New Life City

Mus

2008-08-08T14:32:00.003-04:00

Today is a very sad day. A few minutes ago my dad has told me that “Mus”, my dear dog, has just passed away. I am crying like a baby. I can’t help it. Many people do not understand that you can really love your dog. It is because they never had one. Or because they never loved them.

Yesterday I watched “The unberable lightness of being”. I had read the book a few years ago. Those of you who have read it probably remember the chapter “Karenin’s smile”. I did cry when I read it and I cried again yesterday when I watched the movie. The “Karenin” on the movie reminded me of “Mus”, they were both a simiar kind of shepherd dog: loyal, joyful, full of life, their facial expression was alike. I could even tell, as Tomas and Teresa did, when “Mus” smiled too.

Mus, I am gonna miss your cheerful home welcomings, your funny laziness, your always being there without complain, our walks on the beach, our walks in the snow, the throwing of stones and sticks, how much you hated being on pictures, your sitting down waiting for a cookie, the look in your eyes.

You were a great dog. I will miss you and I will always take in you in my heart.

Thinking of home

2008-07-03T17:47:00.000-04:00

One month since the last post. In the meantime three of my friends have become dad or mom, three of them have got married, some classmates have come back to their countries for good and I have changed apartments. One damn month is a lot.

I am feeling tired and unwilling to do nothing but doing nothing. It is a curious thing that I am in NY, one of the best cities in the world, if not the best, without much to do and that I spend most of the time at home. As a friend was telling me today is a kind of Catch-22 situation: so many things to do and that I wanna do but no income that allows me to enjoy them. But if I was making working and making money I would not appreciate all those things to the same extent and they would not be available to me on a daily basis. It is frustrating.

As I was saying I am feeling lazy and a little bit tired of mostly everything. I am even tired of looking for a job. I am still into it, it is not that I have surrendered or so but my thoughts are a little unclear now. A tough time now.

I have active job leads now, a few of them. I really feel like this set of leads is the definitive one. I do not see many more coming and, if something pops up (or not) it will be thank to the current leads. I may be wrong but that is my perception. But the more I think about these diverse leads, the more confused I am. The thing is that as of today I may end up working in San Francisco for an internet start up focused on online video, a sports marketing agency in the L.A. area, a media conglomerate in NY… Does this make sense? My life may take one of these very diverse paths. All of them seem to be fine but I do not really know which one I would take if I had all of them within my reach.

And then it is home. I may be going through an awkward moment but the idea of eventually coming back home is growing stronger inside. In the last couple of weeks I feel nostalgic when my friends from my country tell me about the stories that are going on, the summer plans, the usual and typical jokes and so forth. I have also briefly talked to my dad about the possibility of joining him at the family business (something that has always been present in the back of my head, althugh never as a primary motivation). All this stuff already existed when I decided to come to the US two years ago and yet I came over for my MBA. All that also existed a few months ago when I was determined to stay in the US. What’s changed? Is it that I am somewhat fed up with what I am going through or is it really that I want to come back? I have not figured it out but nothing has changed that much to justify the different mindset…

Anyway, just some random thoughts that I needed to jot down. The next couple of weeks are gonna be critical. The leads/interviews will die or will turn into something tangible. And by then it will be almost the end of July and I will have to decide what comes next.

Will keep you all posted.

Stabbed in the back

2008-06-14T02:48:00.001-04:00

Stabbed. That is the way I am feeling today. It’s been some time since the last post and I was actually waiting to bring this blog to an end with the perfect post, the one that would summarize how perfect everything was: job offer, acceptance and, ultimately, the renewal of my NY adventure. But nothing farther from reality.

Everything was ok until today. As you all know I had been interviewing with several companies and so forth. I had decided to accept an offer and, in fact, I had actually accepted it verbally. Cool job, something I was really looking for. The downside: rather bad paycheck, although I was ready to take the hit and make a bet on a future career. In other words, invest and harvest in the mid to long term. As I was saying, everything was fine until earlier today… why? The company just rescinded the offer it had extended to me three weeks ago based on two grounds: my supossed lack of passion and their fear that I could leave the job as soon as something that pay better came along.

It is amazing because it’s been a few weeks since the offer was extended and we were just negotiating (that is what I thought!) a few – but important, though – issues such as salary and start date (although I had already verbally accepted the offer regardless the final outcome). Two days ago I was even given green light to come back to my country to have my visa renewed on the basis that the company would be providing me with all the necessary documentation. I bought my flights and so forth. And two days later, earlier today, I have been told that the “recruiting process for the position has been reopened”. Unbeliavable.

It is difficult to affirm that somebody lacks the passion for something when, for instance, she has taken an unpaid internship in the field to build up her resume. It is even harder if such person is willing to take a job that pays roughly one third of what the market pays to people with his or her education. It is even more difficult to justify that three, two, one week ago…three days ago… you had the passion and that then, out of the blue, you do not have it any more. Well, some people still look at you in the eye and affirm that you indeed lack the passion.

From a corporate perspective I understand that a company may fear that some of its human capital may leave to look for greener grass. But if a company really values the talent it is recruiting, it should do something to prevent it from leaving. And if any given company is not ready to do that “something” then it should not recruit such talent and, even less, it should not extend offers (to rescind them afterwards). You go for some specific talent or you do not. There is no middle ground here. It is perfectly acceptable that a company looks for its own interest but that should not be done at the cost of screwing your potential employees.

I had lately commented with some friends that I am a little naïve when it comes to dealing with corporations. Maybe it is because, thank god, in my worklife before b-school I had been lucky to deal with serious, competent and professional people. As I said, that has resulted in my being a little naïve. I just felt like I should not screw any given company, I felt like I had to look for the best common interest. I had been warned that such mindset did not match real life and, unfortunately, I have just experienced that it is true. One has to look after himself and think in a selfish way. I have realized that corporations will screw you if they need to. It is sad but that is the way it is. Where is the good faith? Where is the value of one’s word? I am still looking for them.

The funny thing is that maybe I want to be idealistic, maybe I want to believe that business can be done on such grounds I am now trying to find again. I don’t wanna change, I don’t wanna do things wrong just because some people do them wrong. It’s been a good lesson and I am probably on my way to losing some of the innocence. But again, I do not wanna go to the dark side. I do not believe in it.

I have promised myself that I am not gonna let this take me down. I am not gonna be complaining about it. I am not gonna feel miserable. I am gonna stand up and try even harder. I am gonna find something better.

All in all, there will be some other posts coming. The time to close this down has not come yet. As some people have told me today, there must be a reson why this has happened…

Up in the sky

2008-05-25T19:40:00.000-04:00

I am several thousands feet above the sea level. It is the very first time I am using a computer in an aircraft. It sems like in the last 10 days I have evolved several hundred years from a tech standpoint. Damn, Thievery Corporation in my ears, some blogging, maybe a little bit of Jack Bauer after this. When you have 6 hours before hitting the Bay Area you can a lot of things if you have the right tools!

I am a little bit tired since I have only slept five hours today. Yesterday I had dinner with some school friends in Soho and after that we bounced to Pravda and then Stanton Social in the LES. It was a fun night, full of margaritas on the rocks, actually. I have been jittery and hangovered all day and I have even lost the $15 train ticket from Penn Station to Newark, so I have had to buy an extra one. I hate coming to Newark, it is a pain in the ass…

I have not still assumed that I now have a real oportunity to stay in New York, which is something I have been working on for two years. Yesterday I ran into a couple of friends who are still looking and I was talking as if I had nothing. At some point one of them told me “dude, you have one offer already”. I’ve been for so long in the dark side that I am not very conscious yet about my new “status”.

Anyways, I am heading back to San Francisco again, after a couple of months. It is gonna be my second time in the city after last Spring Break trip. You all know the reason for this trip (if you don’t remember, check the posts from Spring Break!). I am somewhat surprised about my being on this plane right now. I have never done these kinds of things but, what the hell, I have said to myself, carpe diem. There is nothing to lose, right? Should be fun and, if it is not… well, I guess that’s life, then!

This coming week is gonna be critical, I believe. I am gonna have to pretty much decide what the future brings to me in the short term. It will definitely be my choice but I just hope that those companies I am waiting final responses from will be coming back to me so I have all the elements to decide.

I am gonna switch now to 24. I have been willing to watch from episode 17 onwards of the 6th season for months (my older laptop was too slow to play the episodes I purchased!) so now is the time. Is you and me now, Jack!

First offer

2008-05-22T20:14:00.000-04:00

A day to remember. May 22, 2008. Today. They day when I got my first full-time offer in the U.S. I was actually ding my weekly laundry when I got a call from an HR person. She told me that she had been “authorized” to extend me an offer. After two long months and 6 or 7 interviews, after providing past professional references and after some uncertainty, I got it.

It is funny but I am not super excited. On the one hand I am proud of this accomplishment, it’s been a lot of work to get this and now I look back and I am struck by the amount of networking, interning and so forth invested so far in this. But on the other hand it is hard to take that the sports industry pays this bad. It is something I already knew and expected, but still…

Anyway, I am better off than two hours ago, when I had nothing yet. I have not accepted the offer straight away and I have asked for just a few days to make up my mind and to perform some calculations as to whether I can afford to take a job that would be a lot of fun and that I am sure that I would enjoy, but that pays so badly. At the same time, I am waiting for some final responses from a couple of companies I am interviewing with, in particular one of the TV sector where I am close to the finish line (actually it is just me or one other candidate). It would be a great opportunity in terms of career development and well paid.

I was talking to a couple of friends a while ago and they had very different views about taking or not the job I have been offered: (a) do not take it, the pay is too low and you should not move in at that price after completing the MBA; (b) take it and keep looking in the meantime. If something better comes along you can always take it. I am not sure about any of them.
I feel like I am being to innocent. I somehow tell myself not to take a job if I know that there is a decent chance that I will be leaving in a few months. I wanna be true to whatever company hires me. At the same time, it is obvious that companies look after themselves and they do nt hesitate when it comes to keeping salaries low, firing people and so forth. People in the US are not as change-averse as we are in my country. Here people behave like companies: do whatever you have to do at any single point in time. Maybe I should follow this since I am in the US. If at some point I am willing to leave for somewhere else whatever company may always try to retain me, right? I gotta think about this thoroughly…

By the way, today I also got my authorization (called OPT) to work in the US for an extra year. It is a formality since MBAs almost always get it but I was scared of not having met all of the application requirements. It’s an extra step, an important one.

Now it all comes down to deciding about jobs. Damn, let’s go out celebrate that, for the first time in this process, I can choose!!!!!

I'm a masters

2008-05-16T11:07:00.001-04:00

It’s over two years are finally gone. It happened yesterday, at the Radio City Music Hall. 400+ full-time colleagues and a bunch of part timers – as well as our families – got together to celebrate the graduation of the Stern’s Class of 2008. It was a perfect venue and a not-so-perfect commencement ceremony (I can’t believe that we did not throw our caps in the air at the very end… what about all those American movies!?) that included a speech (mostly about the current credit crunch???????) by Bank of America’s CEO.

But it will always be an unforgettable day to me. Seeing how my dad’s face filled with pride and joy, having a bottle of champagne with my folks after the ceremony, taking dozens of pics with my classmates… standing up there over-viewing all the crowd right before shaking the dean’s hand as my name was aired through the speakers. Two years are gone. End of the story, end of one of the most amazing chapters of my life.

It’s been around three years since I started the whole process of coming to business school, it was the spring of 2005. GMAT, TOEFL, applications, letters, the stress of not knowing what was gonna happen…what a pain. It seems like it’s been 10 years since then! But now I look back and I could not be happier. It’s been the best thing I’ve done in my entire life, an amazing experience and I will do the same thing again if I was standing in my own shoes three years ago.

I have had an amazing time, I have made great friends, I have learnt quite a lot, I have made true that dream of mine from 6 years ago (that first visit to the Big Apple) of living in the best city of the world, I have traveled around the US and abroad, I have made great connections…and I have definitely build the foundations to allow myself a career change outside of the law ring, which was the primary reason to start this adventure. It has not materialized yet but I am confident that it may happen in the next couple of weeks…

Time to finish this morning post. I have my folks in town and it is time to go for a walk in this rainy day in my beloved NY.
Later

Two days to go

2008-05-06T00:29:00.001-04:00

Time goes by quickly. Two days to go. I have delivered today a presentation with my brand strategy group, I will deliver an individual one tomorrow for business coaching and on Wednesday I will take the final new venture financing exam. And that will be it, I will be graduating in 8 days from today. Unbelievable. I will have time to write down my impressions in the coming days.

On the job front there are no news. I am starting to feel like a couple of options that I had opened are vanishing now. It’s been a week since the last interviews and I have had no news at all. Bad sign. Let’s not lose hope, anyway.

Gotta go to sleep now. Second to last academic day tomorrow.
Ciao

A boost of self confidence

2008-04-26T21:03:00.002-04:00

This is not the last shot invented by Jamba Juice to add to your drink. It is about my self confidence and hopes. I wrote last Sunday that the week in front of me was important from a job perspective. Well, now I can tell that it has been much more important than I expected. I had no idea that it was gonna be like that. That good, I mean.

First, after a four back-to-back interviews with the sports league I am in the final round. The interviews went fine and just the day after I got a call, although I had been told that it would take a week or so. I have to come back on Monday afternoon to meet one of the heads of the league who oversees all marketing tasks. The offer may be just around the corner… or may not. But things look promising.

Secondly, last Monday I got a call out of the blue from one of the most respected publishing companies in America. I had applied for a position in the strategic planning group but I did so long after the job posting was published, so I was not very hopeful. Thus, I visited the company on Tuesday and conducted three interviews with the people who work for a group that reports directly to the CEO. Awesome position leading with the company’s strategy (super challenging in these times that are so hard for publishing companies), acquisitions and venture investments in the digital space. I also felt like the interviews went fine and I should know something by the end of next week.

But hold your breath, this is not over. This week I have also been able to line up an interview for a cable network whose shows I have often cited in this blog. And then, I also got an email from the internet company that everybody knows around the world…yes, it is that big one based in the Bay Area.

I still have to pinch myself to believe that things seem to be moving forward. I have no offers yet but it seems like I am on the right track. Who knows, maybe in a couple of weeks I will be celebrating…or maybe working already. It is unbelievable how things can change overnight!

Let’s get ready to party a little bit, it is Saturday night!

Important week ahead

2008-04-20T23:48:00.001-04:00

The Lakers have won their first game against the Nuggets and Gasol has played an awesome game. Friday’s game between the Suns and the Spurs was just awesome. I feel like this year’s NBA playoffs are gonna be amazing.

But that is not the reason why next week is gonna be important. It is not even because I have finally been able to unlock my Blackberry from my country – after 4 months – so I will be able to enjoy internet service and email in the US. The thing is that next week I will be having final round interviews at one of the major sport leagues. I feel comfortable and I think I may have a chance but, needless to say, I do not want to be over-optimistic. We’ll, probably by this time next week I will know whether I got the offer or not.

To start the week, I am having tomorrow an interview at a company where superheroes that we all know usually live. I am curious, it could also be a great opportunity. We’ll see.

In the meantime, the clock keeps ticking. Roughly three weeks to go.

Of gutfeelings and MBA students

2008-04-12T19:35:00.000-04:00

There is nothing like spending an hour of one’s Saturday evening ironing a few shirts at home. Yeah, I had a backlog in my closet and I have finally caught up. It is the most boring thing to do. At least in the meantime I have pumped Los Planetas on my laptop (iTunes has been the only application running because otherwise it won’t work or it will overheat and shutdown – my nerves are cracking) again. Some days I just feel like listening to them and today, after quite a long time, it was one of those days. Do not ask me why. Anyway, there are two things that I know that I will be doing for sure as soon as I get a job and leave my student budget behind: buy a new laptop and hire a maid to clean up my apartment and iron shirts.

These week has been an interesting one. I have taken part in a focus group for the first time ever, I have been to the dentist, I have had a haircut, I have made it through to a second (and final) round of interviews, I have started working out again, have I got a disappointing and unexpected B in a course, I have tried some Colombian aguardiente for the first time, I have applied to a bunch of jobs both in the east and the west coast,…not too bad.

This week I have also spent a very long time thinking deeply about how difficult it is sometimes to stick with your gut and your heart and follow your passions. In terms of making decision I feel like I am following kind of an inverted evolution. One is supposed to do more reckless and bold moves when he is a teenager. But I feel like I have been doing pretty much that for the last two years. I do not feel like I did much of that in my late teens early twenties and I am definitely doing that in my late twenties and early thirties. Wise or immature?

I quit my job and left the easy and safe path that was in front of me a couple of years ago. I kicked banks and consulting firms in their butts to pursue a difficult non-traditional career in media or sports... Everything looked a little crazy at the time of making such decisions; now it looks like the most obvious and reasonable thing. And now I may face the decision of taking an (unreasonable?) 40% discount from the average salary of a top MBA program to do what I think I want. This is the very big decision. If I have the guts to eventually take it I think I will definitely close the circle of bold moves. Or maybe not, because looking at my recent trajectory anything may happen. These thoughts occupy my mind all the time. I have not come to a decision yet. But I feel like much thinking is not necessarily gonna help me decide. I guess that I will wake up one day and will say: “what the fuck, let’s do it!”….or maybe “no way, forget about it”.

