Over the past couple months, some of my favorite blogs have just up and quit and it's really bummed me out. I know I've been posting very sporadically, but I'm not going anywhere. I'm just being kind of lazy, lately.
I'm still writing two columns a week—here's one featuring a guy who hates capri pants (not an uncommon phenom I've discovered) and another on being a good ex, which was inspired by this this example of a very, very bad ex.
Oh, wait—there's more!
I keep getting these crushes on little towns upstate because my dream is to have a country cottage where I'd spend half the week. First it was Hudson, but then I saw Athens and that town took the #1 spot. Unfortunately, Athens isn't on a train line and seems kind of far.
I kept reading about Newburgh, which is about an hour closer than either of the first two, so when my friend Tricia asked me if I wanted to take a day trip up there while she took down her art show, I jumped at the opportunity. I read this great blog called Newburgh Restoration fairly religiously and was very curious at the glut of gorgeous Victorian homes in the under-100k range. I mean, I can almost afford that!
So we drove up there and quickly realized why the houses are so cheap—it's pretty depressed and has a major crime/gangs problem. I realize it's a scrappy little town, trying to regain its footing, but driving through some of those streets was like happening through a set on The Wire. We were poking around, doing drive-bys of cheap houses I'd found, but what I didn't count on were all the abandoned houses or the hordes of guys hanging out on every other corner. I haven't gotten so much sideeye or seen that much blatent drug activity since the '80s and I'm woman enough to admit that it was pretty intimidating.
This is a house I renamed "We're here, we're queer, we're outta here." And yes, I'm stereotyping because of the lavender trim, though I would've also chosen that color too. It was obviously once lovingly restored, but for whatever reason—and we drove by about 50 good ones—the owners must've high-tailed it out of there and now it's abandoned, like so many other places.
I feel kind of guilty even saying this, but I'm just not tough enough to handle another transitional neighborhood, no matter how affordable. I lived in far East Village for a big part of the crack years, but I was a lot younger and still starry-eyed about living in Manhattan.
And while it pains me to come clean, I will admit it: the combination of gentrification and Brooklyn have turned me into a pussy. I like having food delivered. I enjoy not being accosted every time I leave my house. I love that gunfire is an rare thing that warrants attention.
I remember one night—back in the' 80s, when I was living on 3rd between B & C—hearing a guy shrieking like a cornered cat. After some loud cracking noises, the following silence was eerie, but I didn't call the cops because that kind of shit happened all the time. I found out that the guy I'd heard screaming had been murdered when the cops knocked on the door the next morning. The bangs I'd heard were such an everyday occurrence that it never even occurred to me that they were gunshots. But when an UWS-dwelling boyfriend walked me home one night, he was horrified by the barrage. I assured him they were just firecrackers. He informed me that they absolutely were not. Oh.
There's definitely more to Newburgh than just the abandoned buildings and gangs. There's a thriving artist community, a bunch of beautiful mansions, and a lot of people working very hard to better their city. Unfortunately, I'm just not spunky enough to be one of them.
I don't get freaked out visiting Newburgh, but I do think it would get depressing living there.
The difference between 1980's Alphabet City and Newburgh today is the lack of people. There are only pockets of artists and newcomers moving in, but unfortunately, it may never really take off because it's just too damn far from civilization.
Beacon was really run down also and now it's lovely and quaint...but it's still no place for a spoiled NYer to live. Hey, don't sell food delivery short! Some of us just can't live without it!
If you can afford your NYC rent plus a cheap house, you should get yourself a country cottage like 2 hours away. Just don't move there full time or you'll regret it.
Posted by: rh | June 08, 2010 at 07:09 AM
Thanks for the write up, and for following! At least you came up for a visit. Even though Newburgh may not be for you, it needs starry-eyed people to make a difference just like they have done in Brooklyn and Manhattan. I'm trying to reach out to these people b/c you are right, Newburgh needs more people, and more attention. Maybe it'll be for you in the future. At least it's only an hour away from the city. You can't get many homes for those prices in a 60 mile radius of NYC. Next time, talk to some of the business owners on Liberty Street. You might have a different experience the next time around!
Best-Cherry
Posted by: Cherry@NewburghRestoration | June 08, 2010 at 12:13 PM
PS-I'm not quitting anytime soon either!
Posted by: Cherry@NewburghRestoration | June 08, 2010 at 12:14 PM
Loved your advice to the capri-hater. And I really don't get the capri-hate, anyway. Leggings, OK. But capris? Since when do guys look below a woman's chesticle area, anyway?
Posted by: jules | June 08, 2010 at 03:47 PM
I'm so glad you're not quitting! Great pics of the houses, and I enjoyed the new post.
Posted by: Tiia Jones | June 09, 2010 at 03:33 PM
I am just checking back to observe, belatedly, that you appear to have grown plants in your kitchen! In pots and whatnot!
Marveling.
Posted by: jules | June 15, 2010 at 05:09 PM
Wow. You know where I live I can take a fairly nice 4br, 3bath old home with a wrap-around porch, detached garage, wood floors, fireplace, and two sets of stairs (one for the help in the back) and put it near the country club and get $450K for it and move it to the north end of town and be lucky to get $175K for it.
Location, location, location...
It's better to have a small house in a great neighborhood than a big house in Gangland.
Posted by: paul | June 17, 2010 at 12:47 PM
Actually, this one is in a nice hood if you don't mind minnow-munchers (Roman Catholics).
http://www.woodsbros.com/NE/Lincoln/68506/homes-for-sale/4606-Calvert-St-48177109
Posted by: paul | June 17, 2010 at 12:50 PM