Hello friends, relatives, Facebook friends, random people on Twitter and even more random people that found this site through some sort of Google search. This post is a recap of my journey these last 7 months. I had a great time writing it. I had an amazing time living it.
The following thoughts are the breakdown of the lifestyle experiment that I launched earlier this year–and its recent conclusion. I dubbed the experiment back in January, the Sublet Hop ( I am pretty sure that I invented the term Sublet Hop–but I’m not 100% positive). The idea of any “experiment”, is that you learn from it–and wow, I have learned a lot in these last seven months.
On January 3rd I started sublet hopping in New York City–where I jumped around from place to place to explore different neighborhoods and living situations. I had a full on experience: 7 amazing months living in a very unique, non traditional way. The purpose of the sublet hop to begin with was to see if some of the same inner magic I experienced traveling the world a few years ago (visiting South America, North America, Africa, Antarctica)–could be recreated in the city I lived and worked in. In the process it was my intent or end goal to figure out what NYC neighborhood I wanted to live in, on a permanent basis.
I lived in 5 places this year, including my current permanent apartment (I signed a 12 month lease in the West Village not long ago)
Hop Number 1 (Jan-Feb): Gisuela’s Place in Clinton Hill
I decided to start subletting right before New Years. I was at home with my family at the time, and made the decision that it was time to shake things up, and started to search on Craigslist for a place to stay (I made a pact with myself to get studios/or one bedrooms the entire time….there would be no roommates). The first place I visited was Gisuela’s apartment in Clinton Hill. She was an artist, and had a small one bedroom with a cozy, South American feel. I spent 8 months in South American and connected with the energy of Gisuela’s place instantly–she had Incan windpipes all over the place–and many of the same books that I had read on her bookshelf. I promptly took the apartment and lived there for two months in freezing cold and uber snowy January and February. I was introduced to Clinton Hill, an eclectic, afro-centric neighborhood that I didn’t know a thing about before I moved there. It took my less than 24 hours to secure the place. At this point I started shedding what I owned. My friends absorbed a few pieces of furniture, and I got rid of a ton of stuff–getting rid of anything cluttering, and minimizing my possessions down to what was truly necessary.
Hop Number 2 (March): Lilly’s Place in the middle of Park Slope/Gowanus/Atlantic Yards/Boerum Hill
When I needed to get a new place in March, I put out my own message on Craigslist broadcasting that I was looking for “an interesting place to live” and the first place I checked out was Lilly’s place . It turned out to be a bizarre tiny little place that felt like living in a camper. And I’m not joking when I say camper! It actually had a camping stove and a mini-fridge. I hit my head on things constantly. I had a friend to share the tiny space with in the form of a cat named Leo. Luckily, Leo and I got along famously. Within 5 minutes of meeting Lilly I realized that we were both regular attendees of Burning Man. Lilly was leaving to go on a mission for a van. This said van was going to provide her with transportation to, take a guess… that’s right….. Burning Man!!! So, it seemed fitting that my staying in her place helped her achieve that mission. I have been to Burning Man twice (headed out for my third trip this year)– and it has been one of the best things I have ever been a part of.
So… hmmm, the first sublet hop had all of this South American Energy (I spent 8 months in SA in 2007)….. and the second one had all this Burning Man energy…
Hop Number 3(April, May, June): Brit’s Place in the West Village
I didn’t even have to search for my next place in the West Village on Bleecker Street–a friend of a friend that I went out to dinner with two years ago read about the sublet hop on Facebook on one of my blog posts. Her good friend Brit (who happened to be Australian) was moving to England for a consulting job. Things fell inline immediately and I stayed for three months in a beautiful co-op building with one of the best rooftops I have ever experienced in New York. It was an ornate roofgarden with a view of the uptown skyline, from the Union Square clock to the Empire State building. Many a rooftop get-together was orchestrated in my time on Bleecker Street! It was living here that I fell in love with the West Village–and its cozy, historic, cosmopolitan charm. Within 5 minutes of my first visit with her, Brit and I discovered that we had both climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro in Tanzania.
So after three hops we have : South America + Burning Man + Kilimanjaro….
Hop Number 4 (July): Geoffrey’s Place in the West Village
When it came to move to my next place in early July, the first Craigslist Ad I clicked on was created by Geoffrey . He was leaving on an overland adventure through Turkey–and was going to be gone for most of the month of July. The historic building he lives in was built in the 1870′s right on the West Side Highway–with a beautiful unobstructed rooftop view of the Hudson River. Geoffrey is a really chill, spiritually connected dude with the “travel spirit” radiating out of him. In real life, he works as a clinical social worker and also gives massage in his spare time. Geoffrey also worked closely with an energy healer that happened to randomly live on the same floor as a friend of mine in the area. Geoffrey and I were definitely on the same wavelength in many ways. Plus, I helped enable him to embark on a travel adventure to Turkey (which has to be good karma, right?). I also find it wild and fantastic that his Craigslist ad was literally the first one I responded to on Craigslist–three days before I needed to move out of Brit’s place.