But to close such a varied week, I am gonna finish right now to attend my first party ever at an art gallery… perfect closing for the week!
Later

Easy Friday

2008-04-04T18:08:00.001-04:00

It is 520 pm on this Friday. It is a rather uncommon time for me to write. I have just come back from a corporate visit to HBO. It has been very entertaining. It seems like a great company to work for. Smart people, great vibe. I could tell that people really love what they do there. It is not frequent to see people in the same company for 20+ years. At HBO, it is a common thing.

This weekend I am gonna focus on job search almost exclusively. I have been able to pretty much clean up my schedule in terms of school work - why the heck am I working this much on my last semester? I feel a little dumb – and it is time for me to catch up with my #1 priority. Due to spring break, friends’ visits and heavy workload I have fallen a little behind. It should not be a big issue, though, since the media recruiting has just kicked off. Hopefully by Sunday night I will have been able to send my resume to some interesting openings. We’ll see.

This week I have discussed with some friends some of the intricacies and mysteries of the OPT for international students. What a pain in the ass. I wish somebody at Stern (or at any other US business school I did apply to) had told me how difficult it is for a foreigner to get a job in the US after graduation. It is great for all schools to have a never ending list of companies that recruit…but at asterisk next to the ones that do not recruit internationals in the US would be advisable.
Anyway, I am off to “Follies”, the yearly talent show where Sternies show their acting abilities. Should be fun.

Have a good one

Reality bites

2008-03-27T01:50:00.000-04:00

My last Spring break is over. I did not hit the jackpot in Vegas, so I still need a job. I love San Francisco. I am back in NY. There is roughly one month to go for graduation. Time is flying. My friends are in town. The Knicks and Isaiah suck. I walk in a green park holding hands.

These are the thoughts that are coming to my mind at 125 am on this Thursday. Random? Kind of. Meaningful? I guess so. I just typed them without thinking, like a robot would do. And they seem to make a lot of sense, they gave a surprising accurate picture of my reality.

My second and last Spring break ever is over. I have loved it. I liked Vegas – spending 2 days/nights is enough anyway – although I lost a few bucks (fewer than expected, though). The Grand Canyon is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen in my whole life and I will never forget those views from the chopper. Route 101 in California is breathtaking: seals, cliffs, blue waters, fog…and Malibu, Santa Barbara, Carmel, Monterey, Big Sur… Road trips are great and they are even better when you embark on them with great friends. And then San Francisco. I have just fallen in love with the city – almost as much as I did with NY a few years ago, I dare say – and I can’t stop thinking about my walk holding hands in the Golden Gate Park last Sunday afternoon among sequoias and different kinds of plants and trees…It was like bringing back sensations I had not felt for quite a long time.

I have friends in town visiting and I have not had time to spend with them in the last three days. I feel bad about it. I will fix this starting tomorrow. Though I do not regret not going with them to see the Knicks playing at the Madison tonight.

And in the end I am back in the Big Apple. Three days have elapsed since I arrived and they have done so in an astonishing fast way. I guess this is gonna be the trend in the next 6 weeks. Last rush, last effort, last assignments, last meetings. Last everything. I find it hard to believe it.

And as weeks go by, time is lacking. For job search purposes obviously. Today it has been a good day and a couple of leads in the sports industry have come up. Everybody tells me to be confident, that the right time is about to start. Hope they are right. But time keeps flying and I have decided to give myself 3 months to try to make true my dream of staying in the US once I graduate. The race has definitely started.

I read over the previous paragraphs and I feel like it is just a rather accurate picture.
Later

My last Spring break

2008-03-16T03:00:00.000-04:00

It is 239 am and I have to wake up in one hour and 45 minutes. Vegas is looking for me and a bunch of my friends who just arrived from my city. My second and probably last Spring break. Vegas and then a road trip to LA and the Bay Area. I can’t wait, it’s gonna be just awesome.

I am really excited about this trip, not only because two of its destinations have long been awaited. Vegas is a must see, everybody says so. Probably enough for a couple of days but definitely something I won’t see anywhere else. I have been told that SF is just amazing, a great place to live, a place I am gonna fall for, as I did for NY a few years ago. But in addition to that I am happy because I will be spending a decent amount of time with some great friends from my city I have not hung out with for a time. It will be like some trips in the old days.

Speaking of the old days, today I have had a kind of revival of my college years. Two girl friends from my college years arrived in NY yesterday with two friends of theirs. They used to be very beautiful girls pretty much all of us were crazy about at some point… they still are, certainly. I had not seen one of them for maybe 5 years. It’s amazing how our lives have changed since then, though we all still feel young and unwilling to take on responsibilities. On the other hand, we have talked about the large number of our college class mates who have moved some steps forward in the personal arena, either by getting married or by having kids and so forth. We still think more about going out, randomly hooking up with somebody or about why we keep jumping from one relationship to the next. Although a long time has elapsed since the college times, I have felt like if it had been yesterday. The vibe has been great, and I have loved that.

One hour and 20 minutes wake up. It is gonna be painful…Until next time!

Visit time

2008-03-02T22:35:00.001-05:00

Wow, it is impressive to see that March is here already. Two months to go! And as time keeps rushing, friends are starting to fly across the Atlantic to render long-awaited visits. In the next two months I will have more than 10 people coming over. It has taken them some time but, since I do not know where the heck I will be from June 1 on, it is the only time they have left to justify a trip to NY.

The first one to visit has been one of my former roommates back in my country. The great “White Shark”. He had promised to do so and so he landed with her girlfriend yesterday evening. Today we have hit Café Havana in Nolita for brunch and we have caught up over an iced mocha from Think Coffee as we walked around Stern and Washington Square. I have enjoyed listening to what is going on where I used to live, how people are doing and so forth. Things seem not to have changed much. It is been two years now since I left and I feel like I could come back tomorrow and I would be happy. On the other hand, I still want to expand my NY experience.

It has been a rather quiet weekend, although I went out 'til 4 yesterday night. I attended the MBA media conference on Friday. I was able to re-boost some contacts I have in the industry, which is good for the job search. At the same time, looking at how many people are interested in entertainment and media, the landscape looks pretty competitive in terms of potential opportunities…and that is obviously bad.

On Thursday night I went out to a party organized by LABA and I run into a good friend who graduated from Stern last year. I had not seen him in ages. He came over with his mates from the bank where he works. When I told him that I am not going out that much he said: “You have to!”. Real life is around the corner and I feel like I should be partying a little more. Actually, I have not written a late night after-party post for a while. That is something that I will have to address soon, within the next week hopefully…

Before finishing, let me recommend you “Juno”. I watched on Friday night and it is just great. You will love it!
Ciao

Bad day

2008-02-26T22:18:00.000-05:00

I had already said that these days would come along. I am down today. I am injured after the Austin, TX, MBA soccer cup, I am tired and I feel a little worried and depressed with my job search.

Last week I met with one of the career counselors at Stern. I seem to be doing everything right in terms of my homework (networking, looking, etc) and apparently it is still early for media recruiting purposes. I believed her since she knows the shit much better than I do. But weeks go by and I don’t hear back from the companies I apply.

I was feeling ok with that until today. I was talking to a girl from school who is committed to the media search too. She has got nothing yet either, but she is interviewing. She was in L.A. last week, she has told me about another girl who lined up 5 interviews for next week. In the meantime, I do not even have a first round.

Last week I could confirm that some big media companies are not recruiting b/c of economic uncertainty. Today, a professor that teaches us a film course has told us some “realities” about the industry and some life lessons that one is not usually told at biz school. The gloomy ones. It’s been really useful and eye-opening.

In a nutshell, today I am feeling like it is really cold out there. It’s less than three months until graduation. Things have not changed much since my last “happy day” but today I kind of look in a different way.

Well, I just needed to write about it.
Later

My own happy Valentine's

2008-02-15T00:41:00.003-05:00

A great burrito from the Mexican restaurant around the corner and “28 weeks later” on my HDTV. And the first listening to Radiohead’s “In rainbows” album while I write this post before going to bed. By myself. That’s been my Valentine’s night master plan. And I feel pretty good about it.

It is funny because it seems like these kinds of festivities have to be celebrated in a very specific way. In the way merchants tell us to. I never celebrate Valentine’s. I never celebrate mother’s or father’s day. I do not need to wait for such days to buy something for somebody I love. That’s just the way I see it.

Today I have gone for a haircut and the lady who has cut my hair just asked me if I had specific plans for tonight. I said no and explained my theory. She agreed. She also explained to me some theories about why she preferred Hillary to defeat Obama for the benefit of the democrats. At some point later today I was at school filling out a form and when I have unconsciously asked what day it was the girl behind the counter has looked at me in a weird and funny way…just like thinking, “wow, you’ve got a great love life right now, my friend” :-) I can't complain, anyways.

I am rather happy today because it seems like I am doing things right in terms of job search. I have been talking to one of the Stern’s career counselors and she insists that I am on the right track. It is still early for media jobs. I just have to persevere with my networking and the pay offs will come. She was super optimistic. Though I am not that much, I am still confident.

Going to bed now. We are facing NYU Soccer Varsity team tomorrow. A serious test for the old MBA guys. Playing against some kids 10 years younger than I and in a much better shape is a challenge. But we will not be an easy opponent. I hope not, at the very least!!
Later

Course impressions

2008-02-13T23:03:00.001-05:00

A couple of weeks of my last semester are gone already and it by now I have some first impressions about the courses I am taking. On the one hand, I can preliminary say that I am rather excited about them; on the flipside, it seems like it is gonna be a little bit more work than I wished for my very last semester as a student.

Brand strategy: a famous marketing course at Stern taught by Scott Galloway, a former entrepreneur and current hedge fund guy. Maybe you have heard of him because his fund is trying to get a few board seats at The New York Times. I remember some friends last year telling me about this course and how nervous they felt in class. I know now what they meant. Galloway is cocky and self confident and he thinks he is a hot shot (and I think he is). He will challenge you in class and put you on the spot if necessary. He has told us today that he will cold call during next class about the “brand identity model”. If we do not know the answers he will kick us out of class. It is not a joke. He may be a little scary but I feel like these kinds of professors are necessary. Not everything works in his class, and in more classes than it would be desired anything you say seems to work.

Restructuring firms and industries: a general corporate finance course, focused on conflicts of interests between shareholders and managers in a variety of fields such as excess cash flow or M&A. This course, taught by Professor Yermack, is a Stern classic. A good way for us foreigners to learn a bit about US corporate history. Yermack is a great storyteller and a little dorky, in my view. He does the work. And I suspect that by the time I finish this course I will have a bunch of his interesting quotes (e.g. “Warren Buffet has just been lucky outperforming the market every single year for the last 52 years”).

New venture financing: a course on venture capital and entrepreneurship. I just had my first two sessions today. Professor Ljungqvist seems to be a nice guy and I liked the way he taught today. It’s gonna be kind of too much work, though. I am just concerned about whether the course will add value to the Foundations of Entrepreneurship course that I took last semester.

Movie marketing and exhibition: a course to enjoy. Our prof. Reed Martin, a former WB guy and media consultant is such a character. Super entertaining and fun. He seems to be hung up on red bull! I will learn some key aspects of the industry and definitely I will get to know a bunch of “must see” movies. The one that I took away from yesterday’s class was “Juno”. The idea of writing a marketing plan for my favorite movie sounds like a great term assignment.

Collaboration, conflict and negotiation: I am taking this course because people have recommended me. I am a little bit skeptical about actually learning to negotiate. Is it possible to learn to ride a bike by taking a course? I doubt it. You need to practice. We will be practicing in class and hopefully I will take something useful out of it.

Private equity and investment banking in media: first session shall take place tomorrow. Hopefully I will improve my quant skills. The professors are two bankers with a long track record. We’ll see.

Now it is time to chill a bit. I am gonna finish watching “There will be blood”. I have seen part of it already and I was not super excited. But it is one of those “must” for this year.
Ciao

Priorities

2008-02-07T21:34:00.001-05:00

It’s Thursday, 926 pm and I am back home after going to beer blast for roughly two hours. I have had a couple of glasses of wine and I have had to leave. A pity because today there was a pretty good Stern welcome party at Libation, LES… and the talent look pretty good too.

But it is time to prioritize and tomorrow at 9 am I have an interview. At a sports marketing agency. And this comes first. At least, things start moving forward.
The media industry has been – and still is – traditionally late when it comes to MBA recruiting. It is a random, unstructured process. Companies seldom come to campus, candidates have to search openings for themselves and be patient. It is easy to tell but it is not easy to remain calmed and confident when the majority of your classmates have jobs already.

Anyway, as a guy from a digital media company told me last week, it is still rather early for media recruiting. It is already February and graduation is around the corner, for God’s shake!!

We’ll see how it goes tomorrow. Either way, I will be celebrating this weekend! :-)

Super Bowl champions!

2008-02-06T00:57:00.000-05:00

Speaking of sports, I just wanted to highlight that the NY Giants are the new NFL Champions after a terrific game against the New England Patriots!

The Pats were the favorite team after not losing a single game throughout the season, but the Giants, led by Eli Manning, really ramped up their level as the play-offs progressed.

Before the game I was not sure as to what team to support. Giants vs. Pats, NY vs. Boston,… but ultimately, my city vs. Gisele (Tom Brady’s – Patriots’ QB – girlfriend). By the time the game started I realized that the Giants were my choice :-)

Historical day to be in NY!! Go Giants

Pau

2008-02-06T00:31:00.000-05:00

Hi there!

Tuesday night and just a few lines before going to bed. It's been a rather quiet day. I have essentially arranged a short lease of an apartment for some friends visiting NY in a few weeks from now.

Today I have taken a break re: school work. I am mostly done with my readings for my Brand Strategy and Restructuring classes of tomorrow. Today I have just finished my first assignment of the Movie Marketing course, an assignment on Starship Troopers, the largely undervalued Paul Verhoeven's picture from 1997. It seems like the course is gonna be a lot of fun!

But the fun part today has been going to the Izod Center, home of the NJ Nets to see the Lakers beating the Nets (90-105). It was Pau Gasol's debut with the "yellow fever" (i.e. the LA Lakers, as a famous commentator would say). Great game for Pau: 24 points and 12 boards, plus 4 assists and a block. Happy to see him out of the Grizzlies. What a great plan has been going to the game!!

I have always been a huge Laker fan. The reason for that is that I started watching basketball back in the "Showtime" days of Magic (my all-time favorite player), Byron Scott, Worthy and Kareem.

The Lakers were back in the game after a long time when Shaq and Kobe got together. And now it is great to see Pau in a winning team. It will be really hard to make it to the NBA final (can you imagine what a series against the Celtics of Garnett, Allen and Pierce would be? Great re-edition of the 80's games vs Bird & Co) but there is definitely a chance.

Who knows, maybe next year I will have the chance to see Gasol's and Kobe's Lakers at the Staples Center more often than I ever thought. Too early to tellbut there may be an opportunity there...

Until next time.

Like Rocky Balboa

2008-01-30T01:51:00.000-05:00

After 4 months or so, I have gone back to the gym. I can't believe it's been so long. My legs are sore and, after a while I feel like there is something more than a stomach near my waist. Feels good!

It also feels good b/c it's been a promising day. Thanks to my networking I have been contacted by the human resources staff of a big media conglomerate. I may also be interviewing with a digital media start-up later this week. And I have attended a corporate presentation of (and submitted an application for)a small boutique IB that almost exclusively focuses on sports deals.

In both aspects I feel like Rocky at the beginning of his training. Little by little I hope I will finally get in shape: I will be getting the job that I want and I will hopefully be fit again.

I needed to write about this. I am sure that some gloomy days will also be coming. So, let's enjoy at least for a day!

Later

Crucial and uncertain times

2008-01-27T20:40:00.001-05:00

In the little time spent in NY since I arrived from Beijing I have also had time to start sending emails to my network. The crucial months in terms of job search are just around the corner for me. It is gonna be tough to find a spot in some media company but I have to be confident. One thing, however, that keeps surrounding my head is uncertainty. My travel mate and I have long talked during the China trip about our near future and options. I remember the time when I was applying to biz school after quitting my job. I did not know where I was going to be three months down the road. Now it feels the same, or even more uncertain…

The next months will tell me what I will be doing after graduation and where. But if you ask me now about it, I will just tell you: “I have no clue”. It may be business development at a media company, some general management stuff at a start up or private equity. It may be NY, LA, San Francisco…or maybe Madrid or London. When I think about how things may go one way or another I feel a little overwhelmed. I know what I want but I also want to keep my options open. And maybe what I want the most is not feasible and I may then need to go south in my standing. As you can see, challenging times…

Tomorrow I will be having my first day of class of my very last semester at Stern (damn!). I am happy with my course choices this semester. Let’s see if the expectations are met. I will keep you posted

Ciao

Sweet home

2008-01-27T20:36:00.000-05:00

Back in NY!!! I can’t believe I am already here. It’s been almost a month since I left for the Xmas break and I was missing it. I arrived in NY a couple of days ago after a 17 hour trip from Beijing, including a short layover in Chicago. It was a pleasant flight, my first on United Airlines. I was lucky that I had 4 seats for myself so I took some good 7+ hours of sleep. The downside is that I have paying the dues for two days since I am finding it so hard to sleep.

