My Gym Might Spoil Me

That was the most PC way I could find to express what I WANTED to title this post: The Y is for Poor People.

So as I've mentioned, I have to go to the uptown YMCA until January 5th because my gym is undergoing renovations (which HAD BETTER BE DONE ON TIME). I went for the first time yesterday. And oh my god. I hated every second of it. EVERY SECOND. Below is a list that you can read two ways: "What is Wrong with the Y" or "How the Charlotte Athletic Club Spoils Jen."

CAC: The locker room has beautiful wood lockers and leather benches to sit on while getting dressed. The showers are stocked with good shampoo, conditioner, and soap; there are hair dryers, straight irons, curling irons, deodorant, hairspray, hair ties, and everything else you might require to work out and clean off afterwards.
Y: The locker room looks like the one in my high school (pre-renovation). It has an endless maze of gross metal lockers, a small area with about 3 hair dryers if you need them, and showers which I was afraid to use.

CAC: I have my own permanent locker with my name on a silver plaque; every day when I finish my workout, I put my gym clothes on a numbered lanyard and the next day when I come back to the gym, the clothes have been laundered and returned to my locker.
Y: There are signs literally EVERYWHERE warning you against not locking up your shit. There appear to be permanent lockers available but they are small, metal, and have your name on a piece of printer paper across the top. There is no laundry service. Because I'm only a temporary member, I now have to go buy a padlock, drag all of my shit to work, the gym, and back every day, and I have a shitload of laundry every weekend because they won't wash my clothes.

CAC: Restricted membership. As in there is a waiting list to get in so that it's never too crowded for you to do what you want when you want.
Y: Do not enter with any premeditated plans about what you want to do for cardio today. You will use whatever machine is available, and in the event that nothing is available, you have to wait.

CAC: The cardio equipment is of the highest quality, and all of the treadmills and ellipticals have TVs with full cable attached to them.
Y: The cardio equipment is similar to the kind that I see in hotel gyms, there are 5 TVs hanging on the wall but you can only hear sound if you have some kind of radio frequency listening device (does anyone have those anymore? I don't understand). Also, you can't do more than 30 minutes of cardio on one machine. It won't let you set it for more than 30 minutes. Seriously.

CAC: The few times I have taken classes, the room is beautiful, and in a secluded area. All of the basketball courts and handball/squash areas are upstairs, away from the cardio and lifting areas.
Y: In the middle of the downstairs region, between the cardio area and lifting area, are basketball courts which are divided from the cardio/lifting areas and from each other by mesh fabric hung from the wall. So that when you're running, you can watch AND HEAR people playing basketball AND a step class going on in front of you.

CAC: 4 blocks from office.
Y: 7 blocks from office.

(And, because it wouldn't be fair for me to not acknowledge the one positive element of the Y):
CAC: Full use of the Omni Hotel's rooftop pool (not a lap pool, but it has lounge chairs).
Y: Large lap pool. If I had any desire to start swimming, I guess I could.

I literally can't believe that I only pay $15 more to be a CAC member rather than a member of the Y. I mean I got in right when the gym opened, so it's a bit more expensive now, but still.

Ok. End rant. Until I find something else to complain about (likely tomorrow). Am I just unusually spoiled, or does the Y truly suck? You be the judge.