http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/12/opinion/oh-for-the-retirement-life-in-manhattan.html 2016-09-12 14:25:34 Oh, for the Retirement Life, in Manhattan Readers share stories of moving to Manhattan in old age, or moving out. === To the Editor: Re “ As a docent for the Municipal Art Society, I often quote E. B. White’s description of the three types of New Yorkers (natives, commuters and immigrants) and consider Manhattan my “city of final destination,” in White’s words. And as he aptly observed, “No matter where you sit in New York you feel the vibrations of great times and tall deeds.” It’s still true today. Like Mr. Spiegelman, I shop at the Fairway Market at Broadway and 74th Street. About five years ago, I entered the store when the crowds were more frenetic than usual. Long lines of shoppers were unevenly distributed among the narrow checkout lines. From out of nowhere, former Mayor Ed Koch appeared and took charge. He began ordering people into different lines to even out the flow. He was so authoritative that no one challenged his orders. Then a shopper barked, “What are you doing here on the Upper West Side?” Mr. Koch, a Greenwich Village resident, replied, “I like the prices.” ROBERT DEPCZENSKI New York To the Editor: About six years ago I was in Manhattan staying with my in-laws, who live on the Upper West Side. I had attended a function on the East Side, walked west with my friend and caught the M104 uptown on Broadway. I felt completely at ease, as everyone on the bus was older than my 52 years. I thought to myself: This is where I want to grow old. I can be independent, ride the bus, leave my apartment and shop daily and never have to drive again! There are some drawbacks, but my father-in-law, 89, thinks nothing of taking the bus home from La Guardia Airport after a visit with us in Atlanta, where he can walk out the door onto the deck and be with nature. JOAN MENCHER Atlanta To the Editor: Willard Spiegelman advises us oldsters to retire to Manhattan to live long and happily. But to do that, you’d better be rich. Especially in Manhattan. After 30 happy years on 13th Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues, I left Manhattan at 85 for Santa Barbara, Calif. Why? Because if I’d stayed and lived long, I would have run out of money. Because I’d slipped too often on black ice on the broken sidewalks. Because I was an easy target climbing up and down those subway steps. Because the stampeding youthful herds I’d once found exhilarating I now found exhausting. I’d been trampled once too often. Nowadays I share my sunny California patio with flowers, birds, bunnies and mice — my new youngsters — in the company of oldsters, my new friends. We are all very much alive together. BETTY FUSSELL Santa Barbara, Calif.