As a girl who was born and raised in New York that now goes to college in Kansas, there are some questions and statements that people like to ask and tell me way too often. Here are some of my favorites.
1. “You left New York for this!?”
Don’t get me wrong, New York is a pretty awesome state, but it is not as glamorous as "Gossip Girl" and "Real Housewives of New York City" make it seem. And just because New York is such a cool state does not mean that other states are automatically lame when compared to it. It’s good to get away and try living in a completely different place.
2. “Do you get homesick?”
Who doesn’t? It can definitely be hard at times to be so far from home, but I have so many amazing people in my life that have made the Midwest feel like my new home. And being so far away from your family makes time spent with them even more special. New York will always have a special place in my heart, no matter where I end up living. Like Dorothy said, “There’s no place like home.”
3. “Times Square must be so cool!”
Unless you like having your personal space invaded by what feels like millions of people, then Times Square really is not that cool. Any New Yorker knows that Times Square is simply a tourist trap and only tolerable occasionally for pictures. It’s full of weird smells, people dressed up in costumes ready to harass you for money, people trying really hard to get you to come to their comedy club and most importantly, tourists. I typically try to avoid Times Square at all costs.
4. “You don’t really have an accent, though.”
I’m pretty sure that when I tell people that I am from New York they expect me to have a very strong accent and wonder why I do not have one. However, there are certain words that, when I say them, it is a dead giveaway that I am from New York. It is impossible for me to order Orange Chicken at Panda Express without the Panda Express employee automatically knowing that I am not from the Midwest, due to my pronunciation of the word orange.
5. “It must be impossible to drive where you live.”
I live in the suburbs outside of New York City, so driving near where I live is no harder than driving in the Midwest. However, driving in Manhattan is a completely different story and you will not catch me driving a car in Manhattan anytime soon.
6. “You must hate it here.”
People will probably think I’m crazy for saying this, but I love the Midwest just as much as I love New York. I love the laid back lifestyle of the Midwest and I miss Kansas so much when I am home.
7. “Do you listen to Taylor Swift’s song "Welcome to New York" every time you go back home?”
This is a question that I never get tired of hearing, because this song is my anthem. I would be lying if I said I didn’t put this song on repeat as soon as we enter the airspace above New York every time I fly home.
8. “Are you going to move back to New York as soon as you graduate?”
People love to ask me this question as if I know exactly what my plans are already for after I graduate. I wish I knew where I was going to end up living when I graduate college, but I really have no idea. I do have a feeling it will not be in New York, though.
