Lessons Learned

Sifting through everything that has been shared over the past few days, these are the key things I've read that have stood out to me:

1) The sharp divide between city and country. All the rural parts of the country (mainly between the coasts) have a vastly different way of life than the urban areas.  It's like there are 2 distinct bubbles that do not overlap, aided by the echo chambers on social media.

If you have not driven through and seen the “middle-of-nowhere’s” in Iowa, Mississippi, etc., you will never understand the misery and hopelessness that these people encounter on a day-to-day basis.  Their lives’ destinies are confined to their town; often, their blue-collar job is all they have to pin their hopes on.  Unlike in the city, where the opportunities to venture on your own seem endless. Is the disparity in opportunity an unsolvable problem at this stage.

Regardless of who won the close election, there would be intense opposition and protest by the other side, much of whom would/will never accept the result.

2) Trump supporters took him seriously but not literally. The opposing side took him literally but not seriously.  Does this actually make sense...why is it one but not the other, for either case.

3) In the last few weeks, Trump heavily campaigned in what ended up being the key swing states while Hillary mostly stayed put to avoid media scrutiny.  His strategy team was led by non-political marketing experts aim to sell a product, not an actual candidate.  It seems that he straight up outworked/outmaneuvered Hillary.

4) Some of the losing side saying that they should strive to understand those who support Trump - is this the practical approach or just self-rationalization/a defense mechanism. Is this looking forward, or the first signs of Stockholm Syndrome in an abusive relationship.

5) The next few years will show the true extent of the president’s power as an individual.

6) We in the Northeast live in such as social media-influenced liberal bubble!! I totally lost trust in the news/Facebook in giving me an accurate picture of what's going on in the rest of the country. We are insulated from viewpoints unfamiliar to our own.

Some Thoughts on NYC Apartment Hunting

The three C’s of apartment hunting are Cost, Convenience, and Comfort.  In NYC, you’re lucky to get even one of the three lol...but why not shoot for all of them!!!

Cost

The most important factor for an apartment’s price is its location - covered more in detail in the “Convenience” section.

You can start looking for an apartment a month before (usually not before because listings aren’t posted yet), but by start I mean dive head-first into it. Like being ready to visit any time.  The later you start, the less leeway you have with negotiating price/the more overall stressful it is.

Brokers are generally for people who don’t have the time/knowledge to look on their own. Honestly you can just grab a friend who knows NYC pretty well.  Management companies employ brokers to help them sell their properties; this should already be covered for in your application fee.  No reason to hire an outside broker who charges an additional fee.  An outside broker can actually hurt you because building’s broker has to split commission with your broker...or they will just raise the price on you to cover both commissions. No fee broker means they’re probably only going to show you certain properties that they have ties to.

Streeteasy is good enough for all your apartment-seeking needs, you just add buildings to your watchlist and get email alerts on them.  But again, it’s really important to be proactive and visit yourself. As for due diligence, I don’t think you need to do too much if the management company is trustworthy, but the basics are: ask neighbors, check phone reception, ask about heat/utilities coverage.  Take pictures of everything you can.

Oh and apartment maintenance is important to know before you sign (contact info/hours/address).  My senior year, I had a sketchy guy who just showed up when I called, but I did not have any other way to reach him besides a phone number. Last thing you want is for your heat to break in the middle of winter with no one to call...

In general, price is difficult to negotiate in NYC as demand is always high.

Convenience

Neighborhoods of NYC:

Manhattan

Midtown - a mix of all folks

Upper West Side - rich senior citizens

Upper East Side - rich families

Chelsea/Gramercy/West Village - rich yuppies

East Village/Greenwich Village - rich NYU students (side note: my easy-to-remember Alphabet City guide: Avenue A is for Aight, B is for Bars, C is for Catcalling, and D is for Danger)

Lower East Side/Chinatown - cheapest apartments in traditional “Manhattan”, but you get what you pay for usually…

Financial District - great bang for buck, if you’re okay with the brutalist architecture...

Brooklyn

I only know Bed-Stuy and Williamsburg as places where people live, but it’s kinda like you have to visit the area to truly get a sense of what it’s like.

Queens

Long Island City - really nice apartment especially alongside the East river, the modern “hot spot” right now

Astoria - the more traditional “hot spot”, more of a home-y/small town feel

Flushing - best food in the city, but you are at the mercy of being the last stop on the 7 train...

Staten Island

Further than Jersey, I’m pretty sure

Bronx

Not recommendable, according to my coworkers who live there. But wait...

I’m telling you now, this is the next “hot spot” of NYC: Like right now, it’s probably Long Island City, but with the building of the T train and the general infrastructure investments going on, this area is on the rise for sure. Right across the Harlem River, on Willis Ave in the Bronx...be on the lookout.

Train lines rankings (mainly based on reliability):

1. Yellow (NQR) and Purple (7)
2. Red (123) and Green (456)
3. Blue (ACE) and Red (JZ)
4. Orange (BDFM) and Gray (L)

Comfort

My dictionary of words that come up during apartment hunting:

*Any words in all caps* - ignore

Studio - smaller space than you’d think; and if you are able to sleep right next to where you cook, sure.

Alcove - small (similarly, “cute/”cozy”/charming”/etc.)

