I really enjoy living in New York City and taking advantage of everything that it has to offer. And after almost 2 1/2 years of living here I am really comfortable with both the city and my social life here. I have made some friendships that will last my lifetime. But. . .
I have always thought that “some day” I would move to Chicago to be closer to my family in Wisconsin but yet remain urban in a large city. The thing is, I’ve always been unsure of how to know when that “some day” is here. So, maybe that “some day” is here when my company offers me a job in Chicago that I have been training for about 3 years and offers to relocate me there. I feel like I could live in New York City for the rest of my life and still discover something new every day – that’s the beauty of the city – but that leaves me never knowing if I’ll grow tired of it or if I’ll ever feel done and ready to move on. When I lived in California and was transferred to New York it was so different because I was really ready to leave and try something new. And now?
After nearly a month of agonizing and a ton of lip biting, cuticle gnawing, involuntary eye twitching, overeating and sleepless nights, I have decided to make the move to Chicago. In the end the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. It’s been an extremely difficult and stressful decision for me to make but I think it is the right one.
Well, congratulations on making such a hard decision. Let me be the first person to tell you that NYC won’t be the same without you. But now we can look forward to you daily dispatches from Chicago, right?
of course! and thanks. as dorky as it sounds i’ve been kind of reluctant about making the big announcement.. the nyc blogosphere will disown me!!
All I can say, or get through saying is, you will be greatly missed….thanks for help making nyc become a home for me!!!!!
no idea how i found your site, but i’m lovin’ NY blogs. anyway – i’m in chicago and we will welcome you to our blogging community!
All I can say is wow. I can’t believe you are leaving! This was the first NY blog I had ever read, and it is still the best! Keep the tradition up in Illinois! All the best-
Best of luck with your move. Changing where one lives is never an easy decision, but it sounds like you’ve made the one that is best for you. I wish you an easy transition and a swift acclimation.
Awww!!! Just like Chris ( It`s funny- “Chris” means “Krzysiek” in Polish), I want to say that your blog was the first I started reading daily. As you know, I`ve always wanted to live there (i.e. NY) and your writings gave me daily dose of what`s happening in the city. I will really miss you…we all will. :…
haha Krzysiek – that is nuts about “Chris in Polish!” lol, I would have never guessed! : ) Anyway, I definitely feel you on missing rachelle – I guess you are right! We all truly will…
does this mean you’re going to want your onit back?
Congrats on your decisions, Rachelle. I’m sure it was really hard to make. But these are the times in life to explore– plus, a good Chicago blog is hard to come by. Show ‘em what a real blog looks like!
i’ve said it before, saying it again. congrats.
and let the disowning begin…i’m taking you off the blogs i read!!
wait, no, a friend wouldn’t do that.
and you finally got to use that image!!
I found your web site over a year ago and visited nearly every day sometimes twice to see what NYC had to offer. I will miss your unique insight of New York but look forward to seeing life in Chicago. Congratulations on your move and job opportunity.
no! say it isn’t true! you’ll be missed. but like everyone else, i have to congratulate you on making the big decision. it’s not an easy one. good luck!
Traitor! No I guess we won’t get married after all! Good luck!
Oop. Sorry if I outed you back there. Didn’t know it wasn’t common knowledge.
Lemme guess … this bitter cold winter made you homesick?
Wow, congrats. Chicago is a great city but bravo to you for sticking it to the Bears (the Cubs are cool, though). Hope you’ll keep up the blog – I’m a fan of the page and you’ve inspired me to start my own!
Dude I just got beltway fever and am leaving DC. A surfer from LA in the nation’s Capitol…this could get interesting…
leaving “for” DC, that should say. D’oh was the “edit” key?
“where’s” the edit key, ^ ^ ^ that should say. :/
rachelle – it’s wonderful that you’ll be moving to Chicago for a job that will challenge you more and to be nearer to family. However, I am sad because we’ve only just met and it seems like it would have been great to get to know you better. Guess I’ll have to bother you when I swing through Chicago some day.
New York will be poorer without you –sniff– but Chicago will be enriched. Best of luck to you! I look forward to reading about your new adventures.
But, whose blog am I going to blatantly rip-off once you leave????
i’m surprised at how positive everyone is on your decision to leave! i think you are insane, crazy- out of your mind. don’t leave. nyc has all that you need. chicago is a second rate city- there is more action on stanton street than in all of illinois. reconsider this bizarre and disturbing decision!
you already know that i’m truly saddened that you’re leaving us. you’re a great friend, and i really admire your energy, enthusiasm, curiosity and most of all, your intrepid new-yorkishness! you’ll always be a true new yorker, in my book.
best of luck in chi-town. i’m looking forward to seeing your chicago reports. show them what cute bloggers are made of!!
Hi Rachelle:
Well I guess I now know the “tough decision” you were having to make. I have been ready your blog for 6 to 8 months now and as I have built a conception of you in my mind as we never met in person I think you are making the right decision for you. Everyone who comes here (NYC) in their 20′s must eventually decide is the fun enough and time to move on or is it for the long haul. Either way has pros and cons but the decision should be made, after a certain point it is best it be made.
Good luck, good bye, I hope you have lots of kids some day as I’ve said; you have great DNA etc!
On last thing. Can I have Jessica? I’ll take good care of her for you
sad, rachelle! i randomly found your post about 6 months ago and have been checking it daily. Good luck in Chicago! I look forward to reading all about your adventures there
thanks, everyone for your kind words & support (even you, jake, you made me smile). i know in the long run this is the right decision but it doesnt really make it easier right now. im really very sad to be leaving nyc and everyone here.
i will start a site called secondratecity.com and it will be the gothamist of chicago! chicagoans will love it! i will conquer all!
