"It was so easy to want to live in Hudson, so hard to actually live in Hudson."
There are a bunch of threads that intersect in Reyhan Harmanci's account of moving to Hudson -- and then deciding to leave: the allure of the small town, adjusting from a large metro area to a small one, the difficulty of making friends as an adult, the sometimes soul-crushing effect of the upstate winter. And also this: you have to accept a place for what is, and sometimes that's not easy. [NYT]
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Comments
This woman needs to grow up and stop writing whiny "whoa as me" opinion blogs.
To be a part of a community, particularly a small community, one has to take part in the community. That's how you meet people, make friends and find stuff to do.
... said Cyril on Sep 5, 2014 at 9:00 AM | link
Good story. I've found that the IDEA of something is often better than actually having it.
... said Barold on Sep 5, 2014 at 10:16 AM | link
I'll sum this up for everyone: A "creative professional" is socially awkward, whines about not making friends in an otherwise fun small town.
Good riddance. Hudson is a place where real people work, create, and live, not just fodder for NYT thinkpieces. It seems like they were more interested in tapping into Hudson's "hipness" than being part of the actual community.
... said Guy on Sep 5, 2014 at 10:35 AM | link
Let's not be harsh.
It's important for us to show empathy for people who live in cool places, work at exciting jobs, have the freedom to pick up and relocate clear across the country to Hudson -- and then move to NYC because they don't like it.
... said Rob on Sep 5, 2014 at 12:39 PM | link
That people seek the validation of their community or lifestyle from any kind of article in the New York Times, and that the New York Times continues to write as if nothing is valid unless they've discovered it and pointed out its quaintness are two of the things I will miss least about living in the Hudson Valley. The last thing I want to live in is the "new" anything else. I want to live in my community, not the one hipster writers at the Times envision for me.
... said Carl on Sep 5, 2014 at 2:18 PM | link
Ah yes, the Millennial crisis. Always chasing after a picture of something they thought they saw on instagram or tumblr. Obviously, if you are moving from San Francisco to Upstate NY, winters are different and colder and snowy. I mean seriously, what does one expect?
This girl never wanted to adapt to Hudson, she wanted Hudson to fit the problems she was facing in San Fran, incredibly high cost of living and the need to experience something different. People in Hudson don't want your "idea of Hudson," they love living there because it's their community, their town. Not someone's idea of trendy, small town life.
Also, I think it's funny she went from one of the most expensive cities on the west coast to ending up living in one of the most expensive cities on the east coast. I can almost guarantee she won't be happy there either and decide taking a year off to travel abroad will solve all of life's problems.
... said Sara on Sep 9, 2014 at 3:40 PM | link