life in a tiny apartment.

Tip #70: Picnic dinners.

Choices.

We live in a very small apartment in large part because we live in a very beautiful neighborhood. Last week, when my sister Devan was visiting from Asheville, we took her for a stroll through our neighborhood and down to the river. It doesn’t matter if I instagram the view, or in a yet-to-happen fit of motivation drag my tripod to the river’s edge and snap actual photographs, it’s hard to convey the magic of looking over the New York on a sunny day until you actually see it for yourself. Bringing sisters along who are unabashed about showing their sense of wonderment helps drive the point home.

We get a fair amount of questioning from people who wonder why we pay so much to live in such a tiny space. Without hashing out the particulars, I will begin by saying that we would be hard-pressed to find a more affordable apartment anywhere in Brooklyn, regardless of the size. Rent in New York is preposterously high, and so you have to make choices. For us and for right now, we’d rather pay the same amount for a tiny apartment in our neighborhood than a slightly larger apartment in a different place that would mean longer commutes and fewer dinners by the river.

In an effort to fully embrace this choice, this summer we’re working hard on developing a routine that gets us out to dinner more often. And I don’t mean to restaurants. Working out a little system for keeping our picnic basket packed means that picnicking actually happens. So far so good, and it’s just barely July.

Tiny Apartment Survival Tips 1-69, right here.
A few tips on enjoying barbecue in a public park, right here.