So you ‘re moving from NYC… And I was planning on comming to New york in septembre (family visit). Too bad, but I ‘m sure you ‘ll have lots of fun in the windy city…
Well, no longer curious now. its always tough to make big choices, but as you can see, your public supports you! Congratulations on a great site, clearly you have a big future in web design. Best of luck in Chicago.
all the best on a new beginning and thank you for reminding a jaded ny’er about all of the great things this city has to offer. i look forward to finding out how amazing chicago can be.
Congratulations on the big decision! I’ve been a daily reader for well over a year. I’ve wanted to live in New York for the past few years, but haven’t been able to make the move just yet. Reading your blog has allowed me to visit New York on a daily basis, without the added expense of airfare, and remind me of some of the reasons why I want to live there. I’ll miss your posts, but be looking forward to Chicago.
We’ll miss you, I loved your pictures of NY, but it could be worse, you could be moving down here to Texas!
Look forward to your reports on Chicago, I have family there, so I will probably be visiting there one day.
Good luck Rachelle
. it’s a small change in sights and sounds (and people, friends) but you’ll make the most out of it and expand your (already) HUGE fan-base. I’m one of the lucky few who’ve gotten to see you in both San Diego and New York and I hope someday we’ll be able to hang out in Chicago 
. Congratulations!
Noooo!! I was a vicarious New Yorker through your posts and photos. Darn, I hate mentally moving… so many nic-knacks to pack.
Good luck on your move! Go Cubbies!
im finding out now that there are many people who were living in new york vicarioiusly through me. i guess we’re all moving to chicago!
Add me to the list of those living vicariously through you. Although already a NYer (an Upstate NYer), i’ve enjoyed nothing more than visiting your site daily, and seeing all the interesting places/sights of NYC. I can now look forward to seeing all that Chicago has to offer. Best of luck on your impending move!
so wait, are you really starting a new blog site? and if so what will become of our beloved rachelleb.com…?
ed, that was a joke because jake called chicago second-rate. do you think chicagoans would actually like to go to a chicago centric site that was called secondratecity.com? heh. not to worry, rachelleb.com isnt going anywhere!
until i domain squat rachellb.com either that or buy rachelleb.net/.biz/.org/.tv/.etcetc. or maybe i can start rachel-leb.com.
D’oh! Ok thanks for the clarity. But c’mon you’re a Packers fan…like the thought of using http://www.secondratecity.com wasn’t at least a little tempting for ya!
Jake’s right – there’s not a whole lot going on here in Chicago. I miss NYC (Brooklyn, really) terribly. Maybe it’s just the “killer winter”, and people are hanging out at home instead of going out? Also, Chicago has everything that NYC offers – if only on a lesser scale: accessibility and variety-wise. Your recent post on Chinese New Year points that out to me: Things are “bigger” and “crazier” (if that makes any sense). Two great things that I like about NYC. On the other hand, my family (and all the families on my Dad’s side) are all here. So I guess that’s the tradeoff. The exciting big-city exploration/adventure for weekends with cousins and nephews. There’s a long list of comparisons I made when I got here August last year, but I have come to accept that every major move has its getting-used-to period. I’m looking forward to springtime near the lake or going to Plaza de Lago for a swim when it gets warmer.
I feel a bit sad that you’re leaving the East Coast. Your blog is a daily read that enables me to keep up with currents in NYC; but it’s also exciting that you’re coming to Chicago to show the Midwest how blogging’s done – I’m paraphrasing a comment that someone made earlier.
If anything, a few handy tips about moving to Chi (if you didn’t already know):
You’ll probably need a car. The CTA has cleaner trains but the network is not as extensive. Places aren’t as clustered here, unless you live downtown. The bodega (or its equivalent) isn’t going to be open til 4am. Groceries are better done in bulk. There are a lot more pubs and dives than lounges and bars. Winter (which lasts a while) is a test of both fortitude and constitution. Chicago Craigslist is a lot less lively than its NYC counterpart.
All else, it’ll be awesome to read up on Chicago Rachelle-style. Good luck with the move
petrol I bet in no time our dear rachelle has her own posse and is running up and down rush street 7 nights a week! She will show chi-town not just how to blog, but how to live it up.
A pint of beer in CHI is a hell of a lot cheaper though!! In wicker park there’s a great place called Tuman’s, it’s totally a dive but it’s got a lot of character. AND they have a juke-box full of punk rock, if you’re into that!
Sorry I didn’t get to meet you at the blogger bash the other day (my girlfriend and I arrived right as AZ was kicking y’all out, and I don’t particularly like Siberia.) But I’ve enjoyed reading your site for the past couple of months, and I will most certainly enjoy reading your take on Chicago. It’s a great place.
Check out Rick’s Cafe, a wonderful little French/Moroccan joint — I believe it’s at 3915 N. Sheridan. And the Prodigal Son on Halsted is a great bar. (Wednesdays are “Free Bacon Nights.” It’s that good.)
Best of luck to you.
Welcome (in advance) to Chicago. As a native NYC transplant (19 years ago now – sheesh), I must admit I find Chicago to be a pretty livable city. I think you’ll love exploring the neighborhoods. BTW, I hope you keep up this blog as I enjoy using it as an example of how to do it right to my students at DePaul…my congratulations on your decision.
i’ll have to check out the bars you guys suggested. joel, my friend said that tuman’s is right by her apartment. doug, wow! i’m helping some students get their learn on!! heh. this site will def keep going. . i hope you like it as much! oh, and you’re baby is ADORABLE!
wow..45 comments… you are popular! good luck!
the fact that your blog is being used as a benchmark is a testament to you … that’s pretty damn amazing.
I am a random internet browser and came across this…You are hot! Can’t wait to see you at the bars in Lincoln Park. By the way NEW YORK SUCKS!!!
i dont go to lincoln park