It feels good to be back home. I have really enjoyed my Asian trip but I wanted to come back. I guess I would not have felt this way if I had spent a month somewhere else, say Brazil, but somehow these past weeks have been somewhat stressful, in particular the last one. And I feel like that such perception is mostly due to the language. How frustrating it is to communicate in a completely different language. I can handle English, Spanish, French, Italian or Portuguese to certain extent but when it comes to Chinese it is a different ball game. Frustrating.

Although I have only been in NY for a while I have already had time to organize myself, clean up stuff, do the laundry and some food shopping. I feel settled again. In just one day. Soooooo good!

Leaving Shanghai

2008-01-22T07:36:00.000-05:00

Hi all and greetings from Beijing! I have finally arrived at my last destination before heading back to the US, the capital of China. I just arrived a couple of hours ago and I will hopefully get some good sleep tonight. The Forbidden City, Tiannanmen Square and many other things are out there waiting for us tomorrow.

The visit to Shanghai is over. It's been short but intense. We have spent two and a half days walking around.. I feel like we did not need much more time there. I have kind of liked it but my expectations have not been met, though.

Our hotel was pretty well located, near "The Bund", the "golden mile" where many luxury boutiques, fancy restaurants and trendy clubs are located. Right by the river and in front of Pudong, the rather new district where many companies are headquartered in Shanghai. We were also rather close to Nanjing Road, the main shopping street in town. A good hotel at a more than reasonable fare...better than HK!

On the day we arrived we just went out to Attica, a club by the river that we have been recommended. It was ok but nothing great. The high point of the night was running into Sir Richard Branson! We wanted to take a picture with him and eventually ask him for a job but he was enjoying the aprty with a couple of girls. He seems to be such a great guy. I recommend you his biography, called "Losing my virginity".

The day after we basically visited the Old City, including the Yu Gardens, City God Temple and some other traditional venues. The Old City is rather curious, surrounded by walls, without traffic allowed in and full with stores (both multinationals and locals selling souvenirs) and "independent salepeople" selling "watches, purses, shoes" (sic) to every westerner. Quite hilarious. We had a not very good lunch at an amazing place. It was kind of a self service with dozens of types of Chinese food. Our choices were not the best, unfortunately. But I enjoyed the experience and laughed at the waitresses' small talk about us, haha. It's amazing how Chinese people stare at foreigners.

After the Old City we walked on Huahai road to the French Concession, another must-see in town. Quite disappointing. It somehow reminded me of the NY village, full of small buildings and clothing stores. But, that was pretty much it. After that we went out for dinner to "M" with three girl friends from Stern who had also traveled to Shanghai after spending a couple of weeks in HK with us. A great dinner at one of the best restaurants in town. 60 bucks a piece, expensive but affordable. Now I have and idea of how well must expats live in Shanghai if this is the priciest stuff you can find...

Our second day was more relaxed. A long walk including the People's Square and a couple of temples and some low-profile shopping at local markets. At least I bought the first season of "Californication" (Showtime's new show starring David Duchovny) and the first four seasons of "Entourage". 25 bucks for the whole thing...and with an amazing packaging. And surprisingly, the discs work!! Oh, and we finally found "Superbad" and watched it straight away. It was good fun but after so much buzz about it I was a little disappointed. But "McLovin" is hilarious!!

Before leaving today we had dinner with a friend from high school of my travel mate's and her boyfriend. They had not seen each other for 12 years and it was quite funny to see how they first did not recognize each other. The dinner was amazing (the best food so far in China!) and we also got some insights about how expats leave in Shanghai.

Anyway, as I have said before, Shanghai has been ok but I expected a little more. I expected more cosmopolitan stuff, more venues to be seen, more vibe... A good experience but I am definitely looking forward to seeing what the traditional China that we will face tomorrow in Beijing will bring to us.

Ciao

Hong Kong: Part II

2008-01-21T06:18:00.001-05:00

It's been a few days already that I left HK and I kind of miss it. Me and my friends have long discussed whether we would eventually take a job in Asia. I feel like I could move to HK for a year or so with a company's commitment to send me back. I doubt I would be able to come to Shanghai. And after talking to some people I feel like the same thing is gonna happen with Beijing.

The experience in HK has been good. The "Doing Business in China" course that I have taken has been fine but there are some things that must be improved in the future. It's been the first year that this course has been offered and there is room for improvement.

The first criticism is the daily schedule. In the end, everybody who has taken this course has spent more than $3.5k, including tuition (2K), flights and pocket money. We all definitely wanted to learn a lot about China, but when you spend such amount of money you also expect to have time for leisure, sightseeing and so forth. And we have lacked the latter. It doesnt make sense to have class from 930am to 530pm everyday.

The quality of the lectures has been pretty good, including some given by the former China CEO of Walmart and a presentation by a big shot of Pepsi China. We have covered cultural issues, business issues and corporate visits (not super interesting, though) to three companies.

Overall I think that I have learnt some good stuff. And now I can say that whenever somebody says "company X should go to China b/c it is the future" I will have some thoughts to qualify such a statement. It is not that obvious and many things must be assessed.

The other main criticism is the hotel. It was ok, not luxurious, but the location sucked. It's a pity b/c it has made things more complicated in terms of walking around. We could have easily shared room with another person - instead of having individual rooms - and get a better location for the same price.

On the leisure side, I have had fun. The group of people who traveled with me was very nice. I have had the chance to meet people I had never talked to back in Stern and to strength my ties with some others. I have gone out a couple of nights, I have had delicious Chinese foods (eg. coconut rice, pineapple rice, tasty noodles, fish cake, curry, coconut milk, papaya salad), I have bet on horse races, I have seen big panda bears playing around, I have walked around flea markets like the one in Mong Kok (without a doubt, the word of the trip...note the funny phonetic connotations from French and English), visited a big Buddha (is it bigger than the one in Nara, Japan?), I have seen one of the most beautiful skylines I have ever seen (HK island from Kowloon), I have known about "Edgar se cae" (please, check it out on Youtube) and I have met a super cute HK-brazilian girl...

As you can see, a lot of good things. It has been a very good trip. Maybe the only big thing that I missed was Macau but I do not feel it is a big deal since I will be traveling to Vegas in March with some friends.

Overall, great trip and some great memories and pictures to take away!

Later

Shanghai

2008-01-19T08:09:00.000-05:00

Btw, I have just arrived in Shanghai a few hours ago. I have not had time to see much yet. But the traffic jam to get from the airport to the hotel has been far too much...two damned hours!!

However, the city looked pretty amazing from the cab. And the hotel seems to be perfectly located this time!

Later

Hong Kong: Part I

2008-01-19T07:37:00.000-05:00

On Saturday, Jan 5, I arrived in HK after a twelve hour trip from London Gatwick. What a hell of a trip. But this time it was absolutely my fault. I had to switch from Heathrow to Gatwick since I was arriving in the former from my town. Well, everything was going fine. I arrived on time, picked up my luggage and headed to the central bus station for my National Express coach (again, after a few years!). Every time I travel on National Express it reminds me of The Divine Comedy's song of the same name...Anyway, as I was about to get to the station I suddenly realized that I had collected the wrong suitcase. All the way back to arrivals - running like crazy - and, miraculously, my suitcase was still there. Thank God! The BAA officer almost kills me !

I finally arrived in Gatwick and departed for HK on an Oasis Airlines flight. The only discount long-haul airline that I know (great deal!)and it works just fine. I watched Shrek 3 and A Good Year, with Russell Crowe. After that, I took my first sleeping pill ever and slept like a baby. I just woke up as we were approaching HK.

HK airport is huge, really modern and pretty. I managed to find the hotel's counter and scheduled a shuttle service to the hotel. Somewhere in Kowloon. The name did not mean much to me at that point. It was a long ride, more than an hour, and it included a stop in Disneyland HK's parking lot...

I arrived at the hotel and the first impression was ok. Not luxurious but comfortable. I did not know anything about its location... I just had to wait for a friend of mine who was arriving from NY a couple of hours later. If everything resulted as planned, we'd painting the town red. It was Saturday night and the course did not start until Monday.

My friend arrived around 10 pm and shortly after we were on our way to Central, more precisely, to Lan Kwai Fong, the main party area in the Hong Kong Island. At this point we already realized that the hotel's location was rather shitty. Far from the action.

After our first Asian dinner, we had some drinks at a couple of bars to become familiar with the area. What most struck me since the beginning - and it's been sth repeated during the whole trip - was the high number of expats living in HK. I expected a larger majority of locals. We ended up going to this club 'Prive' and it was fun, not amazing, though. But we were in the mood for more and, once it closed and after some random questioning, we headed to an after party club nearby. It was a rather dark one, with a curious mix of people, a little shady and quite entertaining. Well, it was more entertaining for my friend who hooked up with a very cute Korean girl. What a beginning! I just played wingman haha!

By the time we went back to the hotel it was 9 am and some other people from the program who had just arrived or woken up looked at us with surprise... time for breakfast and to go to bed. Day 1.

The day after, Sunday, was just a waste, in particular for me since either the drinks from the night before, the water, or the early breakfast k.o.'ed my stomach and I was forced to follow the bottled water+sugar diet... Fortunately, it was just for one day. Sunday proved also useful to see that my laptop, after 5 dignifying years, is about to pass away. It's been a real pain to ask for people's computers for two weeks!

On Monday the course was to start and we were all curious about what was ahead of us: the school, the professors, the course, the group of people... But I will touch on it in the next post.

After a while, I'm back

2008-01-17T07:31:00.000-05:00

How are u all doing? It's been a while since my last post but I have been rather busy with my holidays and stuff. On top of that, I have rather limited inet access since my laptop's adpater has cracked...

Anyway,a lot of stuff has happened since my last post. I am not gonna be able to summarize all in one post, so I will take it little by little. Due to my technology issues, I feel like I will still keep writing about the past weeks in February!

Xmas was a great time. I went back to my city for around ten days. After that I was gonna leave for Hong Kong for a 2-week Stern course. The schedule that I had pretty much planned was a busy one but you never know what may happen.

I arrived in my hometown on Dec 23 with a broken suitcase. Things keep happening between Air France and me and this time the suitcase's wheels were torn apart...awesome. At least this time I did not miss my connection in Roissy, and all the gifts I had bought in NY were still there.

I spent Xmas Eve and Xmas with my family and it was a pretty good time. After that I had the chance to spend a few days in a rather quiet way and to hang out with my buddies. It felt much better than the year before. In particular, the last day was awesome. We had this amazing day! We met early to go to our former high school to play a soccer game (damn, we are getting old!) and then we went for a pre-set lunch, which was followed by lots...and lots of drinks and partying...hey, maybe we are not that old in the end :-) It was the perfect way to say goodbye or, more accurately, see you, since they will be visiting the US for two weeks in Spring!

During those days I also had the chance to meet with some other great friends from Madrid and to talk to many others. It is always great to catch up with the people you care about but it is a little stressful to meet all the "commitments"... sometimes it is not feasible and you have to prioritize and people feel hurt. That sucks.

I even had time to have a few (early) drinks with some girl friends. It was a lot of fun and, as rums and coke were chugged, it reminded me more and more to a Sex and the City episode. It was a lot of fun to get some direct advice with respect to girls from some girls themselves and I also love to hear to their stories. By 7 pm we all were rather tipsy. It was worth it!

New year's was a great time and I spent it in the mountains skiing. It was nice to be back on my skis after two years and to see that I have not forgotten how to do it. I even saw the heaviest snowfall I have seen in years...and it's kinda funny that it was not in NY! I have posted a pic for illustration.

In short, great visit back in my hometown. On Jan 5 I left for Hong Kong. I am still there but I will be leaving soon for Shanghai. I hope that I will catch up with what has been going on in the next post before I leave. That will be the next chapter.

Later

Mercury Lounge

2007-12-21T00:45:00.001-05:00

The semester is definitely over. I have had my very last class today and I have also turned in my last paper. I will be leaving NY in a couple of days but, before doing that, I have gone out to celebrate with a couple of friends. It’s been a quiet night and I was back home a few minutes after midnight.

It’s been a good night. We have headed over to the Mercury Lounge, one of the most famous venues in NY for live music. I had heard about it but I had never been there, though it is roughly 5 minutes away from home. We did not who was playing. WE just felt in the mood for some live music.

After a beer and a not very good opening singer, Jesse Malin has come up to the stage. I had never heard about this guy before but he has turned out to be great. I have really enjoy the gig. A mix of country, folk and pop that has reminded me to the Jayhawks from time to time. His performance was being recorded so I will definitely buy the album when it is released.

A nice a quiet way to bring an end to my 2007 NY nightlife. It’s been a good year, with its ups and downs but pretty fun overall. On my way home I was talking with a friend how weird it feels to realize than in two week time we will be hitting Hong Kong and Beijing and Shanghai after that. Looks promising and I will definitely write about it.

Happy holidays!

Wrapping up my Fall internship

2007-12-18T23:25:00.000-05:00

I have just come back from the Xmas party organized by the sports company where I have been interning over the last three months. It’s been a lot of fun, a lounge near Times Sq with karaoke and open bar. I have even jumped on the stage and have sung La Bamba along with some other guys. Good fun.

Monday was my last day at the office and, before leaving, I sent one of those emails that you send when you leave a company. You thank everybody for their help and say how well you have been there. I did not make it up, it was not just rubbish, I was telling the truth. During the last three months I have felt really comfortable and the atmosphere and the people have been pretty good. It has not been as painful as when I sent the email at the firm where I worked for four years before coming to NY but I tend to get attached to people and places.

From a pure “professional” perspective the internship has had a little bit of everything. More importantly, I have met great people and have made some good connections that may be useful in the near future. At the same time, I have realized how tough is to break into the sports industry. I have been the very last guy in the chain in my department, I have done some very interesting work but also some shitty work that a 18 year old would do in his summer time.

I have also confirmed, on the field and by talking to people, that sports is not investment banking and that an MBA is rather useless when you enter the sector for the first time. It doesn’t matter if you worked for Goldman closing deals or for McKinsey advising on restructurings. You start from the very bottom. Needless to say, the salary is a completely different universe (although in this case the company I have worked for has a lower than average pay scale).

Let’s put some figures out there. If I got a full time offer at this company I would earn between 40K and 50K bucks. This is NY and I still want to live in downtown Manhattan. I want to go out for dinner and go on a trip from time to time. And I want to be able to pay back my loan. Not feasible with forty grand. On top of that, I would be the last in the chain (well, above interns at least) and should be ready to do work and bear stuff that I already did when I came out of college 7 years ago. It is ok for an internship but full time would be too much.

In sum, I have enjoyed my time, people have valued my work and I have learnt some good stuff but it is almost for sure that I am not coming back after Xmas, although I have been offered such opportunity. After Xmas I have to put in time in thoroughly looking for a job. Looking for a job itself is a tough, tedious and time consuming job. I may eventually intern somewhere else if there is an opportunity to work there full time or if the opportunity itself is too good to be rejected.
I am still gonna make a bet on sports. What I have seen so far has its pros and its cons but, overall, the latter have not discouraged me. It is still an industry where I would like to work. I just need to find the right place. Sports won’t be my only option but that is a different story.

Another stage of the MBA has been completed. Let’s see what’s next.

Party is back

2007-12-14T04:54:00.000-05:00

It’s 443 am and I am just back home. I am glad to see that, after a couple of weeks, I am going out again. Going out as I should have…

I have finished class at 9 pm and then I have headed to Society, a bar close to school where I have had a couple of beers and mingled with people I had not seen for a while. I was quite excited just about going out again.

Around midnight I have left with a bunch of friends for the Meat Packing district where a Brazilian mate was hosting a party. I was not very sure about going up north to 27th St. but I had been assured that we would get in the club. As I suspected, we were not let in. Once again, it reminded me why I usually do not go to the Meat Packing. I feel so comfortable in the LES….

I was about to go home but some friends have persuaded me to go to Pastis – down in 12th St. – for a drink. I was surprised to hear about Pastis because I had just been once there and it was for brunch with my mom. But it was fine, though quiet. A margarita and a “white Russian” (first time I was trying this nice cocktail) and then to Le Souk. Good choice because it was close to home although the mix of tequila, beer and Jagerbomb will definitely come back to visit me tomorrow.

In sum, a great night. Back in the game…

Almost done

2007-12-13T16:11:00.000-05:00

Quiet times in the Village, at least for me. I can believe I am almost done for the semester. I just have a couple of papers due next week and the third of the 4 chunks of the MBA will be completed. Hard to believe! I have no final exams this semester and it feels good.

I have been so busy in the last weeks that today I almost don’t know what to do. I have been wandering around my place and watching outside at the first heavy, though short, snowfall. I am not in the mood for writing more papers and stuff. I just want the winter break to start. But before coming back to my country I am gonna have almost an entire week to chill in NY, to do some Xmas shopping and hopefully to catch up with NYC nightlife. I have almost forgotten what it is like. I hardly believe that I am saying so!

I realize that 2008 is just around the corner and I just can’t stop thinking about how important the first months of the new year will be for me. For most MBAs following “traditional” paths in IB and consulting it will be a time for partying and letting go. For those of us seeking an opportunity in non-traditional arenas such as media, VC and others, that period of time will be critical. It’s the time when the limited opportunities are to come up and we need to be on top of them to capture at least one. I am trying not to think too much about it now but it’s hard to do so when you see the graduation date getting closer.

