Billi Pod Has A Big Issue

I want to share with you loyal and faithful readers my thoughts and concerns about an upcoming big issue in my life. What am I talking about? Well ... here it is ...

My 2 year lease on PHC is up on May 31st and I am already feeling concerns about what I should do. You see, while I really like this apartment on the penthouse floor (41st floor) of 420 W. 42nd Street, with it’s breathtakingly awesome north and northeast views, I have to admit that I am less than enamored with living in Hell’s Kitchen.

Yes, this location is extremely convenient for Billi Pod’s life-style - dozens of theaters, multiple movie houses, transportation, and etc. etc. etc. But I have yet to connect with the area as my ‘hood, like I did when I lived all those years in Midtown East, and I am not sure if I can or even if I want to.

Now, I haven’t contacted, nor have I been contacted by, the rental agent regarding the proposed terms of a renewal. I know this ... I was given a great deal (in New York City terms) on the apartment back in 2009 when the rental market was down. Now, the rental market has rebounded and I know what this will likely mean ... probably a substantial proposed rent increase.

Then there is the issue of a 1 bedroom vs. an alcove studio, like I was in for 8 years at 335 E. 51st Street. What do I mean? Well, a bedroom adds approximately $800-1,000 per month to the rent, so do I want to spend this amount of money for a space I occupy only 6 hours in a 24 hour period? I honestly don’t know.

Then there is the issue of where would I prefer to be if I don’t renew. I have given this a lot of thought and I am leaning toward the Upper Westside, probably in the area between, say, 68th Street and 76th Street. The Lincoln Center area (60s) would work too.

There is also The Williams, the senior facility on W. 96th Street that I investigated and liked back in 2009. Yeah, I know what you are thinking, but it is still a viable option.

Would I renew PHC for the same rent or a very modest increase? Yes, in a f**king heartbeat, for 2 years.

I know I need to get this resolved because it greatly impacts my tentative plans to travel to Paris in late April or early May. I can’t leave NYC until I have a signed lease, that is for certain.

Frankly, the thought of negotiating with the rental agent and/or apartment hunting makes Billi Pod want to projectile vomit!!

Anyway, my loyal and faithful readers, this is what is going through Billi Pod’s mind at the moment, so ... now it is on to the usual things and stuff ...

Yes, another bright and cold day in The Big Apple, The Greatest City In The World==>21º @ 8:30am. It is supposed to remain cold through the weekend, but, thankfully, no snow.

Report card on last night’s IN YOUR IMAGE==>B-<==yet another so-called “dark comedy” about a dysfunctional family with fighting siblings and a deadbeat dad.

The set in the extremely small Theater C is full of newspapers, beer bottles, disposable cameras, empty take-out containers, and stacks and stacks of boxes.

Acting is good. A plot twist in the second act saved it for me and perhaps most importantly, things aren’t wrapped up neatly in the end, and that works.

So, Billi Pod says==>it is worth seeing.

Billi Pod’s entertainment event for tonight is --

8:00==>LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA @ Avery Fisher Hall - Mahler’s Symphony No. 7, performed with the Riverside Choral Society and the Brooklyn Youth Chorus. (discounted TDF ticket).

The concert will be an hour and 25 minutes, without intermission, with no late seating.

So, my loyal and faithful readers, let me close with one of the few (hold the applause) remaining musings ...

Musings from THE MIND OF BILLI POD (a memoir in progress):

“Calamari is the number one reason for divorce among Italian men because it leads to erectile dysfunction and dementia.”

GO GATORS AND GO YANKEES!!

Billi Pod

“Don’t pick a fight with an old man. If he is too old to fight, he’ll just kill you.”