I may have only been living in the city for six months, but I know some stuff now.
We’re on decent terms. I never hated living here. You have to understand that I came from the suburbs of metro Atlanta and then from the Hamptons. It was and still is a major transition. Yeah it kicked my butt at times, but I’m learning to kick back and own my city.
If you ever move to New York City, visit long-term, or need some tips on making life easier, I have some, and feel free to add your own in the comments.
- Get your laundry sent out … just pay someone to do it. It’s NOT worth doing it yourself.
- Always leave earlier than you could because you are at the mercy of the train system, and let me tell you, if I hear we’re stuck “because of train traffic” one more time …
- Get yourself a nice bottle of hand sanitizer. I’ve been the sickest I’ve ever been since I moved here and I think it’s because a little thing called GERMS. People cough, sneeze, hack, breathe, rub up against, you name it, on the poles and seats of the train. I’m convinced NYC is the dirtiest.
- Find out where you can go to the bathroom for free. That way in a pinch, you can be relieved without purchasing a $5 coffee or something. I’d recommend McDonald’s, Panera, The Coffee Bean, libraries, Barnes & Noble, and some Starbucks locations don’t lock their bathrooms.
- Don’t eat out every day. It REALLY adds up.
- Download all the apps.
I can’t stress how much easier life can be with cell apps that bring food to your door, order theater tickets or a car to pick you up. I recommend downloading these apps stat if you want to remain sane:
Venmo: Transfer to or accept money from friends, family, doctors, roommates, co-workers, etc. Use when you don’t have the cash on hand but want to make the effort of paying someone back. Money is easily transferred from bank account to bank account with a tap. I especially love the ability to add emojis when you make a transaction. 
Lyft/Arro: I don’t live in Manhattan, so yellow cabs are few and far between. These two apps are like Uber, but less morally questionable. Lyft is similar in that it is a company that uses fancy black cars and SUVs to pick you up as if you were Lindsay Lohan. Arro is actually the yellow cabs’ version of the hailing app and I like it, especially in the city when you can just hop in a cab and sync up with the system and automatically pay for your ride.
Lyft, I have yet to see a pink mustache in your cars. Yeah, that’s a thing.
Seamless: This will change your life. I’m not exaggerating. You may never leave home again. Choose from a many number of restaurants, which have been rated, in close proximity to your apartment, save your credit card number and order. The restaurant will do the rest. Tip is included in your amount so all you have to do is buzz the delivery guy in and take your food. You will want to do this for the rest of forever.
P.S. I get weak in the knees when “Seamless” and “Netflix” are in the same sentence.
Instacart: A newly discovered app to order groceries by. Select whatever you want like you would at the supermarket submit your payment and within two hours, or at a selected time of your choice, and your supermarket will deliver your goods. Again, tip is handled through the app, so no fussing with cash after the you grab your bags at your door.
CVS/[your pharmacy here]: Ordering your prescriptions via screen so you can pick them up at your convenience is the 
.
Any subway map. I still don’t know every line, okay?
Has anyone tried TodayTix? I want to know if it’s as good as I hope it is. Cheap theater tickets!
That’s it for now, kids.
Photo by Richard Yeh / WNYC