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Illustrations by Tim Lahan
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A Temporary Best Friend:
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- Social Tees Animal Rescue
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325 E. 5th St., nr. Second Ave.; 212-614-9653; socialteesnyc.org
Since 1991, this nonprofit has been rescuing animals from kill shelters (cats, dogs, exotics) and putting them up for adoption. Take one of the pups for a walk around the neighborhood�free of charge�for either 20 minutes or an entire afternoon. (For longer stints, there’s a foster-parent application process.) In the warmer months, those in less of a hurry can opt for a jaunt with Speedbump, the resident tortoise.
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A Moto Guzzi B7:
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- Jupiter’s Motorcycle Rentals
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119 8th St., nr. Second Ave., Ste. 100, Gowanus; 718-788-2585
The first Moto-share program in the country�serious bikers pay for monthly access to a whole fleet�also offers daily rentals (from $99 per weekday, $120 on weekends) for those who want to take a quick zip out to Brighton Beach or the Catskills. This April, four 24-hour pickup stations, à la Zipcar, are scheduled to launch in Brooklyn, Manhattan, Jersey City, and East Hampton.
A Projector and Screen:
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- Rooftop Films
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232 Third St., nr. 3rd Ave., Suite E-103, Gowanus; 347-725-3874
From May through August, this nonprofit is busy with its internationally renowned outdoor film festival. But they’ll still find time to rent you equipment year-round (an eight-foot-wide tripod screen and digital projector for $120, an additional $75 for the portable PA system) suitable for an in-home (or on-your-own-rooftop) theater experience. Prices are negotiable; struggling artists will likely get a discount.
A Fully Furnished Apartment:
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- Cort Furniture
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140 E. 45th St., nr. Third Ave., fifth fl.; 212-867-2800
Cort can furnish rooms, apartments, and entire offices�fast. (Think speedy setups for divorcés.) Browse the new, loftlike midtown showroom for mid-century sofas, 1960s modular chairs, and lounge-y, start-up-friendly office furniture. The recent-grad-friendly one-bedroom option�a small apartment’s worth of furniture�goes for $230 per month for a year.
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Local Art:
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- Artsicle
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Size-based pricing ($25 a month to rent a small work, $65 for a large) caters to commitment-phobes who have grown tired of that pesky blank space over the couch. Of the 3,500 artists featured in this digital catalog, hundreds are based in New York�including Lego sculptor Nathan Sawaya, abstract painter Vince Pomilio, and mixed-media artist Jenevieve Reid, whose renderings of Brooklyn water towers are on heavy rotation. Deliveries come in two weeks, with nails, wire, and hanging instructions included.
A Parking Space:
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- ParkAtMyHouse
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Back in 2011, New York became the first Stateside outpost for this Craigslist of parking, which allows locals to rent their private parking spaces to out-of-town visitors and garage-weary commuters. The Britain-based start-up now has a number of strongholds in the city, including JFK-convenient Rosedale (averaging $16 a day) and Barclays Center�adjacent Prospect Heights ($20 a day), as well as commuter-friendly Hoboken ($22 a day).
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A Quarter-Size Violin:
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- Virtuoso Resources
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261 W. 93rd St., nr. Broadway; 917-365-7808
Today your child wants to pick up a violin. But before you invest in one on a whim, you can test the waters thanks to owner Harold Hagopian, who offers minimum three-month rentals from $25 a month for violins and $60 for cellos. The Juilliard-trained violinist is known for pairing small hands (patrons as young as 4, although teens pass through too) with just the right size instrument�and for doling out free cello-shaped chocolates.