One thing I dislike about living in NYC is the isolation from my family. When I say family, I'm specifically talking my side (as opposed to E's).
We've always lived distances apart from each other; there was one summer where all of our households moved (me, both of my brothers, and my parents).
But there was always the possibility of a visit.
Now that I live in the big city, that possibility is extremely slim. Why? A few things combine to cause this phenomenon.
First, my brothers and my parents live below the Mason Dixon line, which means getting here is not a 4-5 hour drive (both of my brothers live within a 4-5 hour drive of my parents). In the past this didn't stop us from visiting each other (we visited my brother when he was stationed in Germany).
But combine distance with the expense of the city- that getting a hotel room for less than $200 a night is unlikely, that food and entertainment is pricey, that transportation can also be pricey.... When you live here after a while you forget the sticker shock you had when you first came. I can remember being outraged at the higher costs- for everything.
In addition to distance and expense, there's a few other factors depending on the family member. The inability to carry weapons would certainly give one of my brothers pause. He has licenses for what he carries but my understanding is NYC frowns upon individuals packing (in a city of 8+mil I can see their point- there is a place for carrying and a place for leaving those holsters empty). My parents aren't exactly up to visiting a city where the main means of transportation is walking.
Plus, no one in my family (except now me) is a city person. We're not country folk either- just much more comfortable in towns with less than 200,000 people (well, Montgomery might be a tad over that, but just a tad).
What this all boils down to is that if I want to see my family, we have to go to them. I don't mind it much, I just wish I could see everyone more often (see title).