I am going to my second to last class in a few minutes. Later, hopefully some party!

Going digital?

2007-12-06T14:23:00.001-05:00

Today I have visited one of my Stern professors at his office in Park Avenue. An amazing place on the 20th floor. I really loved this professor’s course, which mainly covered strategic issues in the media industry. It has been by far one of the best courses I have taken so far.

The professor offered his advice to all of us and I decided to convene a meeting. I did not mean to apply for a job at his company but rather to look for some guidance. It’s been a short meeting but there are two main takeaways from it:

(1) It may be the right time to go digital for those of us who want to work in media. Big conglomerates are not only in flux but are also likely to face sharp declines in the mid-term. They are not just going through a transition from their business model. The internet is very likely to re-shape the media industry for good. In other words, I should seriously consider looking for a job at an internet-based media company.

(2) I should trust myself a little more. I trust myself in the sense that I know that I will be able to do a good job anywhere. It’s been like this so far and I see no reason for a change. However, I am not confident enough about why an American media company should hire a foreign guy with very limited experience in the media arena, with less knowledge of the American market than his US peers and with definitely poorer English skills. I guess that my concerns are reasonable. The professor has advised me to write a one-pager about what I would accomplish after a year at any given position that I would like to pursue. First, I have to believe in it. If I don’t, then I will have a problem.

Now it’s time to go to class, although is 30F outside!

Long awaited day

2007-12-02T14:11:00.000-05:00

It has taken 10+ years to see this day. I still remember when not long ago Tau Ceramica's chairman lobbied to prevent basketball teams within 100 Km of existing "franchises" from competing in the ACB league. It was one of the many actions taken to make Tau Ceramica "our team". But it has never been and it will never be so. Watch out, things may be changing!

Tau Ceramica 78 - Iurbentia Bilbao Basket 80. I am so happy!!

Most quiet weekend ever

2007-12-02T03:06:00.000-05:00

It’s been nearly a year and a half so far and I feel like I had never had a more quiet weekend in NY. It’s kind of disappointing. You feel like you are missing something.

Though all my friends did, I did not go out on Thursday night to the Columbia Latin party because I had gone out on Wednesday. Yesterday all my friends were too tired to go out so I stayed in. Tonight I have gone out for a few drinks but I was done by 230 am. My head and my pocket will be thankful tomorrow.

I do not why this weekend has been that quiet, too quiet I dare say. Maybe it’s the chill outside (it’s 24F outside, namely -4C, the coldest day so far since I came back last August). Maybe it is that I am not that worried about going out any more. Who knows. Maybe it is just a relaxed time.

I am going to bed and, if the Weather Channel is right, by the time I wake up there will be some snow flakes pouring outside. The first ones this Fall.

Ciao

Nikki & Business Cards

2007-11-29T02:01:00.000-05:00

It is late and I wanna go to bed. I am not used to going out on Wednesdays but today it was a special day b/c we have celebrated that one of my colleagues (i.e. bosses) from work just got a great opportunity somewhere else, so we all have gone for a few drinks to celebrate with her.

I am happy today – I have changed my Facebook profile to “just happy” – mainly b/c I have presented to my bosses the stuff I have been working on for almost two months and they have liked it. Happiness and relieve at the same time!

So, as I was saying, after work we have gone for a few beers. First, at a pub on 36th St. and 5th Av. It has been my first opportunity to mingle with some work mates in a relaxed setting and it has been a lot of fun…many things have been said and, who knows, some good work stuff may come out of this, though I do not want to be very optimistic…

After that I have headed to the Meat Packing district with some mates. We have gone to an exclusive club (not a disco club, but rather a real club, with its lounge, a bar and a restaurant) thank to a mate who is a member. After some talk and laughs three of us have followed the “girl in red” and the “girl in green” to the smoking room. They were hot, particularly the one in red. We have ended up talking to them and I have had the chance to talk to the one in red. Nikki.

Nikki has hard “a tough life”, traveling from Pennsylvania to New York and then to L.A. and Hollywood… she really seemed to be the kind of beauty queen who was the most popular girl in high school. She has told me her story but I haven’t had time to tell her about me in the beginning…

But before leaving we have engaged again in a conversation, up to the point where she has asked me – from scratch – for my business card. My colleague who is a member of the club had advised me not to say that I was a student (I thought he was exaggerating at that point) and to rather fake that I was a banker or an attorney (I can do the latter, I guess). I have told Nikki-in-a-red-dress that I never go out with business cards…and I have asked her that what the matter is if you do not go out with your cards (I don’t have any, just for the sake of clarification!). Plain answer: “you are nobody in NY without business cards”…

In the end, you realize that there are people who are really like that. Patrick Bateman, the protagonist of American Psycho, has come to my mind straight away. If you have seen the movie you probably understand what I mean about appearances.

It’s been a funny night and now I just want to sleep. But I really needed to tell this story. Anyway, I am not getting business cards printed !!

Ciao

Thanking

2007-11-22T12:37:00.000-05:00

Today is Thanksgiving. One of the most famous days in the American calendar, I dare say. Thanksgiving, 4th of July, Halloween…those days that are just (or mostly) celebrated in the US. It is a weird feeling to walk in the street at 11 am and see the majority of the stores closed. Only the delis (I have bought an large iced coffee), Dunkin Donuts (I have bought a pumpkin muffin) and the kind are open. This only happens a couple of times a year in NY.

I was taking a look a few minutes ago at “A VC” one of the venture capital blogs I usually read. On today’s post, Fred Wilson, the blog’s writer, essentially thanks for what he has. And I feel like doing the same.

I have to thank for the amazing one and a half year that I have spent in NY so far, for the opportunity of living a once-in-a-lifetime experience that may (or may not, depending on what the next months bring) change my life forever.

I have to thank my parents for supporting my decision of quitting my job and coming to the US for my MBA, for making this opportunity possible and for believing in what I am trying to accomplish.

I have to thank my friends in my country for being there and keeping me posted on whatever happens 5,000 miles away from NY, so I don’t forget where I come from, where I truly belong to and where I will most likely settle in the long-term.

I have to thank my NY friends because all this would not be the same without them.

And I have to thank NY, the city that inspires these memories and that I am still in love with.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Quiet

2007-11-20T04:04:00.001-05:00

The city is quiet. I have bought a sausage slice at the Bagel Café on 3rd and St. Marks and I have just enjoyed the silence as I was coming back home. It is true that it is almost 4 am but the East Side streets, otherwise vibrating throughout the year, are quiet. It is crystal clear that Thanksgiving is just a few days ahead of us and that many people have left the Big Apple to spend some time with their families.

I am staying, though, and I am sure I will have a great time with my friends. Last year we went to a restaurant in Greenwich Village, near Bleecker St., and it was a nice first-time-ever Thanksgiving dinner, but this year I am in the mood for something more personal. We will buy a cooked turkey, stuffing and everything else at Whole Foods, Fresh Direct or whatever, and we will enjoy at home with some people. Feels better.

It is funny to see how significant dates such as Halloween or Thanksgiving, which did not mean anything at all a few months ago, have now become part of my life. I do not really need to celebrate them but I feel like doing so. I want to.

Ciao

D.C.

2007-11-19T00:05:00.000-05:00

And the Houston Dynamo are the new MLS Cup champions!! I have been able to be part of it and see it more live than I ever thought.

As I said in the previous post I have been to D.C. for the w/e helping out my co-workers with MLS Cup and related events. It’s been fun. All the MLS stuff stayed at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in downtown D.C. and we all went back and forth to the RFK stadium (home of the Nationals and the DC United) where the cup was to take place.

I arrived in D.C. on Friday afternoon, after riding on an Amtrak train for the first time. I had the chance to see Philly and Baltimore (I tried to listen to some Counting Crows songs when we first saw Baltimore but I had none at that point on my IPod) from the train. We went directly to the hotel and had just a little time to see the amazing Union Rail Station and a few buildings. We checked in and left for the stadium for a walk-through and to get acquainted with the people and the place.

On Friday night we had a party. It was my first party ever in the sports industry and I could check first hand that it is definitely all about relationships. I had the chance to meet some interesting – and friendly, generally speaking – people from sports agencies, media and companies’ sports marketing departments. I even had the chance to have a drink close to Cobi Jones and Alexi Lalas. It was kind of fun.

Saturday was a busy day and we spent most of it setting up and running a clinic for Hispanic kids sponsored by BK. Those of you who know me know that I am not very children-friendly guy. I like spending time with my friends’ kids for a while…and then turn them back to their parents. Spending some hours with 200+ kids was a challenge. I must say that I really enjoyed it. It is amazing how kids enjoy these kind events and it is impossible not to feel happy and smile when you see them having so much fun. They enjoyed every single minute, starting with the handing out of the gear – t-shirts, socks, shorts – continuing with a visit to the RFK stadium where they took pictures with, and got autographs from, MLS players, and ending with a 1-hour practice with the pros and some coaches. They were delighted and so we were once all was over.

That night we went to the MLS Gala where the season prizes were given to the most valuable players. A beautiful formal ceremony at the National History Museum and then dinner and some drinks.

Today it’s been game day and, after watching the first half, I have been right on the field to help set up the stage. It feels great to be on the field and I just wondered at some point how amazing it would have been to play in front of 40 thousand folks…it will have to wait until my next life!

In short, a great weekend, a great experience and hopefully some good contacts that will be helpful in the future. By the way, I had the chance to see the Capitol, the Obelisk and the Pentagon. D.C. seems to be a beautiful city, very monumental. Anyway, I will let you know how things develop.

MLS Cup

2007-11-16T01:24:00.000-05:00

I have just come back from beer blast. I seem to continue to be able to get back to my usual life and I have really enjoyed drinking a few beer with the folks. I have come back early, though. It is just 1 am andI have to wake up in around 5 hours…

Tomorrow I am leaving for Washington D.C. I am going for work, though I am sure I will have time to have some fun. It will also be a great opportunity to cross out D.C. from my “to-visit list”. I have heard it is beautiful. I am really looking forward to see the White House and all the other stuff.

The MLS Cup will be played next Saturday between the Houston Dynamo and the New England Revolution. It is the most important US soccer event of the season and I will be lucky enough to be there. I will be doing a bunch of things, from supporting a soccer clinic with 500+ kids (my patience will be tested hahaha!) to setting up hospitality stands or even maybe taking players to press conferences. I will obviously attend the game and, in the meantime, I will go to a couple of parties that have been organized…maybe “Posh” will be around hahaha…my friends would love a pic.

Going to bed now. I will let you all know about this three-day trip next week.

Ciao

Getting my life back

2007-11-14T00:34:00.001-05:00

I can’t fucking believe that this is over! After a few weeks struggling with my Competitive Strategy presentation, we have finally presented today. No case anymore, no long nights (yesterday, 330 am), no extra number crunching, no more ppt slides. I am exhausted and I am going to bed right now. But I really needed to write about this.

The presentation has gone fine and we have had a debriefing (sic) session after it with the professor (I have felt like Jack Bauer when the word debriefing has come into play – btw the beginning of season 7 of “24” has been postponed due to the screenwriters’ strike). It is kind of funny to go out for dinner with your professor and share some thoughts about your work. I still believe that the course is not worth the effort. I tried to softly tell the professor about how I feel but as I saw his face after my first not-very-positive comment I have backed off: B+ in the end. I guess we can’t complain.

Tomorrow at 9 am I have to give another short presentation in my Management Communication class. Since I have not had time to prepare it, I will have to wake up early, After that I will go to work. Although it will be a long day I do not feel the pressure any more.

I feel lighter now, a burden has fell off my shoulders and I feel like the next weeks – with Thanksgiving break just around the corner – will be good ones. Hopefully the life I was used to will get back to me. You can’t imagine how much I wish to replay to some friends’ emails, to have some good sleep, to spend a few days without rushing from one place to another and, more importantly, to dedicate some time to my job search. I just need it….

Some extra effort

2007-11-08T01:34:00.000-05:00

It is 125 am already and I have just arrived from school. Yes, usually I should be writing about some nice party but I have just arrived from another “competitive strategy in the marketplace" meeting… my group will present our case next Tuesday and I will hopefully then get my life back!

It has been a tough day. I have gone to work and I have almost finished the presentation on consumer electronics manufacturers that I have to prepare for my bosses. I will have to come back to work on Friday morning for a meeting to go through it. I hope it will go well.

After work and before the meeting we have had a great media event at school. The Media and Sports Association has done a great job and we have had a bunch of companies visiting. I have had the chance to talk to people from Starz, Madison Square Garden, Google or Comcast. I will follow up to see what comes next… In the end Joost did not show up but I may have a way to contact them…we’ll see. I wish I had more events like this more often…although I still hate all the networking thing.

I am gonna go to bed now. I just want to apologize to all the people to whom I owe an email. I promise that I will be back starting next Wednesday…I swear!

And before finishing, let me recommend you all Athlete’s last record called “Beyond the Neighborhood”. Tracks like “Tokyo” or “Second Hand Stores” are just great….and to celebrate the release I will be attending the concert they will be giving tomorrow at a venue near the Meat Packing. I deserve it!!

Until next time.

Hopefully not "Just for today"

2007-11-04T03:30:00.000-05:00

3:54 am (it should be an hour later but time has been changed today) and as I was coming back home from the LES I was whistling George Harrison’s “Just for today”. Don’t ask me why. I have therefore decided to play it as I start writing this post.

It’s been a good night…a great one actually. I don’t have any of those stories that you are thinking of to tell but it has been great anyway. After a month, I have felt like I am – little by little, though – back. It’s been a walk in the desert, it’s been that girl that I liked who wouldn’t pay attention to me, it’s been not being in the mood for too much partying… but hopefully that is gone. Thank God.

Tonight we have headed to the LES. First, a few drinks at Piano’s, where a girl – she has hit on me (great beginning… for a change) – has confirmed me that “Okies” don’t get upset when you referred to them as such. It’s been a perfect time to bring up “Grapes of Wrath”, since that is where I took from the idea that the word “okies” for people from Oklahoma was not that appropriate. They like it, indeed. She has given me two free drinks and asked me to come back for a concert…not sure, though…well, probably not coming back, to be honest.

After a few Jackies and coke we have headed to Gallery, the place where I celebrated my birthday. Fortunately, the D.J. was not sick today and we have danced to great music ranging from Police to Joy Division or Blur. And believe it or not, we have had some game. A couple of chicks from Houston, Texas who were about to leave have stayed when we have asked them so; the blond girl who was so happy with some “grinding” with me, a group of Puerto Ricans (one of them was sooooo cute!) has also been in the mood for us… the amazing waitress Rachel (god, I couldn’t help but thinking about “Friends”) who still remembered my name a month after my birthday party. I have even seen a girl that I used to like a lot and we have just talked about this and that (nothing has changed , though, meaning that she’s not interested). I am not trying anything any more. She’s really cute but I can’t help it. I told her and “did my homework” (as a friend of mine said a few years ago in relation to the girl that she liked) before the summer. If she doesn’t like me I am not strong enough to try harder. I have never been like that. Today I have actually thought about this very good friend of mine from my hometown who has always had the will power to “fight” for (and get!!) the girl that he likes even if she’s not very receptive in the beginning. I really admire it. But I simply can’t…

I have come back home after a nice slice of pizza and I am going to bed now. The last notes of George Harrison’s “Across the Universe” are the perfect end for this post.

Ciao

Saturday at school

2007-11-03T12:42:00.000-04:00

Damn it, two days in a row at school and tomorrow I will have to come again! I hate coming to school in the weekend. It’s all about this strategy course that I am taking that is making my life miserable. I was told last year that it was a heck of work but definitely worth it. After a month I am working desperately and I am learning close to zero. Or that is the way at feel…

Group organization is important at biz school. And my group for that strategy course is not working well. We have just been postponing over and over again our meetings and now we see our presentation date roughly ten days away and we panic. We all are busy with work, recruiting, etc. but I guess there is no justification…. So I raise my “mea culpa” for not pushing harder.

I have not seen much commitment in the group so, although I had decided not to go to L.A. next weekend for the UCLA soccer tournament – it takes place the w/e before the Tuesday presentation – I have finally jumped in. Why shouldn’t I? I keep asking to myself…

Anyway, let’s see if I do some work…..I was about to close the post when I have received a text canceling the meeting. Do you understand now why I am going to L.A.?

No game

2007-10-28T04:20:00.001-04:00

It’s already 4 am – 3 am if the time has finally been changed, which I can’t confirm – and I am back home from the Halloween celebration. I have been to a club at 55th St., where an amazing midtown’s skyline view could be enjoyed. The night has been fine but I have got no game at all.

You can feel when you are on fire, when your game is high…and you can also see when it is the other way around. I could have drunk 30 vodkas (absolut mandarin and sprite was my drink tonight) and everything would have remained the same. I have had a lot of fun and I can get some nice pictures out of tonight. However, as I said, it is no-game time. Hopefully the trend will change soon.

Ciao

Friday night in

2007-10-26T23:48:00.000-04:00

The chill is back in town… finally, for god’s shake! I was really fed up with the heat, with wearing t-shirts and shorts. I am not saying that I’m missing this snow and the freezing cold, but it feels good to see the Autumn finally striking back. Playing soccer in Central Park in the rain, putting on a jacket to go to school, wearing a shirt to work without the risk of color-changing sweat…all these little things!

