My Apartment Home Improvement Journey: Day 125

Looking for an apartment this spring, at the beginning of the New York City death spiral, was not for the faint of heart. “It’s always like this!” friends assured me, as I found myself being outbid (????) for rental units, or learning that totally mediocre studio apartments in Crown Heights were renting for $3000. Two people rented the drab two-bedroom I had been leasing (for a COVID-discount deal of $2750) for nearly $4000, without so much as stepping foot in the unit or even seeing pictures of it. “You’ll find a place!” everyone told me. They were right, but it took me…