After Hop number 4 we have: South America + Burning Man + Kilimanjaro + Travel Spirit
The Final Hop (Aug-?) : Helen’s Place in the West Village
After living at Geoffrey’s place for a week or so, I came home and (randomly of course) found a printout taped on the front door of Geoffrey’s apartment indicating that an apartment had become available in the building. The lease started in August, which co-in-sided perfectly as I would have to be out of Geoffrey’s by the 28th of July. The apartment, a studio, happened to be the perfect size for me (probably about 500 square feet)–complete with a fireplace from the time the building was built in the 1870′s. Two hours later I had put a deposit down on a truly unique, funky studio apartment on the 2nd floor of the building. The owner of my current apartment, has a fairly sensational story as well. Helen lives in Mozambique in East Africa and dives with and studies Whale sharks. Interestingly, one of my travel goals is to dive with Whale Sharks. I’ve heard its one of the most amazing diving experiences in the world.
My advanced Mathematic Equation to explain the magic that happened these last 7 months…
So, if Einstein or Stephen Hawking took a deep look at the somewhat abstract, somewhat magical coincidences involving the commonalities I had with the owners of the individual places that I sublet hopped between these last few months, they would probably come up with something along the lines of this:
I would express in layman’s terms a little bit more like this:
The Common coincidences ( South America + Burning Man + Kilimanjaro + backpacking travel spirit dude + person living one of my travel goals ) = Trippy, awesome, unplanned, random, beautiful goodness to the 1000th degree.
Anyway you look at it, Einstein and Stephen Hawking would both agree that the universe was directly involved with my hopping from place to place this year. And at least for the last 7 months, the Universe was without a doubt happy with me.
The common threads with each of these people correlate back directly to shared experiences and life mantras that have not only significantly impacted my life over the last 5 years, but completely changed it’s course. My experiences in South America, Burning Man, climbing mountains, backpacking, and pursuing travel goals has completely changed who I am as a human being. And to be honest with you (for me), the fact that this recent experience brought all of this to light again, just made the whole thing so much cooler.
Sidenote: When you type in “Complicated Mathematic Equations” into Google things like the above equation show up. Google is still bad-ass… Just admit it already!
4 Lessons I learned through the experiment/experience
1) Go with the flow and surrender to the power of the Universe every once in a while- This past 7 months, at least with my living situation, I completely and totally went with the flow. It was a beautiful feeling, almost surrendering to the idea that “everything is going to be alright“. It was also amazing to be able to go through the time with extremely little stress about the constant moving around (and by nature, moving is stressful). Whenever I needed a place, the universe provided. It was really, really easy.
2) Talk to Random people at bars- I met a lot of super cool, super chill people at restaurants, coffee shops, and bars eating dinner by myself this past year– and many have turned into friends. I met a ton of artists, musicians, entrepreneurs, a doctor, and an individual that owned 4 luggage shops in town (and sold me some amazing luggage to help with the journey) This is most definitely a synergy with traveling abroad. You go out by yourself, and you come home with friends. The people I have met and gotten close with this year through this experience have been nothing short of outstanding human beings–each and everyone of them.
3) Get rid of a bunch of crap you don’t need- Less stuff and less clutter is completely the way to go. Just get rid of it! I can’t explain how much shit I accumulated over the years. I realized that I had developed into some sort of bizarro eclectic hoarder, but only when my possessions came in the form of instruction manuals to appliances I hardly use at all, pounds and pounds of spare change, and business suits that I haven’t worn for 6 years. Life is easier with less!
Oh, and Coinstar is badass by the way… 15 pounds of spare change adds up!
4) Grounding is really nice as well
It is a new and very powerful feeling to be grounded in my new space–knowing that I am going to be building my life here for the next few years feels really solid. Now that I have had a chance to experience this external journey, and bounce around for a bit again, its seems natural and fitting to plant some roots. I have been thinking a great deal about the “next experiment” now that the sublet hop is complete. I gained so much out of the last 7 months, and only a fraction of which involved the actual living situation that I have been writing about on the blog. I am thinking its time to write a bit more about the other things I have been learning (and living)–much of which, happens to be on the spiritual tip. I am definitely going to be thinking about this more at Burning Man next week. This much is for certain!
Have a really fantastic day doing whatever it is you are doing , at this exact moment in time, when you are reading this sentence!
And stay tuned…
Popularity: unranked [?]
