终于签了lease，不用再每天看craigslist打电话看房子，要搬离我住了近四年之久的520号西139街，乔迁到5xx号西150街，不能算被priced out，因为现在这个房东要得也够狠>_<。远了一些，10月份开始将要走路15分钟才能到学校-住139街的时候只要5分钟够了~然而还是比queens每天地铁来回俩小时commute能接受的多。

    还没装箱子，想想就头大。还要把这边数年来积攒的一些家具扛过去，穷人家过日子，破铜烂铁也都有用~只是地方太袖珍，整个stuido比Elle decor上那些个华宅的bathroom都小~sigh，等咱有了钱。。。。。。

 去参加同学婚礼，和binbin，xiaoqiang在沙滩上拍了一堆照片～回头上两张

有几张照片了，不过都不是新娘新郎~

 

 

    Labor day周末和一个朋友吃饭，聊到了哥大的expansion plan（http://neighbors.columbia.edu/pages/manplanning/）：

    “Over the next fifteen to twenty years, Columbia University plans to develop about 17 additional acres near its 36-acre campus in order to meet a pressing need for space.”

    “This 17-acre area of Upper Manhattan is just north of Columbia's historic Morningside Heights campus and consists primarily of the four large blocks from 129th to 133rd Streets between Broadway and 12th Avenue, including the north side of 125th Street, as well as three properties on the east side of Broadway from 131st to 134th Streets.”

    “This area is currently an industrial wasteland consisting of auto body shops, self-storage warehoused, meat-cutters, gas station, fast-food outlets, social-service offices, a bus-maintenance garage, the Fairway uber-supermarket, and various odds and ends.” （Figure. 1）然而即便如此，社区里还是有人不确定，更有很多人反对这一计划。每次坐沿Broadway走的1号线地铁去downtown，出了137街(City College)站地铁开始冒出地面 - 125街站台是在高架桥上 - 就会看到路西边一个旧砖楼上面的大字：Stop Columbia! We won't be pushed out! 一行英文，一行西班牙文。这是West Harlem TUCK-IT-AWAY SELF-STORAGE building, 占据着broadway以西131和132街之间的整个block, 其经理Nicholas Sprayregen对哥大的离间计 - For most of that time, Columbia threatened to pursue eminent domain action if necessary...... Last month, Columbia announced it would not seek an eminent domain ruling to evict those residential tenants still living in the expansion zone. But it held out the possibility of targeting the remaining commercial properties with eminent domain - 义愤填膺：(The announcement was) "not a concession at all, just a blatant attempt to divide the community."

    朋友对此计划的执行可能性持怀疑态度，而我旗帜鲜明地支持哥大，就像那些个“merchants who expect a boom in business and are eager for the change”, 我坚信这会使得整个neighborhood more decent and elegant，也会带动我们city college （137街 & convent ave.）附近变得像Lincoln center, Columbus circle （参见效果图Figure 2）, 再不济也可以像NYU附近那么多的cute的restaurant, bar, bookstore和种种便利店吧。现在的137附近到处是貌似游手好闲的african或latino，年轻人坐在阴凉的消防梯上闲聊天，抹骨牌，旁边的车里震天地放着墨西哥情歌或hip-hop音乐，放了学和还没上学的各种肤色的小孩子在街上嬉戏打闹，玩橄榄球或棒球，在消防栓水龙头的大水里冲凉；热闹的Broadway和Amsterdam大道上到处是小杂货店(deli & grocery), 指甲店，理发店，洗衣店，麦当劳，美式中餐外卖店，墨西哥风味小餐馆，花哨的服装店里男生的T恤总会过膝而女孩子的短裙则刚刚包圆屁股；没有一家电影院，没有一家书店，唯一的一个new york public library在145街，连cd, dvd都没有的借。我热血沸腾迫不及待的期待着效果图实现的那一天。

    然而在rent-stabilized apartment里住了近四年的我毫无察觉，我们这样的穷international学生和我们所厌烦看不起的老墨老黑一样，房东早恨不得lease到期一脚踢出去，这样就可以名正言顺地大涨租金。以前签lease的师兄roommate走了，房屋公司的agent对我们想续约的proposal待搭不理，声称年收入没有40倍月租（at least $1500x40）就不要做梦了。房子的破旧早就差强人意，借此机会搬家，也是一个解决的方法。

    Craigslist上看房子，才发现附近连不到16平米的stutio都都已经不可思议的要1000出头而且两天就出手了！怪不得City College的宿舍两人一间的两室一厅还要每人将近800块，单人间的三室一厅将近1100但也sold out了，还是在据说治安不甚好的130街，离学校7、8个block。这会儿看到The Real Deal website 2004年3月就大红字儿地总结：Columbia’s northward expansion to send prices north，而彼时刚到纽约俩月的我还懵懂无知，刚刚搞清楚了Columbia uinversity的方位。

    被这些数字震惊，我决定也可以拿每月工资的一半来付房租 - 实在不想每天2个小时的地铁去住queens，找了个agent说在convent ave.上有个还可以的studio，希望一切顺利。我已经对我未来的房间充满了幻想和无限美好的憧憬：从窗子里看出去是对面邻居的阳台和花园，每天走在和喧嚣的Amsterdam大道不过一街之隔却幽静优美的tree-lined Convent avenue上惊叹夕阳下那些各式各样townhouse的轮廓如此美奂美伦，门前的鲜花娇艳，树木多姿...

    "When I started doing this, buyers said ’I don’t want to go north of 96th, and now they’re saying ’I don’t want to go north of 125th.’” said Marvin Johnson of Benjamin James Realty.

    I am sure soon the buyers will say "I don't want to go out of Manhattan".

    It's not just because of Columbia University. 打不玩的Iraq war, 不景气的经济，气候异常，通货膨胀，所有物价都在涨 - 3周前洗衣服还是$1.75, 今天就是$2.00了，据说保险也涨了$400每年，唯有老板的薪水标准不涨，拿着和三年前一样的工资，比三年前更卖力的做试验，应付着每三周就跳一跳的物价，担心着明年的毕业找工作...    

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/09/realestate/09cover.html?ref=realestate

曼哈顿的新贵们一出手就是4、5个apartments (at least 1m each)，然后打通合并成mansion in the sky，这样自己的孩子们就有了各自的卧室、游戏室、学习室，不要说传统的n个bathroom，厨房、佣人房、厨娘房......

mmd我要跟俩人合租个1400的烂apartment, 还被agent鄙视你钱够么？

等我有钱了，买俩曼哈顿，一个想住uws就住uws, 想住ues就住ues, 想住villiage就住villiage，想住townhouse就住townhouse, 想住apartment就住apartment， loft也去尝尝鲜； 另一个就让它闲着！ 

6 days in San Francisco:

Italian seafood, $1 oyster, dinner and show by the super-hot, "world famous gender illusionists" at AsiaSF...

USOpen:

7pm Sep. 1 to 1am Sep. 2