And when the weather turns a little nasty – it’s also been raining today –I also enjoy staying in from time to time, watching a movie (“Old School” with Vince Vaughn, Luke Wilson and Will Ferrell, for tonight) and eating pop corn…though I am missing the blanket that my grandma knitted for me a few years ago. A nice night in, a quiet one. I will be able to wake up early tomorrow to do some work… and to have fun thereafter!

I have everything planned for tomorrow. Read some cases and complete an assignment due on Wednesday. Grab brunch in the Village with a friend and then go to Nevada Smiths (“Where football is religion” – that’s the tag line) to see my hometown team’s soccer game. Then, ready for Halloween celebration.

Yes, Halloween. Although Halloween day will come next Wednesday most of the people will be celebrating tomorrow night. I have already bought the costume – pirate, this year. I hope it will be better than last year. It won’t be difficult b/c last year’s night was shit: I dropped my phone in a cab and had to pay $40 to the cabdriver to get it back, I got pretty wasted rather early and ended up coming back home around midnight and I had to suffer the damned toy crow that I bought for my “The Crow” costume…It looks better this year! Just a preview of the place where we will be heading tomorrow…http://www.archiphixdesign.com/HalloweenFlyer2007.html. I do not want to have very high expectations but hopefully I will be able to tell you all some good stories tomorrow

See ya!

Indulgence

2007-10-19T04:26:00.000-04:00

Some of my buddies will laugh about it but I just had a slice of pizza - bacon and pepperoni - before coming back home.I mean that they will laugh b/c I did not have any chicken breast, as the legend says...It was a nice slice. My indulgence.

The LABA party, one of Stern's largest throughout the year, has taken place tonight and, as in the majority of big events, a lot of stuff has occurred: people going crazy, mad dancings, casual hookups, everyday teasings...but a lot of fun in the end at Arena, a pretty popular club near Times Sq.

I have really enjoyed it. I don't see people very often any more and it feels great to see them again at such a great venue. Everybody goes kind of crazy b/c of the LABA party and that pays off. I haven't drunk that much though, just a couple of drinks and two shots.Enough for me to be in the mood...

I felt like it was worth writing about it before going to bed. I have had the chance to see a couple of friends "fighting" (i.e. it was like capturing a rebound in the paint against Ben Wallace or Yao Ming) for a girl, some guys hitting on some girls heavily (this is what Biz school is about, right?), people making out in the dance floor... as I said, pretty crazy. I don't know what a high school graduation ball is like in the US (aside from the movies) but tonight looked pretty much alike.

I also had the chance to play my part, obviously. I talked (yes, just talked!) to a girl that I met a few weeks ago - a friend's girlfriend's cousin, more precisely - that I liked then and that I feel like I really like...but she will probably "dump" me in advance anyway, as it usually happens to me. And I also randomly danced with some girls except for one of them...we danced and fooled around (I guess people were expecting sth else) and she ended up leaving with another guy - not big deal, btw - but I feel like we are just playing around after a year and a half... it's a matter of time I'd say, but you never know.

In conclusion, it's been a great night. All my friends were there, even some unexpected ones who have settled down "with Italy" after partying heavily while in biz schools or visiting Brazil. Life moves forward for people... but let's burn the bridges before it is too late!

Ciao

Wasabi chickpeas

2007-10-18T15:55:00.000-04:00

I am really tired. It may be the jet lag after a short (i.e. 2 days) transoceanic trip back to my hometown last weekend. It may be that the idea of working two full days a week and having class until 9 pm two other days is beginning to hurt me (who the heck said that my second year was gonna be "smooth"?). Or maybe it is the two beers that I had yesterday night at a crazy Greek restaurant in Soho with a friend - and prospective dad - who arrived from L.A. (Btw, there was a belly dancer with a BELLY...pretty baaaaad!)

The thing is that it is the first time, as far as I remember, that I am writing a post from school. Why? Because I have not attended my Foundations of Entrepreneurship course after not reading the cases due for today. Too much stuff going on so I am chilling for a few minutes.

As I was saying last w/e I went back to my city to attend two very good friends' wedding. It was kind of crazy (in terms of time and money) to go on such a trip just for two days but I was one of the bestmen and it was worth it in the end. I was happy to be there and I know that so they were (although the groom forgot to mention the one coming from at least 4 times the distance than anybody else who was mentioned (i.e.NY) in his speech... it was the thrill of the moment!). I had a great time and I also had the chance to see some friends (and ex's)that I had not seen for a while. Even the priest who pronounced my friends husband and wife and who used to be my literature teacher in high school was there! The party was great and the w/e was great too...albeit Air France, which, once again, did its best to make my life miserable.

After two 8-hour trips, an all-night party and a considerable amount of time spent at the airports - all in a roughly 72-hour time frame - I was devastated by the time I was back in NY... "ready" for another hectic week!

The big news following my arrival was that I managed to found some wasabi nuts , wasabi chickpeas more precisely. I am sure my Aussie friends will understand my happiness after looking for them for a long time since I first tasted them in London Borough's market last summer.

I have not fully recovered yet from the trip. I am sleeping badly and I need some rest. I am not kidding about the tight schedule pressure but I just hope I will be able to get used to it...and that it will pay off in terms of a decent job upon graduation.

Another "problem" is that I do not even have time to relax. The LABA party, probably the best Stern party of the year is coming up tonight. I can't miss it and I won't, although tomorrow I will probably regret...or maybe not, who knows, hahahaha!

See ya!

30!!

2007-10-07T19:12:00.000-04:00

“The thirties are the new twenties”. That’s what a number of people told me yesterday at my birthday party in the LES. Maybe it was just to cheer me up and help me face that I have just started the third decade of my life (my dad told me today, half joking, half seriously, that I have “a lot of things to do” in this decade…no pressure, though!)… or maybe it is true and the best things are about to arrive.

So far so good, I must say. Everything started yesterday when some of my friends called me up from my country to wish me happy birthday. It was a great surprise. Phone calls and emails have followed today. One feels great when somebody just remembers one’s birthday. Or at least I do. Maybe it is because you value it much more when you are far away.

Yesterday I partied hard with a lot of my friends. It was a great night and it seems like everybody enjoyed. We got together at a nice venue in the LES and drank quite a lot… and it was good to see that one can still get some game when he turns 30…relief!

In sum, I am starting this new decade in a city that I love, surrounded by good friends and with many hopes (and some fears too) about the near future… challenging, exciting and, hopefully, fun.

Hotel memories

2007-10-06T02:27:00.001-04:00

It’s 2 am and I have just arrived at my place. It was supposed to be a quiet night and I have gone to a friend’s place in Bleecker St. to have dinner. I am not very used to the Greenwich Village by night. I like it but I think that I will keep sticking with my dear East. I have bought a bottle of Bordeaux – not very good but tasty enough after the first glass – and after some pisco sour and a few glasses of wine, I was a little more merry than I expected…

It’s been a fun talk with my friend about our MBA experience (he graduated last May and is working in NY already), our decisions, moving to NY, the city itself…and obviously about chicks. We have been recalling a number of girls that have remained in our memories: girlfriends, one night stands, that girl that you liked but you never got… I have particularly enjoyed recalling my stories with girls and hotels. It’s curious how some nights can be long remembered, including the most subtle detail. My relationship with hotels, in particular the 5-star one that I visited twice, lingers in my mind. It was really awesome…and it was cool to bring it back for a few minutes.

But time has gone by since then, almost a couple of years, and next time I write on this blog I will be thirty already… it’s great news since the best things are meant to occur after you turn thirty. I was not very sure about that, but I can tell you that I definitely am now... I just can’t think otherwise!

Let’s just see if I can’t celebrate properly tomorrow! Time to get some sleep. Tomorrow there’s plenty of work to do before partying…

Working in the US

2007-10-03T21:12:00.000-04:00

Today it’s been a great day in my personal history: today I have worked for the very first time in the US!

Yes, I have finally taken an intern position at a sports company. I will be working two full days a week, which means that my relatively light schedule so far is gonna change overnight. In other words, I am gonna have to work really hard this semester to deal with academic and work life... and to go out, obviously! I just hope that this will help me build my resume a little more… and that it will pay off as from June in the form of a nice full time job. We’ll see...

I felt really good walking out of the office in the thirties and 5th avenue. I definitely think I could get used to it.

Ciao

Jerry Rice

2007-10-01T11:02:00.000-04:00

I forgot to mention the other day that at the conference I volunteered last week I had the chance to shake hands with Jerry Rice... who's Jerry Rice? That was my question when everybody became excited as the guy showed up. Well, see below some info from Wikipedia:

"Jerry Lee Rice is a former football wide receiver in the NFL. Rice is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in NFL history, consistently showing exceptional performance and strong work ethic on and off of the field. Rice was selected to the Pro Bowl 13 times (1986-1996, 1998, 2002) and named All-Pro 10 times in his 20 NFL seasons. He won three Super Bowl rings as a member of the San Francisco 49ers, (1985-1999), an AFC Championship with the Oakland Raiders (2000-2004), and a division championship with the Seattle Seahawks (2004)"

Not bad, right?

Ciao

A tiring week

2007-09-28T00:28:00.000-04:00

Facebook

2007-09-24T19:48:00.000-04:00

And I finally signed up for Facebook.

I had obviously heard about this social application in the past. In the last weeks, in particular since I started reading some VC and technology blogs that my friend Chris recommended to me (I have also discovered how useful Google Reader and RSS feeds are, btw), I have heard about it even more. Some experts even claim that it may become a success as huge as Google was some years ago.

But I had kind of told to myself that I had enough with emails, Linkedin and stuff. The thing is that, after reading so much about it and after receiving an invite to join from a friend a couple of days ago, I have finally registered. Another login and password!!!

But so far so good. I cannot still handle the interface very well but I will get to it. And it is amazing how one's Facebook network expands and how many things one can do. So take a peek and sign up!

And continuing with technology, today Google has given a corporate presentation at Stern. Friendly and laid back people. It seems like it would be a nice place to work but I am not sure if I will be able to make it. It looks to me like the computer science/maths background weighs a lot. I will probably give it a go, though.

Ciao

And then I saw the (dim) light…

2007-09-23T23:06:00.000-04:00

Crazy and tiring w/e. Maybe it’s just been a way to celebrate that I seem to have things a little clearer…

Weird Thursday night that ended early in the morning in Fort Green, Brooklyn, with a toast to Thailand…Intense Friday with a party at an awesome rooftop in the West Village and some extra drinks at the LES’ Rivington Hotel (where I saw one of the most beautiful waitresses I have ever seen...). Quiet Saturday in and a not-so-tasty brunch on Sunday in the East Village.

But the most important thing this week is that dim light that has started to roughly shine at the end of the tunnel. I have finally made up my mind about my short-run career track. Goodbye to the big dollars and the certainty. Goodbye to banks and consulting firms. Let’s make it even more difficult! Let’s take some extra risks! To be honest, I can hardly believe that I am having the guts to do so…

It was a big step to turn my life upside down and come to NY. I did it for a reason: to change. And that is exactly what I am gonna do… well, what I am gonna try to do. I feel relieved now that I have come to a decision. Yes, relief is what I definitely feel the most right now. There is no need to think about alternative paths anymore.

The decision has been taken and now it is time to start walking that path…I need to be calmed, to be aware that it won’t be easy and that there will likely be some times when things will look disappointing and gloomy. Success is not guaranteed but I will be definitely working to the bone to bring that success a little closer.

Bilbao

2007-09-18T23:34:00.000-04:00

It's a little long video but definitely worth seeing. In fact, it's about one of the best cities in the world, if not the best...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RmYtLm6qZ8Y

Busy days

2007-09-14T00:46:00.000-04:00

Before going to bed, and while the album "Our love to Admire" by Interpol plays on my Itunes, I have decided to put in writing some of the frenzy that is going on these days.

First, I have just submitted my first assignment for "Foundations of Entrepreneurship". The assignment is due tomorrow at 9 am and consists of evaluating a business plan from the perspective of a venture capital firm that may be interested in investing. This assignment is worth 40% of the final grade, which is surprising taking into account that we have only had four classes so far. It's been quite a lot of work to read the case and the supporting info and to put all the thoughts in writing. ..but I am done know! The course looks promising and Professor Okun seems to be a good one. So far I am enjoying it. I will have the grade by Tuesday (!) and a friend has told me that our professor is a tough grader. He gave my friend a C+ (rather low for biz school) although he told him that he had done a good job...let's see if I don't go even lower!

In addition to that, I am dealing this week with all the recruiting thing. A couple of days ago I talked to an advisor at Stern's career office. It was a useful talk. However, what is clear is that in the end the decision is mine and it will depend on how comfortable I feel with facing the odds...Now it's time to gather some extra information.

For instance, today I have been talking to an alum who works in corporate development at NBC Universal. I saw his name on the school's data base, shot him an email and today I have called him after he agreed to talk to me. He's been very friendly and has recommended me to take a fall and/or spring internship to increase my chances to take a full time job. Nothing new, though… In the end he has asked me for my resume and he will be distributing it within the division where he works... Hopefully I will be able to get something...

Tomorrow I will be meeting with a guy who just graduated last May and who took a job at the media group of a bulge bracket investment bank. He was very interested in media and he got a media job during his MBA summer. However, he ended up taking a job in banking because I guess he was not sure about putting all the eggs in a basket that won’t be uncovered until the beginning of next year.

As you can see, both sides of the same coin: risk-friendly vs. risk averse approach...

Finally, today we have had the first practice of the soccer team. It's been good fun and many first years have come over. It seems like soccer is becoming more and more popular each year. I have realized, though, that I need to be a little more fit, in particular taking into account that the Yale tournament is only two weeks away.

One final thought. If the scale that I bought a few weeks ago is fine I have been able to get rid of around 2 kg since I arrived in NY. Quicker than expected!! I am pretty much in my weight now.
Time to sleep. Interpol's new album sounds good and, thus, it is very likely that I will be seeing them tomorrow at the Madison. Just a sample for your ears below...

Ciao

Sicily, Japan, the Bay Area, Ireland

2007-09-11T04:31:00.000-04:00

It’s 4 am and I am just back home. I did not expect to party too much tonight but things have changed over time. The night has started like shit when two friends and I have not been let in Le Souk, probably the hottest venue in NY on Mondays, which is just two blocks away from my place. Remember it’s fashion week and stuff, which just made it even more disappointing… I have been about to go home but one of my friends has persuaded me to keep going and, although I was rather reluctant, the night has paid off….

We have headed to the LES and have gone into this bar called Pianos, which has not traditionally been awesome… but today there was some karaoke upstairs! I have been about to sing La Bamba but I haven’t done so in the end. My friend was kind of crazy about the British bartender but he’s not been lucky enough… We have met some nice girls, though, but we were not very optimistic…

After that we have decided to go for a last drink to this place called “Darkroom” (don’t take the name too seriously….I was also scared about the shady name…but in the end it has proven good…and straight!).
We have seen a couple of girls that we had met at Pianos and I just can say that, from now on, I will love even more Disco 2000 by Pulp (I had never sung it that loud and enthusiastically) and the cities and countries in the headline, with which I have felt some kind of connection. Btw, for my records, I must remember that I do love going to the movies…God, damn good Monday night!

I’ll be waking up in 5 hours so I’d better get some sleep….

Doubts

2007-09-10T00:00:00.001-04:00

Classes have started and my blog production has inversely increased. After a week or so writing every single day, it’s been ten days since I last wrote.

It feels good to be back in school. However, it’s costing me quite a lot to focus. I have the mentality to start over again with all the cases, assignments and stuff. But I feel like I am gonna need some more days to get back to routine.

Corporate presentations have also started. Well, they will be starting tomorrow. Who is coming first? The usual suspects, obviously: investment banks. And doubts come back to me once again. When I listen to my friends about their summers at Ibanks I get different perspectives. Some of them did not enjoy it. Some others did and have already accepted full time offers, which include $50k+ sign in bonuses and $90k+ plus bonus compensation packages…

Money is not the main issue for me. I don’t really care if I don’t make such amount of money as long as I am able to do what I want. However, it’s not gonna be easy. The media sector is tough and it is even tougher for foreigners who want to stay in the US given the immigration concerns. The other day I was visiting a guy that I know at a big Japanese media corporation and he was not very optimistic. Somehow he suggested me to look for alternative routes…

And that is exactly where my doubts come into play. Should I take the risk of waiting for some media job within the industry (it means waiting until Spring, most likely) or should I go into IB – a rather smooth transition for me given my background, I guess – gain some experience and then make the switch? Perks: (a) awesome salary that would allow me to almost pay off my MBA dues in a year or two; (b) great formation that would almost guarantee my future transition; (c) real possibility to stay in the US. Downsides: (a) awful lifestyle (that I already know pretty well and that I was determined to leave behind when I came to NY) that will drive me mad by the end of the first week (although I am ready to take it if necessary); (b) not doing what I really want – even if I land a media group and knowing on the first date – which I do not know if makes a lot of sense after coming for my MBA.

More news to come in the following weeks.

