Open Windows

The summer weather in New York City has (with the exception of a few 90° plus scorchers) has been surprisingly pleasant. During the day it's been pleasingly warm, and at night time surprisingly cool.

My roommate swears by air conditioning, but I myself prefer a thriftier way of beating the heat and enjoy trying natural ways of cooling down the apartment, like opening the windows on cool nights. Occasionally my stubborn views on the matter of apartment cooling have resulted in a rather sweaty uncomfortable state of being on more than one steamy night. However, most recently this form of climate control has been quite effective as the temperature frequently drops to the sixties when the sun goes down.

Unfortunately, New York is a city that never sleeps and my Brooklyn 'hood seems to support this mentality. During the day children screech endlessly on the playground outside my window, and at night the racket does not halt. Parents bring their kids out for midnight romps, and neighborhood hooligans shout obscenities at each other while loping through the various jungle gym apparatus. My neighbor down the street seems to think that the only way to enjoy his reggae music is by blasting it full volume from two speakers sitting on his porch. This reggae music, in addition to the occasional bout of ice cream truck melodies, has been a pretty constant soundtrack to my life. And as always, street sweepers and fire trucks scream down our street ad infinitum, setting off that annoying building alarm every time they go by.

In short, I'm tired of living on this street.

Luckily, I am moving! I've found an amazing 3 bedroom apartment with my friends in a lovely little neighborhood that is more reminiscent of small town New England than of busy, noisy, dirty New York City. The apartment is on the third floor and features a huge living with fireplace and built in bookshelves, two full bathrooms, a new kitchen, and our very own washer and dryer.

While I'm looking forward to spreading out in our palatial apartment, what I am most looking forward to is living on the top floor of a building located on a dead end road in a neighborhood featuring calm streets without traffic lights. In other words, I'm looking forward to finally getting a full night of sleep in peace and quiet.