I am from this city and I can tell you it is terrible! and yet:
•You can see some of the best art in the world, and really enmesh yourself in a cultural scene, if that is your jam
•You can get most things that there are to get (but they are expensive)
•You can live with your friends in an apartment that is falling apart for not a crazy amount of money, if you hunt for the right place
•The pizza here is better than everywhere else in the world and I am not kidding I used to cry thinking about it when I lived in Maryland for a while
•Yes it is dirty and smelly but ? so are we all
•For all its woes, New York does have a really good sense of community if you can be open to it
•Pigeons are nice