Officially...MBA2

2007-08-31T16:12:00.000-04:00

NY life seems to kick off. I have finally met with a bunch of friends and class mates after the long summer. It feels good to see the people again and to exchange summer internship experiences and stuff.

People seem to be rather happy about their summers. I feel a little envious about the guys who have already secured full time offers after their summer. I knew I was not gonna get any before I started with my internship since it isn’t common practice at the company, nor within the industry, so I was aware that the whole recruiting process would start over gain for me in September. I have just taken a look at the website of the career services’ office and in the next three weeks there will be 20+ companies coming over only to recruit MBA2s… you got it, mostly banks and financial services companies…pressure and doubts also start over again…

I have also seen around the new Stern class, the class of 2009, slightly larger than my class. In total, around 440 people, 10% more than last year…they hardly fit in the rooms!! I can’t believe that a year ago I was standing in their shoes. It’s been a little shocking to see their talent show performances (while we MBA2s drank beer…it’s a tradition that last year I swore I wouldn’t follow but in the end…) and even more shocking to be part of a panel advising these guys about how to do certain things.

Last year I was not very confident about MBA2s’ advice since it seemed like just for the sake of being MBA2s they were right, and they weren’t always. Thus I am determined this year to keep a very low profile when participating in these kinds of workshops, events or whatever. I will just tell my experience, what worked and what didn’t work for me, which does not necessarily mean that is right or wrong… By the way, sit on a chair as an “expert” (when you are not!) in front of 75 people is not an easy thing. I had never done such a thing before but it is part of my self imposed tasks to improve my speaking in public. It didn’t go too bad in the end!!

Enough for today!

New season: first night out

2007-08-31T01:35:00.000-04:00

First night out of the new year in NY. I am a little tipsy although it’s only 1:18 am. I haven’t had much for dinner and after three beers and two jackies&coke I am just ready to go to bed…just to get some sleep. The so called “Little Apple” Spaniard singer (inspired my in-love friend “The Chicken”) will stay with me while I write this post.

The night has been quiet but fun. First I have gone to visit some friends’ new apartment in Gramercy. The place is awesome and it has extraordinary views of the Metlife and Chrysler buildings. These guys can even see the view from their beds, so there is no need for them to talk about the moonlight… no excuses this year…

Then I have headed south to meet with a French friend of mine who has been around for a month or so for a training course with the bank he works for. The meeting point was a pretty good venue, next to the place where I used to live during my first months in NY. As I was approaching the door the bouncer has asked me if I was coming for any specific party (I hate bouncers so much…what the fuck, I was just coming to have some fun, regardless the “party”!!) and I have told him that I was “with the JP Morgan guys”. Obviously, he has let me in. It was true but it’s ridiculous the way it works.

The talent was not bad at all inside. However, it was just my first night out and I was not in the mood for much. I just wanted to hang around with my friend and have a “quiet” drink. It’s kinda funny to see how the guys that rule the markets get wasted…everybody does, right?

I have come back home walking. It’s still early and most of the places in Alphabet City are still packed. But a long weekend lies ahead of me so I’d better get some rest. This is just the beginning…once again.

Staten Island

2007-08-29T17:58:00.001-04:00

There’s only one left! After today I can say that the Bronx is the only NY borough that I have not visited yet. The other four (Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island) have been crossed out from my list.

At 1 pm today, after reviewing emails and the daily news, I have taken a book and headed to the Staten Island Ferry, nearby Battery Park. I have jumped on the boat and leaned against the bar looking to the west. On my way back I have done the same thing but looking to the east, so that I could capture all the view.

The trip to Staten Island is short, roughly 20 minutes. However, in a sunny day like today, it’s worth it. It’s amazing to see the NY and Jersey skylines from the sea. The picture capturing the whole of them is unforgettable. I will have to return, though, once I buy a camera...NYC seems less impressing from the water and such sensation becomes more apparent as the ferry moves forward. On the contrary, the Statue of Liberty on one corner of the Ellis Island appears more shiny than from Manhattan. It’s just a matter of perception, I guess.

Once in Staten Island, I was determined to take a look. The first impression is that it’s a rather residential place, with very few shops and restaurants… and very few people!! There was nobody in the street! Before getting completely lost I have asked a man about somewhere worth seeing to go. He as advised to walk around a mile from where I was; then I would find a museum and some nice restaurants and stuff. After more than 40 minutes walking I couldn’t see anything… except for the fact that I was the only white guy around and the only one who had difficulties in understanding the hip hop songs played loudly in the stereos. Trouble was the last thing that I wanted so, after a while, I have decided to come back to the ferry for a quiet coming back home.

Although you may park your car all day for 6 bucks at a car par and for the whole month for 100 bucks… would I live in Staten Island? Don’t think so…

Time Out

2007-08-28T23:46:00.001-04:00

I have finally been able to re-hook up my awesome speakers and subwoofer with my labtop and the warm and rhythmic music by the Brazilian band Tribalistas inspires this Tuesday night. Check out below one of my favorite songs, Velha infancia.

I have been flipping some Time Out magazines today. It’s my only subscription in the US. Time Out New York (or TONY, as it is usually named). Time Outs for another cities such as London, Barcelona or Dubai are issued. Check them out online @ http://www.timeout.com/ if you are planning a trip!

TONY is issued on a weekly basis and, thus, I have found 15 different magazines upon my arrival in NY. Far too much information all of a sudden. I am aware that a lot of the stuff in those past issues is now worth nothing. However, at the same time, I feel like I will be giving away a lot of interesting stuff if I did not skim through them.

For instance, today I have known about the Film Forum, only a few blocks away down in Houston St. I can believe that I had not known about it before. It’s about indie films, from both nowadays and past times. A few weeks ago Manhattan by Woody Allen was shown…I’d have loved watching it again in NY! The idea of having a two-movie session some random evening in the very heart of the Village won’t vanish until I go for it. Fortunately, I won’t have to wait until the next summer since movies are shown all year round.

Tomorrow I have decided that I am gonna enjoy the city, as another tourist. It’s something I have not done much (if not at all) since I first arrived. Take the ipod and visit some nice places. Take a book a lay somewhere to enjoy the NY summer. It sounds good, doesn’t it?

Ciao

Jet lag

2007-08-28T00:26:00.001-04:00

I can’t believe I am writing this from NY…again. It’s been a day right now since I arrived at my place in the East Village after a horrible trip. Thanks a lot Air France!!!

Just a sequence of my trip back yesterday:
130 pm (Paris time): departure from my hometown to Paris Charles de Gaulle
300 pm: timely arrival in Paris. No Air France shuttle is waiting for me and other passengers (and our luggage) with tight flight schedules. I rush to the terminal building and run across the airport to make it to another terminal, pass passport and security controls and make it to the gate.
325 pm: stressful (and sweat) arrival at boarding gate, 30 minutes before the scheduled departure time.
355 pm: still in line for boarding
430 pm: sit down in 19E. A elderly woman starts some small talk. I try to deep breathe… I also notice that the plane is rather old, which means no individual entertainment onboard.
530 pm: take off
1245 am: we approach JFK for landing. When we are a few hundred meters away, the plane goes up again. General panic and complains.
130 am: after some long and annoying turns around the airport, we land.
210 am: I arrive at the immigration booths. It has taken us more than half an hour to park the damned aircraft…
300 am: I make it through immigration. The slowest line I have ever experienced when coming to the US.
320 am: my suitcase does not come out.
321 am: I manage to see a board with my name on it. A lady reports that my suitcase did not make it. I am referred to the lost baggage office.
330 am: after making it through customs and a rather annoying woman trying to jump the queue, I am informed that my luggage has been located and will be delivered on the morning after. I have no right to an indemnity b/c “I live in NY” (!)
400 am: after taking the airtrain I jumped on the subway.
520 am: home sweet home.
600 am: I manage to fall asleep.

Seven hours later my phone wakes me up. A van with my suitcase is downstairs. I wake up and pick it up. I can’t sleep any more.

Well, probably this was not what I expected from my first hours back in NY. Airlines can make our life really miserable. It’s after midnight already and I don’t feel sleepy. I have always jiggled about soccer players claiming how affected they are by jetlag when traveling far from their countries. I have never been very affected by it, but, honestly, from today on I will trust the Ronaldinhos of the world a little more.

Ciao

Home

2007-08-24T12:33:00.000-04:00

It’s Friday evening and I have a little bit of a hangover. Not much, though. Yesterday I went out in my hometown. The yearly festivities are taking place, and although the rain has pretty much spoilt them so far, I have had a lot of fun. I have made it home at 830 am after spending most of the night with a couple of girls that I met… For a moment, I thought that I was in NY meeting new people hahaha!

The festivities or fiestas have always been a lot of fun and they remain the same. It feels even better to come back when you live somewhere else. It’s great to catch up with friends, party hard, enjoy the pintxos (high-end tapas) and so forth. This year it has even been better b/c a couple of foreign friends, an American and an Aussie, came over for a few days and I really enjoyed showing them around, seeing their astonished faces and hooking them up with chicks. I have been a pretty good host, I reckon… J

I have only been awake for a couple of hours yet and in a couple of more I will have to get ready to party again. Today it will very likely be my last night out since I will be in need of some rest tomorrow before leaving for NY on Sunday. Time for a few more drinks and a few more laughs with my friends before my departure. I am sure it’s gonna be worth it.

Btw, some great news have come along. Me and my friends will soon become “uncles” since one of my very good friends and her wife will have a baby in April or so. On the other hand, I am so happy that I will be one of a great friend’s best men at his wedding in October. The “penguin suit” is on its way!! There is also time for some serious in fiesta time!!

Ciao

See you Mickey!!

2007-08-10T13:44:00.001-04:00

I am done with my summer internship. Two parts of the MBA are gone already and “only” the second year is left. Only three weeks away.

Not long ago I decided to pursue – or at least try – a career in media, make a career switch, although I was not very sure that it would be feasible given my background as an attorney. However, now I am feeling more comfortable, determined and motivated to do so. I hope this feeling won’t vanish.

And the main reason for that is the great internship I have just finished at Disney. I had some expectations when I accepted the offer: the kind of work, the responsibility, whether I should make coffee for everybody… and some fears too: whether I would be able to work in media w/o previous experience, whether I would enjoy it, whether I would fit inside Winnie’s costume; in sum, whether the path I had chosen was right. Now I have clearer mindset, as I said before. I have earned credit for my own benefit at least for a few months. It’s time to give it a go!!!

I don’t know if I have learnt a lot (I have learnt some, for sure) but I have realized that I can make it in this industry. Moreover, my bosses have told me so, which is by far more important. One may have self confidence but if the ones deciding think the other way around there’s nothing left to do. And this is my main takeaway after three months.

But beyond that, there’s another thing: the people that I have met. I dare to say that I am leaving a nice bunch of friends at the company. They have made me feel at home from the very beginning and that’s extremely valuable. I mingle with people and adapt rather easily to new places. I was obviously aware that I was getting alone. However, after today’s farewell where many of my colleagues have come over to have a drink and a snack and to give me some goodbye presents, I have definitely realized that, from a personal standpoint, I could have definitely stayed. I hate farewells. Don’t get me wrong, today’s one has been beautiful. However, it’s been sad at the same time. I haven’t shed a tear (as some of my work mates were requesting!) but it’s been sad. If you think about it, it’s amazing how many people you get to know in three months. I think I hadn’t realized until today…

Anyway, another stage is about to finish. I will now leave for a week with my parents and then for another week back to my city to enjoy the festivities. Then, it will be time to start the final stage in NY. I am looking forward to it although I know it’s gonna be tough in terms of finding the dream media job in the US. But, as of today, I am confident. Thanks Mickey, I owe you!! Who knows, maybe this is just a “see you soon”…

Ciao

First farewells...again

2007-08-07T16:18:00.000-04:00

I feel like I am re-living what I lived around a year ago, right before leaving for NY. At that time I was about to leave my country, my friends, my family…it was a bittersweet time. On the one hand, leaving to do what I desired the most. On the other, leaving people behind me, at least temporarily.

A year later I was back, unexpectedly. That was almost three months ago. Time has gone by really quickly. As one of my roommates was telling me a few hours ago before he left for Croatia for his summer holidays (I won’t see him again for a long time unless he comes to NY, and he has promised so!), that’s a sign that these three months have been ok. I’d say more. They have been exceptional.

I will only refer now to the personal side, though. It’s true that many things have changed in the last year, many more than I expected when I first left for the US. People around me are, let’s say, in a quieter mood. This is a trend with peaks and valleys in young people’s life and peaks will come back…or maybe not b/c “young” becomes less and less applicable to us as we keep growing older. But I have really enjoyed these months. I have had the opportunity to spend time with my buddies, with my friends from my former work, with some other friends from other cities where I lived, even with my friends from abroad…and I have also met new friends. I have traveled around, I have enjoyed some cities and I have had lots of fun.

It’s been an amazing summer, much better than I initially expected. I am alone at my (i.e. my friends’) place now. My roommates are all gone. They have left for their respective holidays and I will be the one locking the door when I live in three days. What a paradox. The one who was “occupying” the apartment will shut it down. I feel a little lonely. It’s something reasonable, I guess.

But I can’t complain at all. I have to look at the positive things of the last three months, which are many. And more adventures and challenges are just around the corner…it’s just a matter of time.

Ciao

In the heat of the night

2007-07-29T17:42:00.000-04:00

It’s almost 11 pm and 90 F outside. It’s bloody hot and it’s been like that for a few days. It’s tough to get some sleep. But the heat in this post is more of an emotional nature. It’s a heat mixed with emotion, happiness, sadness …and, above all, surprise. I tasted such a cocktail yesterday.

Guy meets girl. Another guys meets girl. Guys like girl. Guys try to get girl. Girl chooses guy. Guy wins. Other guy moves forward. I guess almost all of you have gone through such a situation at some point in your lives. It happened to me some years ago and yesterday I had a revival. By the way, I was the one who had to move forward…

It was a pity at that time b/c I did really like the girl. She was pretty, friendly and smart. After a couple of tries I realized that I was not gonna be her choice. So, I withdrew gently. I still remember the night I met her and how things evolved the days after.

The thing is that I met this girl – and her “winning guy” too – again yesterday at a party. After some talking about our respective lives, and after some drinks, we had a conversation that, in her last words, “we will never have had”. Why? Because it essentially entailed that her choice some years ago could have been the other way around. At the beginning I didn’t take it seriously and I thought that she was just kidding. But soon I noticed I was wrong. The things she told me, a look in the eye, a touching hand, a cell phone number (again)… but it leads nowhere now, for good or for bad.

On the one hand, I felt good about what she told me. On the other, I was sad that past wrong signals, incorrect interpretations and so forth prevented it from happening in the past. When I have woken up today I couldn’t stop thinking about this, even more after receiving a short message on my cell…

It’s amazing how things may change in a nanosecond. How decisions that we take about others, or that others take about us, sometimes depend on very subtle things, on perceptions… What is not going to change, though, is the damn heat that won’t let me fall asleep quickly tonight.

Ciao

"Mom doesn't know"

2007-07-27T22:41:00.000-04:00

It had been a pretty long time since I last partied in the city where I'm spending the summer...where I used to party a lot for nearly four years. I have come back for the summer but I haven't stayed long; a trip here and there, coming back home and so forth... it's funny to see how the almost first night out may become a farewell. And it's also kinda sad.

I'm willing to come back to NY in a month. But that doesn't mean that I ain't happy here and that, once again, I will be sad when closing time comes.

I was talking to one of my best friends tonight, after three drinks or so. It's been our last night out since he's going on holiday with his girlfriend and I won't see him again until I eventually come back from the US next year. Some thorough thoughts have come through, alcohol and farewells have always been a proper mix for that purpose.

There's no doubt that the scenario is changed. We have started talking about old stories, about how we met and about how he became one of my roommates. It seems ages since then... although it wasn't that long ago. To me, everything looks different from a year ago, maybe b/c I haven't lived the day-to-day life in here and have just seen the changes. Most of my very best friends are now going out seriously with their girlfriends, getting married or they are not just that much in the mood for partying every single night. As I said, things are changing, or they have already changed.

I don't feel bad about it. Needless to say, I am so happy for them. I feel that I'm playing a different ball game although it would be stupid to think that such changes do not affect me at all. As I said in the previous post, twenty ten is a serious age....

Abyway, I have told my friend that I will be waiting for his arrival - with his girlfriend or by himself - in NY. Things may change but some things, the most important ones, always remain.

Ciao

Twenty ten

2007-07-26T14:23:00.000-04:00

Yesterday it was a friend’s birthday and I called him to wish happy birthday. A magic age around the corner: thirty…or, in his words, twenty ten. Dammit, I will be getting there in a few months and I wouldn’t say it’s scary but it’s gonna be weird to see the “2” disappearing …. That’s why I liked the way my friend referred to his new age. Why not taking the twenties a little further?

In the meantime, before I turn twenty ten, I got a couple of healthy surprises, which is great when talking about the age. First, I visited the doctor due to some back pain and he gave me some good news. My 5th vertebra is not as bad as another doctor said a year ago (that’s why I gave up golf!!) and he advised me to do anything I want.

A couple of hours later I went to the gym and I could check that I have finally been able to get rid of a couple of kg that I gained right after coming back from the US (surprisingly, I gained weight not in the US but after leaving the country. I guess I was very concerned about “Super Size Me’s and stuff).

