kestrel

Prompt 137: NYC Versus Upstate

137. When most people think of New York, they think of New York City. How do you picture the rest of the state of New York? Do you think New Yorkers who don't live in the city feel ignored? Why or why not?
///

I have friends that live in the Finger Lakes area, as well as old friends in Albany. In comparison, the rest of the state of New York (as in, "Upstate") seems a world away from the cosmopolitan complexity of NYC.

In my limited experience, it seems almost agrarian in comparison. I've driven through large portions of Ohio, and there are striking similarities: large swathes of farmland; small towns with single-family homes; the occasional mini mall. There are classic diners up there, which I can personally appreciate. Albany in particular seems a bit more modern than the rest of Upstate, but again in comparison it's a quaint small town. Reminds me of when I lived in Nashville, actually.

Am I just beatin' around the bush here, and not admitting my ignorance? Or is it more the fact that NYC is so completely different from the rest of the state, that attempting to compare and contrast is like heavyweight versus featherweight? Would others describe it the same, even if they didn't share the same level of disdain that I happen to have for the Big Apple?

"Do you think New Yorkers who don't live in the city feel ignored?" Well, yeah, sure. For example, there's no way that the Governor of New York, whomever they may be, pays as much heed to Upstate as they do NYC. There's too much economic activity, too much wealth concentrated there, too many people... Too many cultural, political, and social artifacts of USA's identity to ignore. Long Island is in a different league. It's not just separated geographically from the rest of the state, but it's separate in nearly every other way.

I don't care enough to look this up, but I suspect that there are more people living in a couple boroughs than there are living in Upstate. I'm certain this has been done by someone already. I'll be cruel in comparison for a moment... t's like the rest of the state of New York is the bloated, mentally-deficient half of conjoined twins. Long Island has to do everything, and all that Upstate has to do is let Albany stay on one side, and Canada stay on the other. I'd mention Lake Erie, but that's even more useless in determining Upstate's identity.

I wonder if the economic situation in Upstate reflects such neglect. At least there are airports out that way. Buffalo and Syracuse seem to be big enough. Again though: Buffalo and Syracuse are to New York City like Memphis is to Nashville. The dirtier, weaker city being ignored by the leaders of the state and the entire country, meaning a lot only to the people who live there.

///

I'm considering relocating to Upstate, should I be able to manage it and it works out. I should research whether or not it's affordable to live up there, particularly as part of an intentional community. That region of the US is at least in the running for where I will head off to while eventually moving out of the country.