. That being said, I’m not sure I belong there anymore.

I’m also not convinced that I belong here forever. It’s hard to decipher these matters of the heart. I’m not settling down yet, but when I do I want it to be in a city that has great parks and bikesharing for my active spirit, one that is big enough to support good public transportation (sorry CLE), has water views, boasts a great yoga presence, pleases my foodie palate with walkable celebrity chef restaurants & local markets, one whose residents eat/sleep/breathe its sports teams, and ultimately one where I feel at home enough to want to raise a family there and never leave.

Uncharacteristically, I have decided to give NYC an ultimatum of one year to dazzle me in dating (but since he’s my “man friend,” he doesn’t exactly know this). One year of exploring, adventuring, and getting to know the heart of this city while he shows me the delicate depths of his soul in those rare but spectacular moments of discovery.

If he isn’t for me, I’ve certainly learned that it’s not worth sticking around to force it and I refuse to do so. So, get ready for plenty of NYC bucket list-worthy experiences from now to June 2015.

And for now while I feel this thing out and decide if NYC is my one great love, I don't want nobody talkin' shit about my “man friend” until I make that decision for myself.