Who said I was turning thirty?
Ciao

Music festivals

2007-07-15T12:25:00.000-04:00

Hey there!

It's a pretty good, and rather unusual too, feeling to wake up on Sunday morning without a trace of a hangover. It's even better taken into account that I have partied really hard this w/e and I have gone to bed at 7 am both nights. The trick has been partying with just water, coca cola and a red bull from time to time!

This weekend me and my friends have attended a great indie music festival in Madrid, called Summercase. It's a festival along the same lines than Glastonbury, Reading or Benicassim. It's been the fourth time I have gone to a festival like this. The three previous times it had been Benicassim. It's been a lot of fun... Great music, awesome vibe and looooots of really cute girls.

Friday night was a great opener. Too hot at the beginning, close to 35C, but getting better as dusk approached. Main gigs by The Sunday Drivers, a Spaniard band that I like a lot. James, led by Tim Booth and his extravagant dancing followed and closed with "She's a star", one of my favs. The Jesus and Mary Chain gig was a good time for me to chill out a bit (I ain't a big fan of them) and get ready for the best of the night. Kaiserchiefs and then The Chemical Brothers.

I was back home around 630 am, after partying - and getting to know a cute girl who unfortunately lost her cell phone (I've got her email, though... hahaha) - for a little while at a cool dj session at the festival area.

By the time I woke up on Saturday it was almost time to leave again. Me and my buddies just had lunch, relaxed for a while and left for the festival again. It was expected to be the very big day and, fortunately, our expectations were even exceeded...what a night!!

The evening kicked off with Editors and followed with Lilly Allen. The former performed strongly for 45 minutes and sounded just great. Lilly was a lot of fun. We thought she was slightly drunk or stoned but she may be just like that...she kept talking and laughing between songs. The best moment was when she told the crowd that a song was dedicated to an ex-boyfriend (she even shouted out the guy's name)... and the song's title was "Not big". Any clarification??? :-)

Arcade Fire, a band that I didn't know, followed and I really enjoyed their show. It's definitely the new band I am taking home from the festival. Then I went for a drink and a snack while The Flaming Lips played (don't like them too much) and got ready for the gig I wanted to see the most: Bloc Party. We approached the stage early to get a good spot and we did indeed. We were just a few meters away from the band and we shouted every tune as if it was the last: Banquet, Song for Clay...and Hellicopter to finish! Without a second of rest we rushed to the other stage to see the very final concert: Scissor Sisters. We were rather far from the stage but it was just perfect since we had plenty of space to dance... And at this point I met again the girl from the night before so the night was turning out to be just perfect!

After some final dancing provided by DJ Amable, a famous Spanish dj who blends rock and techno beats and who often plays at Razzmatazz, a great venue in Barcelona that I recommend you, I drove back home at 7 am.

God, what a weekend! And, as I said before, today I am fit enough to do some other things...and hopefully tomorrow I'll be ok to work. There is an imprtant week ahead of me. I'll be working directly with the VP from Paris, so I better get some inspiration!!

Ciao

5 years ago....

2007-07-12T21:25:00.000-04:00

330 am on Thursday night. I have just arrived at home after meeting with some friends and ex-colleagues of the law firm I used to work for. It's been a nice time although I did not expect it to take so long, particularly taking into acount that I will have a conference call tomorrow with my boss to discuss some aspects of the project we are dealing with... I'll have to be up in 4.5 h so I'd better rush!

As I said I have had a great time and, besides some good memories and catching up with some guys I had not seen since I left the firm a year and a half ago, I have realized that things remain pretty much the same in some aspects such as the complaints about relatively low salaries, long hours, senior associates going crazy to become partners and so on.

But it is also a fact that some things have also changed. For instance, half of the department I used to work at is new. I don't know any of those guys and although some stories are familiar to me some, I can't help but feeling like a stranger with respect to some others...and it's only been a year and a half!

The most shocking thing, though, is that I have realized how "tempus fugit". Today the new intake of trainees has been presented and they were all having some drinks at a club after socializing with their prospective mates. When I have seen that group of people I have come back for a second to London, 5 years ago. At that time I was about to join the firm. It was a time where I met some great people with the same expectations and thrill than these guys I am talking about were feeling today.

I remember myself pretty much like a kid those days. 5 years is not a long time but, at the same time is a lot. I can't believe how my life has changed since then. For better or for worse? That's a question that I'll be answering a year down the road...and I will be telling you about it.

Ciao

Recurring monogamy

2007-07-08T16:12:00.000-04:00

It’s a curious thing how guys and girls look at many things from completely different perspectives. The other day I was talking to a colleague from work about how I perceived a situation I had recently gone through with a girl and she gave me the girly perception, which, of course, was completely different from mine. And she was just right, as I could confirm later.

Last Friday I went out with a girl that I met at a wedding last year, before I left for NY. We have been in touch throughout the year by email but we had never seen each other again from the wedding day in May 2006. Seeing her again was kinda weird but it felt really good from the very beginning. We went for a couple of beers and after catching up on our respective lives, we talked quite a long time about guys and girls, or girls and guys, as you prefer.

It’s a curious thing how single people in their late twenties and early thirties, who are in many cases surrounded by friends and relatives who have already got married or had kids or who are already separating or getting divorced (just to state a few situations), have to deal with singles’ tables at weddings, family questioning and the like. Although I fall within such age segment and status, I do not feel that “pressure” at all – probably due to my business school kind of living – and nor does this girl. At one point in the conversation she came up with the expression “recurring monogamy”, something I had never heard about and that immediately caught my eye. Not just because the expression itself but also because it had been pronounced by a girl and it is probably more likely to hear that from a guy.

If you look around you, you will probably have heard a story of people breaking up on their wedding day, getting divorced a few months after getting married or cheating on their partner at some point. It is a fact that such things happen. Is this something natural? Do “true loves” exist? Is it natural to be linked to just a single person forever? Or is it socially imposed? Is recurring monogamy a more “natural” status? I do not mean to give an answer. I don’t even have “the answer”. I just felt the need to write about it. Any thoughts?

Until next time. Ciao

A brand new feeling

2007-07-02T16:26:00.000-04:00

It’s a curious thing how many long hours I used to work before the MBA at the law firm. June and July were really awful months were deals had to be closed one after another and that resulted in coming back home long after dusk on a day by day basis. I remember myself looking at many of my friends with envy as they finished their daily schedule by 3pm and left for the pool or their naps. It’s a common thing across the industry in my country but really unusual in the services world.

A year and a half later I may say that I have enjoyed my very first day like that ever. Today I was done by 3 pm. Awesome!! It's not just me - for the sake of clarity hahaha - but every employee at the company. I can’t believe how many things I’m gonna be able to do in the next month until my summer internship is over. I’m even gonna have time to get bored. Can you believe that? I still can’t.

As I have said, today I’ve left the office at 3. However, today I’ve had a busy evening since the company’s annual tennis-paddle tournament has taken place. I’ve reached the men’s final playing with a buddy of mine. Not too bad for the new kid in town. I think I will get a prize and a trophy!! And tomorrow it will be time for the second tournament but this time I will be playing with a chick from work. It’ll be a lot of fun for sure!

The summer keeps going by. It does so extremely fast although there are moments where I don’t realize. I’ll be done in a month and in 7 weeks I will be coming back to NY. I am enjoying my work, London, Barcelona or a weekend in the countryside with some friends, funny stories here and there…I have even had time to turn the very final page of an unfinished love story… A lot of stuff in just 5 weeks. Let’s keep it up!

Ciao

London calling II: hammered...and breaking the seal

2007-06-19T18:22:00.000-04:00

I was too tired yesterday to continue with my story so I left it for tonight. Btw, maybe I raised too many expectations…so please keep them low!! (i.e. this is my disclaimer).

My weekend in London gave me a full immersion into the English language or, at least, into a dimension I am not used to. You may wonder why I raise this point since I have been living in NYC for a year so far. It’s true but in NYC I frequently mingle with other Spaniards, Latin people and so forth. However, while in London, it was like traveling to the antipodes: two days surrounded only by Australian people. No sign of Spanish at all and a warm welcome to that characteristic and difficult – at least for me – Australian accent. On the flipside, a great source for my list of new words and expressions . I guess the title of this post is enough evidence of that!

Where had I stopped in my story? Saturday evening, I recall. It was around 7 pm – my friend and I were around 3 hours late since the other guys had started their drinking race around 4pm – and, after trying to figure out some “universe mysteries” (e.g. (no offense) are girl(friend)s unable – maybe unwilling would be more accurate – to realize that certain plans are just for you and your buddies?; or is it so difficult to understand that a guy does need some of his own space sometimes?) – we headed over to the pub where we were to join the rest of the Aussie crew.

We arrived at a beautiful pub and, after getting a Guiness at the counter – Hoegaarden was sold out, unluckily –we went to the terrace where some other friends that I had already met and some other people – mostly girls, beautiful Australian girls – I was introduced to were chugging beer and white wine. For some reason – believe it or not, I had nothing to do about it this time…I swear to God – at the beginning I was allocated to the “girly” side of the table, which I accepted gratefully, needless to say. Dammit, if that sample was the average for Australian girls I will be definitely applying for a job down there after graduation!!! Beers kept coming, the mates (I truly learnt the meaning of this word for Australians, btw) started to get hammered and some funny talks kept coming, as well as some promising perspectives for the night…I even had the time to talk on the phone to another great friend from Exeter who couldn’t make it to London since he now happily enjoys his very recent parental obligations. It would have been awesome if both himself and the fourth friend who left four Japan four years ago had made it to London. The reunion would have been just perfect, as it was in Budapest a rather long time ago.

I was having a lot of fun and, by the time we were discussing whether the Gunners or the Spurs were bigger (although my dear Reds are unrivalled), the evening was coming to and end and it was time to make a move. A sly sneak inside the pub, a subtle kiss hoping to see her again soon and a sad farewell as she left in the darkness brought the evening, an incredible one, to an end. It was then time to go back home for a party that turned out to be much more massive than expected.

It was one of my first parties in an apartment in London ever. And the bar has been set really high. It will be tough to make it better. More and more beer, scotch, wine…, a stained carpet, general madness, some insinuating flirting, a naughty terrace, … and a non so subtle move this time that took my party to another place…

A proper full English breakfast, similar to those that we used to have back in Exeter on Saturday and Sunday afternoons to fight our hangovers, brought the London trip to an end on Sunday. I was tired, jittery and slightly sweaty due to the hangover and traveling back home didn’t sound like the best plan. However, it was already time to go.

Around 6 hours after I took the subway at Maida Vale – btw, I was able to purchase a very cheap ticket for the Heathrow Express thank to the works on the Piccadilly line – I was back in my place. I was exhausted but at the same time, so happy about the weekend, the reunion and the general impression that friendship is definitely worth it.

Ciao

London calling I: catching up

2007-06-17T20:12:00.000-04:00

Sunday night and I'm rather tired. It's been an extraordinary weekend and, although I should go to bed to get some sleep, I feel like writing some feelings and thoughts about the last two days.

Last Friday I flew to London. It had been some time, maybe a couple of years, since I last visited a city that I've always loved. It's funny b/c last time I was there I was still at the firm I used to work for. Thus, the circumstances were completely different at that time. I had not planned to visit London this summer but I had some "dues" to pay there...

After a long time I managed to meet again with a great friend of mine. A guy that I met in England while we both were studying in Exeter almost nine years ago thank to our respective college exchange programs . We first met in a random way: 20p here and there, some Crowded House music and Australia (he is from there and it was, and still is, my dream country although I haven't been there yet)...I now look back and I realize that I don't keep that many friends from those days, roughly four or five, but they are really good ones. It's amazing and something to be proud. No question about it. Well, the thing is that I had not seen this friend of mine for a long time - even though he even visited NYC a few weeks ago when unfortunately I was not there - and going to London was a great opportunity to catch up. And, as I said before, it's been a great w/e.

Everybody knows London has a great vibe. Nice places to see, great shopping, lager & stout, hot venues... If you add a reunion on top of that, it sounds just great. On Friday evening, around 830 pm, I arrived at my friend's place in Maida Vale, an awesome neighborhood close to Notting Hill. A few minutes later we were already out with his Aussie buddies and surrounded by beer. It was a rather quiet night, though. Saturday was an awesome day. Around noon we went to a food market near the London Bridge where you can find anything: from wasabi nuts (God, they are delicious!!) to scallops, samosas, raclette or awesome carrot cake (one of the best I've ever had, btw). Then some shopping in Carnaby St. (mandatory stop at Merc) and then back home for some rest before getting ready for the big night out.

During that time my friend and I philosophized a little about life, our buddies’ situations and problems, girls, girlfriends, the turning points in life where we are now (he quit his job in Melbourne to give a go to London and he's doing a great at a big law firm)...again with some beers (Ed Burns would be proud of me) and some more wasabi nuts. It's good to hear that some of your friends have the same concerns and doubts, it makes you feel less insecure and it makes you look at the future in a more hopeful way. It was also a good time to try to remember some of the cricket rules....well, at least to try to remember... What happened after, the big night, requires some extra lines but I'm too tired now, so I will leave it for tomorrow. I must definitely write about that.... I would just say that I now love Australia even more.....

Before finishing, and after a very dramatic season, the soccer team from my city has been able to remain in first division. Thank God! I got a text message on my phone by the time my plane landed earlier today and the news was a huge relief!! It's been a season to forget but let's hope that next year we'll do better..

Going to bed now...second part on London still to come.

Ciao

Le Cafe

2007-06-01T22:33:00.000-04:00

It's 445am in the morning and I am back home. I 'm on my own since my my three flat mates are spending the night at their girl friends' place (I guess so...). The whole place for me... but I just can think about how things are - or seem to be - changing. I ain't drunk tonight although I have had a couple of drinks. Just enough to let the words flow easily...

I've been having dinner and drinks with my former workmates. At this place called Le Cafe. Nice place and nice food. I can't help thinking about the time when I first visited the place on its opening day a couple of years ago. It's a place with nice cuisine and with huge pictures of both Brad Pitt and another very hot girl on the restrooms doors. First time I visited the place I did not know if I had to go through BP's door b/c he is a guy or through the hot girl's door b/c she's so hot and she was showing the guys' way. I found out (after first entering the latter) that the former was the right one....

As I was saying I've been having dinner with my ex-colleagues - and very good friends - from the law firm I used to work for. I wouldn't say that I'm feeling gloomy right now but a kind of nostalgic feeling is all around me. It's been great to see these guys after a long time and to chat about how our lives are going. On the flipside, I must confess that at certain point I've felt like I was living in a different world. The funny thing is that I am. So close and so far at the same time. I don't work for big corporations any more. I don't have a huge responsibility with respect to deals that appear on the financial papers anymore. I am not in that world anymore, at least for the time being. I am currently a student who used to share every single work related thing with these guys and doesn't anymore. I do live in a different world now.

It's been a year and a half since I left the law firm to embark on a huge adventure looking for new paths. I do not regret at all so far but I can't help feeling nostalgic about my law firm times. They were tough and extremely tiring and demanding but I do definitely keep the good times I spent with my friends and the stuff that I learnt. The latter is definitely useful to look at things with some perspective. A conclusion has been drawn tonight. We (I will still include myself among them for these purposes) dislike the way of life that we (used to) have; however, switching to something different, more comfortable from a personal standpoint, may not be as easy as it seems at first sight. Leaving dough aside, we like action and it seems like action and long hours go hand in hand. Finding the right balance may be more difficult than it seems...

Tonight's dinner has also showed me - more than anything else lately - that people do move on. I have seen for the first time the beautiful baby (I had bought I cute NYC t-shirt for him) of two of my friends. I have been able to celebrate the prospective weddings of another four friends. A cute (she's still really cute, btw, and has reminded me of not so-long-ago good times) girl I used to hang out with has been doing good with a guy for a year so far... people move on. And I won't say that I am not b/c that would be untrue but it is kind of impressive to see your friends taking some big steps. I guess it would be different if I saw them everyday. But when you don't see people often, changes always seem bigger.

Anyway, it's time to close down. Tomorrow there is a long day ahead. I will play some tennis with some friends in the afternoon after nearly a couple of years and later on I will go to a friend's birthday party. I'm sure it will be good fun.

Ciao

Back to real world

2007-05-30T17:15:00.000-04:00

Back to real world. That may be the expression that summarizes best how one feels when he has to come back to work - even if it is roughly for a 3-month internship - and temporarily forget about his still very recent MBA days.

Furthermore, most of the times, there is a need for MBAs to do things well enough to be offered a full time position after graduation. That's not gonna be case since the media industry does not work as the banking and consulting ones do. However, making a good impression to try to leverage upon it in the coming months is still key.

I am back to the country and city where I lived for almost 4 years before joining Stern. I am living with the friends I used to live not many months ago. Life seems to be pretty much the same right now - much less stressful, though - but I can't help feeling different. I guess my head is somehow in NY and I am aware that this stage will be temporal and rather sooner than later I will be back in NY to play the very final hand. I hope that my summer experience will help me in getting good cards. The jackpot? The full-time job that I will eventually decide to pursue.

