Here's what your fellow plrgs are saying. We'd love to hear from you! Post a comment and let us know your tips to surviving in NYC.
Unfortunately with the MTA prices sky-rocketing (monthly passes subject to change from $84 to $104), what's a girl to do? I guess it's better than daily cab rides, but come May I might have to forego the $100 pass, whip out the sneakers, leave early for work, get my ass a-walkin' and enjoy the urban outdoors....plus maybe I'll work off some of this winter blubber I've been toting around (let's call that silver lining). Just an idea ladies... - "B"
Getting a real job post grad, and moving to the Big Apple, I assumed I would automatically be able to enjoy all of the luxuries that I wanted to. The real world and a real salary...it turns out I was so very naive. Rent, cabs, dinners, trying to be as trendy as the next NYC-er, and don't forget the drinks (that is until we become DABAs...but that's another story) sure do add up. Keep the Poor Lil' Rich Girl advice coming. Girls like us need some direction in this big city on how to still feel rich, in this poor economy. - Michelle
Well, PLRG as I sit here in, my cubicle...No, not at the office, but (gasp) the library, reading your posts, I am pining for a little St. Patty's Day hangover myself. This would at least give me some semblance of that social life I used to hold so dear. I am caught thinking to myself, I wish I could be a PLRG right now...thats right, jealous of a PLRG.
I am jealous of all the PLRGs out there who celebrated our favorite green holiday and can gchat their way to their lunch break, because there is another brand of PLRG out there...thats right, PLRG-who decided to not get a job and thought it was a great idea to go right back to school. The only upside, to the lack of salary I have now, is the possibility of an above entry level paycheck...someday, if the economy shapes up..someday. But until then I'll be living off of a student loan check and phone calls home--mostly to beg them to let me splurge on the Amtrak to come home for holidays. Visiting friends? Looks like I'll be "Fung Wah"-ing my way to NYC circa Chinatown until 2011. So here is a shout out to my fellow post-graduated, still full time student PLRGs (whose exercise is free because we lug six 500 page books to and fro' each day.)
I know you're out there... - Kimberly
looking forward to hearing more from you plrgs. stay tuned for the weekend guide, coming out tomorrow!
dear plrg,
ReplyDeleteconfession: friday night i paid $18 to go to an elitist after hours event held by DC hipsters at one of the Smithsonian's art museums... which i could have done for free during the day. i was under the impression that it would be open bar and i would drink my $18-worth, college-style, while still being an elitist who enjoys art. the drinks were not free and instead of accepting this and choosing to abstain, i walked 2 blocks in the rain to an ATM (bc obviously the bar was cash-only) and spent too much $$ on pre-mixed cocktails because lets be honest, i'm not hipster enough to do that shit sober... -6pts
consolation: i spent the rest of the weekend (as i spend most weekends) eating soup alone, while staring at anatomical diagrams and wallowing in my own self-inflicted academic prison. +10pts.
total: +4pts
lessons learned: are two-fold
1. I know that there's NO place on earth like NYC, but as a plrg based out of the nation's capital I do have the opportunity (when I'm smart enough to take it) to enjoy many national treasures/events for free, or at least at prices most of you would consider discount. We're not as fashionable here as our NYC counterparts, but we do enjoy drinks, dinners, brunches and public transportation of the same, or arguably better quality, (dc metro vs. nyc subway, anyone?) at a much better price.
2. Life as a med/law student etc. is a little more socially dormant than it is for you (corporate) career girls, which means that even after a weekend sPLuRGe the math often still works in our favor. However, before you all decide to go running off to grad school once you hit that 1-year on the job mark, take a minute to think about how you'll finance that. If Mommy and Daddy are weathering this financial storm and still believe in making all your dreams come true, then go for it. But if you're like most of us, you're looking at major loans to cover the next 2-5 years of not only tuition, but living in general. And where are these loans coming from? That's right ladies, banks... not the most popular or trustworthy kids at the party these days... hope you've been saving more than sPLuRGing this past year...
That all said, hop on Bolt or Megabus for a pretty cheap ride and come see us some time. But please consult with our exam schedule first, grad students don't often get the whole weekend to mess around (think about that). We'd love to show you Barack's house, and the cool little speakeasies that are popping up in some of our hoods. I just know PLRG could come up with a pretty fabulous DC weekend guide, if you needed it.
Love, from a student-loan dependent/quasi antisocial PLRG in the District