Loft  - ex-industrial/office building, quite spacious

Exposed brick - hipster alert

“Small” - really small

“Steps away from” - means nothing, anywhere is steps away in NYC

Two bedroom - may actually be one bedroom right now, but if you spend the money/effort building a wall/divider, this apartment could pass as a two bedroom

Craiglist - trustworthy for furniture, less so with apartments; worth a look for outer boroughs/upper Manhattan though

Walkup - if the building is more than 6 floors, the landlord is required to have an elevator

In conclusion, don’t trust words that much, only pictures...and even then you aren’t sure until you visit whether you’re being shown the actual unit or just generic pictures of another unit in the building. And for the record, I'm not sure how this post somehow went from super serious to flat out sass at the end - maybe that's just illustrative of the emotions this subject brings up.

NBA: Where Drama Happens

I don’t really follow the NBA during the regular season. It's just so time-consuming to watch games, not to mention the games don't really matter what much. When the playoffs roll around though, I'm really into it, going all all with articles/podcasts, etc. So for the majority of the season I'm barely in the loop, but when an event like Friday happens, it jolts me into reading/researching all about it. Maybe another reason was that there’s a blizzard raging outside…but whatever.  It's interesting to me to piece together the story that seemingly came out of nowhere, and to find out, the signs were there all along...

This post is about the Cleveland Cavaliers' firing of their coach, David Blatt, and the subsequent hiring of the chief assistant, Tyronn Lue. At first glance, this move seems so bizarre due to 1) Blatt has only been their coach for <2 years, and 2) the Cavs made the Finals last year and are a top 3 NBA team record-wise this year. No one saw this coming; that is, except for many people within the organization...

The right fit as coach

Across all sports, I believe there are 2 types of successful coaches; the guru (ex. Popovich) that can be strict with his players because the players respect his success over the years; and the more chill "players’ coach" (ex. Kerr), that brings out the best in his players by giving them more ownership.

The fact that Lue already signed a multiyear deal, when most interim coaches would just be allowed to finish the season and fit from there…means that the Cavs already know the type of coach that LeBron wants, that he needs.

The Cavs management knows the best coach for Lebron is not the guru figure, but rather, someone who LeBron trusts, one of his homies who he can see eye-to-eye with and fully trust.  Someone who has no chance to butt heads with LeBron.  His first coach who was a former NBA player, and someone who he personally played against...Lue fits that mold.

Why Blatt did not fit

Blatt has had enormous success in European/Middle Eastern leagues. He carried a large reputation and acted that way. He was heralded as a guru overseas that didn’t take any crap from players.  However, no player from an NBA locker room cared much about his other accomplishments, and scoffed whenever he used his prior experience as a qualifier.

Last year, he was called a rookie by some of his own players. That had to have dug at him a little, as you never know if they mean it behind their playful jabs...

In addition, he was calling plays/rotations that were questioned by veterans. Blatt became super meek as players corrected him and dictated the tone of meetings. Paradoxically, the more a coach yields (letting players change plays, not calling out mistakes), the more respect is lost.

The Caveat

The Cavs may have had the 3rd best record in the NBA, but had a terrible record against the NBA's fellow elite. So the record wasn't enough to save Blatt's job, especially if the team wasn't clicking together at its core. Thus, the peril of high expectations...

But Blatt did not inherit this team; he did not sign up for this job.  Never had LeBron’s blessing, who joined the Cavs 3 weeks after Blatt did. It was a lose-lose situation; he was doomed to never be fully trusted from the beginning. 

The management brought Blatt in to rebuild a young team and get guys to buy into the system, not handle one of the biggest egos in the league and make established pieces gel together. No one could have predicted the whole trajectory of Cleveland basketball would change with a free agency decision right after the coach was hired...

2 Warriors games, 2 key catalysts

On Christmas Day, when the Cavs played the Warriors for the first time this season, Blatt took veteran players and benched them for the entire game. More importantly, these rotations that seemingly came out of nowhere were not discussed with the team. The players were so upset at miscommunication that they gave up on the game the next day, losing by 30 points. Some say this was an indirect boycott/protest of the coach, who had lost his players' trust for good.

A week before the firing, when the Cavs got blown out at home by the Warriors and lost to them again, LeBron was sitting in Blatt’s chair venting to Lue for most of the fourth quarter. Not only did this signify that LeBron confides in Lue his innermost frustrations, it also showed the balance of power within the team. Chairs/seats are one of the more underrated symbols of power, and to take the coach's seat (even if he typically stands) was a subtle sign that LeBron had little-to-none respect for the occupier of that seat.

Looking forward / some last thoughts

The Cavs don't have much roster flexibility, being that their money is all tied up in their star players already…they are desperate for a catalyst, and think this is the way to go. It's pretty obvious they were not playing up to their full potential to match the Spurs/Warriors. I think the key is to use Kevin Love the right way. If it doesn’t work out with him by the end of this year...I think he’s gone as well.

The ends may justify the means...if the Cavs win the title, no one will care. But after my study, I believe there is fault all around...I would never want to be involved in this toxic situation. Well, at least this makes the June playoffs more exciting.

LeBron cares about winning, but just as important is winning his way, namely how he wants to win with "his crew." This vital part of his character distinguishes him from many other stars.

EDIT: The Cavs ended up winning the Finals so I guess it worked, but bridges were definitely burned in the process.