Like most people, I always imagined moving to New York to be as glamorous as they made it out to be in the show Sex and the City. I thought that I would find my own girl gang like the one Carrie, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda had and be able to afford Prada shoes and rent at the same time. While living in the city can be as glamorous as Carrie said and I do have those friendships, expectations definitely differ from reality. With that being said, Carrie Bradshaw did lend a helping hand with some words of advice that I took when I moved here, and hopefully, they can help you too.
- Finances Are Everything, But Not Everything
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There are two quotes that come to mind when I think about Carrie discussing her finances. The two are kind of a juxtaposition, but both are extremely helpful. One was, “I like my money where I can see it. Hanging in my closet,” and the second: “I spent $40,000 on shoes and I have no place to live? I will literally be the old woman who lives in her shoes!” On one hand, Carrie is explaining that life shouldn’t be taken to seriously, and you might as well spend your money on something you want now rather than later because later might not happen. However, it’s important not to go overboard because you might find yourself in an awkward predicament like Carrie.
- New York Is Magical, Sometimes
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Okay, in the show, they kind of blew this one up too much. Like in most TV shows and movies that are set in the city, it always looks a bit unrealistic (seriously, where are they filming? It looks so clean). Despite, all the good moments, we complain about living here with all of the trash, crowds of people, and the smells (only the strongest can walk by the Chipotle vents on Fulton and not have the urge to gag). It’s hard not to feel like you’re a part of something while you’re here. Carrie sums it up when she says, “When I’m in New York. I just want to walk down the street and feel this thing. Like I’m in a movie.” And she’s right, “That’s another reason I love New York. Just like that, it can go from bad to cute.” Even though the frustrating parts of living here, I’m starting to see what Carrie meant when she said, “You only get one great love… New York may just be mine.”
- Friendships Really Are Forever, Even When They’re Not
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People come and go in our lives. Friendships themselves may not last forever, but it’s important to know that the love for the person and the memories you had together will always remain. That’s what Carrie was talking about when she said, “After all seasons change, so do cities; people come into your life and people go. But it’s comforting to know that the ones you love are always in your heart.” On the other hand, friendships are what help shape us as people. When Carrie said, “They say nothing lasts forever; dreams change, trends come and go, but friendships never go out of style.” This is true; friends are there to call you out on your sh!t and be there to help you pick up the pieces when things are falling apart. That will never change.
- No Dream Is Too Unrealistic As Long As You Work For It
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Carrie once said, “When I first moved to New York and I was totally broke, sometimes I would buy Vogue instead of dinner. I felt it fed me more.” Obviously, for Carrie, her passion was for fashion and writing. She was able to be a famous columnist, as well as write a few books. This is because she had a dream and worked hard for it for so long.
- Be Unapologetically Yourself, Always
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This is the one I sometimes need to remind myself of. When you live in New York, everyone, for the most part, is continuously focused on themselves. Everyone is always planning their next move and how they are going to beat out their competition. In this land of extremely ambitious people, it can become easy to compare yourself to others or lose yourself on your rise to the top. That’s why Carrie said, “Don’t forget to fall in love with yourself first.” It can be easy to get caught up in the ‘maybe I should be more like them’ or ‘only if I looked like this person,’ but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really matter. No one is exactly the same (as corny as that sounds, it’s true). Even Carrie said that “I will never be the perfect woman, with the perfect hair who can wear white and not spill on it,” and man, oh man, can I relate to that one. Like Carrie, just own it because not accepting yourself the way you are is only harmful to you in the long run. In a place like NYC, you don’t have the time or energy to waste not loving yourself. After all, Carrie taught us that, “The most exciting, challenging, and significant relationship of all is the one you have with yourself.” So, go ahead and be yourself.