Anticipation among young women for the upcoming "Sex and the City" movie is so great it's starting to look like this is the chick-flick equivalent of "Spider-Man." Recently, the New York Post even ran a piece listing the many ways in which the HBO series can be said to have ruined New York. While many of the points are valid, what was so great about New York before SATC anyway? WE COULDN'T HELP BUT WONDER...

Grown women who wore Tutus in public were called "ridiculous," "unhinged," and "possibly dangerous"

Before SATC, grown women knew that if they left the house dressed like Carrie Bradshaw they were likely to be chased and ridiculed by children or stoned by religious groups, and homeless outreach volunteers would often try to force them to visit a public health center and talk to somebody. But ever since the show, many new arrivals to New York try to "dress like Carrie," with dire consequences.

Promiscuity on the level of Samantha's was less about empowerment and more about incest survival

As recently as 1995, women with 50 or more concurrent sexual partners were called "slutty," "at risk," or "Annabel Chong." With the introduction of the character Samantha, played by Kim Cattrall, "Sex and the City" tried to create a female character with a sexual appetite more typical of a man. Samantha inspired thousands of young women, and now a New York girl who is sleeping with fewer than five men at one time feels like she must be sending out the wrong signals.

Smug Wall Street guys and prissy, husband-hunting, class-conscious girls were universally considered to be horrible people

It's true. Ask your really old boss or that lady at the yoga studio who has gray hair but refuses to dye it for some reason. They remember way back when Wall Street assholes like Mr. Big and prissy, class-obsessed husband hunters like Charlotte were only allowed to date and socialize with each other. They relegated themselves to special neighborhoods called "The Upper East Side" and "Connecticut." They ate at special restaurants and drank from special bars where their kind was the only clientele. And they accepted it. They understood that their personalities and value systems were of a lower caliber than, say, pederasts. They kept to themselves and for the most part, they left the rest of us alone. That time is gone now, but it happened.

Sex Columnists only made $7,200 a year

A quick look at Carrie Bradshaw's apartment, wardrobe and lifestyle would indicate that her 800-word sex advice column in an independent newspaper paid a salary of somewhere around a quarter million dollars annually. In real life, New York's top sex columnists used to make no more than $150 per column, or $7,200 a year before taxes. Since the show's success though, the feature has gotten very popular and sex columnists in New York in 2008 can now expect to earn as much as $300 a column. That's almost fifteen grand a year!

The only cool thing about shoes was that commercial where women played basketball in high heels

It was happening in pickup basketball games all over the city. Women in business suits and high heels storming down the court with an unbridled fury that could only come from a shoe that looks like a pump but feels like a sneaker. New York had become a town ruled by women's street basketball thanks to those amazing shoes. Nowadays, shoes come in all sorts of styles and colors, even green! But we remember a simpler time. With the debut of Sex and the City, New York said goodbye to its easy spirit.

Posted by: Bob Powers      I’m a fan of Bob Powers