The California vs New York Dream

I'll never forget the day in English class when my professor stated that there was no "New York Dream", only a "California Dream". It was an evening class at the City College of San Francisco and I had offered the New York Dream as an answer to a question that she posed. I disagreed with her that day, and continue to find annoyance with the idea. Since then I have often tried to formulate and articulate what the New York dream is.

There are many musical references to a California dream, "lonely and living on the west coast," "I wish they all could be californian girls," and the most obvious "california dreaming." NYC has the eternal Sinatra classic "if I can make it there, I'll make it anywhere", Lou Reed telling us, "hey babe, take a walk on the wild side," and Beasite Boys "no sleep till-- Brooklyn!!"

After exploring the argument further I have realized that my dream doesn't have to be a pre-canned one, as the Calfiornia dream seems to be. Mine can be simply what follows... I want to move to New York, live in New York, enjoy New York, meet a New Yorker, raise New Yorker-like kids, and retire in New York. (That is the short version of my dream.) But it is still my New York Dream.