I have only worked for 10 days so far and the first impressions are good. People have welcomed me in a great way and the work looks interesting. However, I am gonna wait for a while to lay down any conclusion. These months will be of utmost importance for me in shaping my near future or, at least, in leading me in one way or another. As I said before, I need some more time.

Time to sleep now. Tomorrow I have to wake up early....to work!!

Ciao

Summary of a year

2007-05-10T02:31:00.000-04:00

NY is beautiful at night. It is even more beautiful with the present weather. It’s almost 2 am and I have come walking from Union Square to my place in Alphabet City and it’s been a really nice walk. I’m definitely gonna miss this as from Saturday.

While I was walking back home I was listening to some quiet and easy listening Brazilian music on my ipod and, for some reason, it’s made the walk rather nostalgic. As I was walking south and then east, a bunch of memories from the whole year have gone through my head.

First, my mind has set on the city itself, on how much I have enjoyed it, on how much it has become a part of my daily life, on how happy I am for the decision made just a few months ago, although it seems like an eternity has gone by. Then, all the people that I have met so far have passed in front of me in one way or another, either friends, school colleagues, girls that I have gone out with, the girl about whom I took an “all in” bet after a long time and who did not feel the same way than I did, the people in my neighborhood… everybody!

While I was thinking about all this I couldn’t help but feeling that this experience I’m going through is over, although, thank God, it isn’t. Maybe it is because my MBA2 friends have officially graduated today. I’m lucky that I have another year ahead of me and I’m sure that it will be great too. Maybe next year I will feel in a slightly different way but, right now, I don’t see myself leaving NY (voluntarily, so to say).

However, I also think about the challenges that I will be facing soon. First, and above all, my summer internship. I am going to take a position in which I have no experience at all and I am curious (and a little afraid to be true) about how I am going to respond and about what it is gonna be expected from me. I will be thirty soon but I feel like I’m gonna start working for the very first time. And that is tough! Furthermore, will it be what I really want? Shall I be completely wrong trying to make the switch I am trying to make? What if I have to start from scratch with some other thing after the summer? There are a lot of questions and few answers so far.

But the main challenges will start next September, at a time when I will have to focus on my full time job. If this year the nerves and pressure to find the right internship have been high, I prefer not to think (yet) about what it will be like next year. Everybody just tells me about how much fun I am having in NY – which is true – but people tend not to remember that my fellow classmates and myself have quit our jobs and invested heavily in this MBA venture and that if we don’t find what we are looking for the deception will be big. And this is our very main goal.

Anyway, I will have time to write about all this after the summer. In a couple of days I will be coming back to my country and, leaving work aside, I will meet my family and friends again and I’m sure it will be a great time. On August 26th I will be flying back to NY and my second MBA year will start. But that will be a different story.

Last post for an amazing 9-month time. Madrid is waiting for me now.

Ciao

I hate bouncers

2007-04-15T03:28:00.000-04:00

It’s already Sunday, 3 am. I have just come back from partying a little bit…a little bit, that’s just right. It seemed like it was going to be a great night. First we were gonna go celebrate a friend’s summer internship at a venture capital fund. Then, after that, the city was gonna be ours… we were supposed to go to a Sternie’s birthday party at a cool place in midtown, nearby Bryant Park.

Nice dinner at an Indian place in the East Village and then to the club. We get there at around midnight and we see the line. We are optimistic. There are about 10 people ahead of us and we are coming to a birthday party organized by our friend at the place. After a 45-minute wait, we leave. I am really pissed off. The stupid bouncers, unfortunately once again, have spoilt the night.

What the heck is wrong with these guys? If they are not going to let anybody in... just tell so, for God's shake! Don’t make people wait in line for 45 minutes as if they were stupid. I understand that Friday and Saturday nights are their time of the week, the time when they feel powerful and with the right to screw people and stuff… but Friday and Saturday nights are also the big nights of the week for many people to chill out and enjoy after five days of tough work. Do they (i.e. the club’s managers) gain anything from such a “policy”? Well, as regards me, they have achieved some great success: I am not coming back ever… some good dollars are gone. As for the bouncers, I wish them the worst for the rest of the week.

It’s frustrating. But it’s just about attitude. I couldn’t believe it today when I saw this stupid bouncer literally telling the guy who was first on the line: “c’mon, tell me something funny”. He did not enjoy the joke that much and laughed at the guy loudly… what an ass!! I am sorry but I can’t play this game. Maybe I have not spent enough time in NY yet but I can’t go to the bouncer and tell him how nice and cool he is (when I fact think the other way around), just to get in…I guess that’s why I am not able to get in places like today’s.

Anyway, we have ended up going to a place in 30th and Park Avenue. It’s taken me some time to be in the mood again (I was so pissed off!) but we have had some fun. Nothing crazy, though. I am back at home, completely sober… for a change hahaha. I will be grateful tomorrow at the managing organizations meeting that I have at 1 pm.

I had to confess myself about this. I feel kind of relieved now...Time to sleep. When you were young by The Killers sounds on Virgin Radio before saying “good night”!

Ciao

Casual Friday

2007-04-13T14:55:00.000-04:00

230 pm on a casual Friday. After a two week blogging break, it was time to come back. This past weeks have been pretty hectic. We are definitely speeding up towards the end of the semester. I can’t believe there’s only a little time –three weeks, basically – left for this amazing first year to be over.

I’d love it was still November or so. I don’t know why but in the last weeks I have been feeling like this is over, not just the first year but the whole MBA thing. It is probably due to the fact that my MBA2 friends are feeling gloomy given that graduation is just around the corner….and coming back to real life, not the one on MTV but the one about working 70+ hours a week, is also a few weeks ahead. I will feel like crying next year, I am sure about it!

As I said, it’s been hectic around here. I have had – and still have – lots of group assignments due and getting together becomes a bit of a pain when you have to coordinate schedules (well, last Saturday I was not able to make it to a meeting for the first time since the night before I met Mr. Long Island Iced-T for the very first time…that was really a tough meeting, particularly the day after!!). But everything is going fine. I am particularly happy about our Marketing group. We did like shit in the first assignment (we were actually the worst team in class) but we came back with the highest grade in the second one. Yesterday we gave a presentation to the class concerning one of the questions in the third assignment and it went great (I also felt good individually talking in my non mother language in front of 90 people).

However, the most painful assignment is Damodaran’s corporate finance one. It’s a shitload of work and, although I am trying to work on a daily basis, it takes a lot of time. It’s a curious thing what happens with this course. I really feel like I am learning quite a lot although my quizzes so far have been poor. Anyway, the former is the important thing, not only for this course but generally speaking. Some people are very concerned about grades but, although I am fully respectful, I believe they are wrong. Grades are (or should be) worth nothing. It’s all about learning. What’s the point of getting an A if you achieved it by relying on a cheatsheet? This has happened to me and I can say that I would rather get a “solid” B by knowing the stuff.
A special reference must be made to the Business of Producing course. This course is basically about learning how to produce a feature film. The professor is David Newman who, among others, won an award at Sundance for The Squid & the Whale (great movie, so see it!) and I am really enjoying it a lot. It’s a lot of reading and a lot of work every week but I am enjoying it.

I am gonna finish. I gotta go to school right now to do some print outs. I think I will also go the gym to stress out a little bit (I’m trying to get fit for the last soccer tournament of the year, to take place in Dartmouth-Tuck, New Hampshire, on May 4th through 6th). Then back home and get ready to party. A friend of mine has told me that a pretty wild party is going on tonight. I don’t have the details yet but maybe you will get some in a few hours from now ….

Btw, this blog has been nominated for the Best of Blogging Awards by Clear Admit (check out for nominees at http://blog.clearadmit.com/2007/04/best-of-blogging-nominees-2007) . Thanks to all of you who have been reading it… and remember to spread the word!

Ciao

Late nite blogging

2007-04-01T05:25:00.000-04:00

Saturday night. 510 am. It’s been a pretty long time since I wrote my last drunken story…Although I’m really tired and tipsy – I wouldn’t say drunk – I was really feeling like writing a post tonight, just to remember what it felt like…

It’s been a bloody damn long day. I did not go out yesterday – only to the theatre to see 300 – and today I have spent the whole day studying and preparing write ups. But I really wanted to go out so in the end I have ended up going to a friend’s place, where we have had some caipirinhas, and then we have headed to some other bars in the east village and , later, in Soho. We have a lot of fun and I have enjoyed dancing on the podium with a cute Asian girl and later on I have also had fun hitting on a girl and seeing how her girlfriend (literally) told me not to get any closer.

I have come back home talking to one of my best friends here in NY about girls, deceptions, successes and past relationships. Walking 3rd avenue north always helps…then a pizza slice in St. Marks and then home to have some sleep for tomorrow. I have three group meetings at 1230, 230 and 6 pm so I am afraid it’s gonna be a long day.

Btw, a very good friend and an ex-girlfriend – the latter not just to visit me but to visit NY with some friends, for the sake of clarity – will be in town tomorrow. Visits are always welcome! I must be a little more drunk than I thought since I know realize how long has taken me to write a few sentecences….

Snow Patrol

2007-03-28T02:17:00.000-04:00

2 am and here I am, trying to catch up a little bit with corporate finance. Tomorrow I have the second quiz and I cannot say that I am very well prepared. After somewhat 300 slides the IRR, the NPV and the incremental cash flows mix together in my head. I am sure that I won’t do very well tomorrow but I still get the feel that I am learning and that is the main point for me. Consolation prize.

Days go by and, after tomorrow’s quiz, I will be a little better off. However, I will have to write papers on specialty movies, the soccer business in Europe and Starbucks marketing during the weekend. It seems like it’s gonna be tough. But I have also been informed of an Argentinean party so I guess it will somehow help.

Yesterday was an incredible day. First of all, one of my former work colleagues gave birth to her first baby. I was talking to his husband, also a good friend, and it was emotional to hear how they were feeling. At the same time, another ex-colleague and friend told me yesterday that he’s getting married in October. In a few months I am afraid that the balance between married and not married friends will hold. Wait and see…

And yesterday it was also a great day b/c I went to the Madison to see Snow Patrol’s gig. I knew about it yesterday morning and, during lunch time I rushed to the Madison to buy a ticket and, surprisingly, I bought the very last ticket on sale. Awesome, I was so lucky! None of my friends felt like going so I decided to go on my own. It was a weird feeling since I had never gone to a concert on my own but it was something I couldn’t miss. I still remember when I came to NY for my Stern interview and couldn’t stop listening to their first album. I can remember those days like if it had been today. Some of their songs are kind of anthems for me, so it felt great to listen to Chocolate, Chasing Cars or Eyes Open, just to name a few. I had a great time and it would have been even better if the two drunken girls next to me would have shouted a little less next to my hear. I should definitely take advantage of these opportunities. For instance, Block Party is playing on Saturday but I am afraid is sold out already.

By the way, almost forgot. Today I have started my Business of Producing course, taught by David Newman, the producer, among others of The Squid and the Whale, a great movie that won at Sundance a couple of years ago and that I strongly recommend. It is gonna be a short course but pretty intense with lots of reading to do and a project about producing a movie to put together. It looks great so far and I will hopefully get some insights for the movie production project I have recently embarked on. Anyway, time for some sleep. I will wake up early tomorrow for a quick review before the quiz. I am really tired.

Ciao

Real life…even in NY

2007-03-26T00:48:00.000-04:00

It’s been a month since my last post. With Spring break, hectic pre and post activity and some catching up after the break, it’s been impossible to write. I am back, though, and I will try to be a little bit more productive in the following weeks.

A nice story to start. Friends, Jack & Jill, Sex & the City…and so many others shows and movies about friendship and relationships in NY. I have always loved them and, since I arrived in NY last August I have often felt like I am a character of one of them. The funny part is that, in most of them, the guy always gets the girl. However, real life in NY is not necessarily like that. And I can say so based on experience, recent experience...

As I was telling my mom today, it is a common thing that the girls that don’t interest you are interested in you and, unfortunately, the other way around also happens. Beautiful setup, location, moment …action! But in the end you realize that when the take is over, you cannot send it to printing b/c it didn’t work out well. And there is no second take in real life. In any case, one always learns – I hope – from past performances.

Going to bed now. Tomorrow I gotta wake up early to try to catch up a little bit with Damodaran. I have done a shitload of work this weekend I haven’t paid my Spring break dues yet. Hopefully, by this time next week I will be better off.

Btw, tomorrow one of my favorite bands, Snow Patrol, plays at the Madison. Hopefully I will be able to buy a ticket tomorrow. Perfect band for my first gig in the Big Apple.

Ciao

Disappointment

2007-02-27T00:16:00.000-05:00

Monday night, almost midnight. Just came back from my Monday night classes some time ago and, after grabbing some light dinner and providing some additional comments to the marketing case that my group is turning in tomorrow, I am about to go to bed. I am exhausted.

It’s been a tough day essentially due to my trip to Austin, Texas, with the soccer club during the weekend. It has been my first visit to the “lone star state”. Austin is a nice city. Full of students and with a very long street full of watering holes on both sides. I didn’t go out much, though, just for dinner and some drinks on Saturday night after being defeated. The weekend has been nice overall although much worse – or disappointing, more accurately – than expected. We did not play well and we didn’t even make it through to the quarter finals but that’s the small part. I guess I have learnt some other stuff that I hope will help me in the future.

For nearly a month me and two of my colleagues have been organizing the whole trip, putting in more hours than what people think. Paying tournament fees, collecting money from people, booking hotels, arranging for the rental of vans for the whole team or looking for the best deals to fly to Austin for all players. Once in Austin, it was up to us, as the club captains, to buy food and refreshments, taking care of our stuff, being on top of everything so that all runs smoothly and, more importantly (as it has proved this time), trying to keep everybody happy when it comes to playing games.

We are just a bunch of friends traveling together to have a good time. We definitely want to win tournaments but, above all, at least in my view, it is all about having a great time playing my favorite sport. The previous two tournaments had been smooth and I was expecting the same thing. However, things do not always go as one wishes and when it comes to “leading” – I put it into quotation marks because, as I have said, before captains we are just friends taking care of the stuff and trying to make people have fun – 18 business school students (each of them with that stupid leader inside of ours and, additionally, when it comes to soccer, the coach in each of us) the outcome has proven completely unexpected this time.

Everything is easy when you win but when it is the time to lose just because the opponents are better things are not that smooth. This is exactly what happened last weekend. It’s amazing how some people, grown up men, may lose their temper and focus, criticize team mates and bitch captains in their face. I guess that certain analogies may be drawn with work life in this respect. Maybe I have learnt something. Well, I have in fact learnt the kind of people I wouldn’t like to work with. One knows about those people from his previous work experience but these situations probably help to keep the eyes wide open.

No more philosophy for tonight. I am going to bed. My whole body is sore and my raspberries in arms and legs won’t let me move much.

Ciao

Lack of inspiration

2007-02-22T00:38:00.000-05:00

Damn, it’s been two weeks since my last post. I hadn’t noticed that it had been so long. Time is really flying this semester, in every sense. February is almost over and in just a little bit more than two months my first year at Stern will be over too. I guess that the reason why time flies is because I’m having a particular good time this semester. I’m enjoying the courses and my leisure time. But with so many good stuff going on I haven’t been very willing to write. I am not inspired at all.

I was about to go to bed and I have decided to write a post, just not to lose the habit although there is not much to tell. Today I have had a CorpFin quiz. It only accounted for 10% of the final grade but it’s not been that good. I thought I was gonna do better but I missed a couple of easy questions in a pretty stupid way.

One interesting thing that happened last week was our visit to the Metropolitan Opera as part of our marketing class. We spent the whole day there, attended a short rehearsal and had the chance to talk to the management. It was a good experience and tomorrow I’m meeting with my group to prepare the write up that is due next week concerning the Met’s marketing strategy to re-launch it among a younger audience.

As regards my summer internship it keeps moving forward. Slowly but forward. The employer has already got clearance about me (hell, it’s amazing that sign off is needed – credit check, criminal history, etc – following a report issued by a specialized agency) and now I’m just waiting for the offer in writing. It shouldn’t take too long…. Once I get it I will have to buy dinner to my closest friends from school. We have kind of institutionalize it and it will be my turn. We celebrated last Sunday a friend’s summer internship at a Portuguese restaurant with bacalhao a bras and vinho verde!!

On Friday I will be off for Austin, Texas, with the school’s soccer team. It will be our third tournament of the year. Let’s see if we are able to get the trophy this time. I promise a post about the trip.

Going to bed now. It’s late and I am tired. Ciao

Winning Eleven

2007-02-07T01:34:00.000-05:00

…or Pro Evolution Soccer, as you want. One of the best PS games ever, worldwide. Soccer brings people together and games like this do the same thing. It’s 130 am and a few friends from Italy and Argentina have just left our place. We have played a great tournament among the 8 of us, first Round Robin style and then semis and final.

It’s been exactly like playing back in my country. People get nervous, angry, desperate…same feelings although it is just a console game… and that’s what makes it so much fun!!

We may be different but in the end it’s simple things like this which tell us that we are more alike than what we think.

By the way, I have won the tournament. I had to say it…!

Ciao

Windchill

2007-02-05T22:44:00.000-05:00

Goddamn it! How the hell can it be so cold? I have just come back from my first late evening class ever (from 6 to 9 pm) and the temperature is 14F which, in turn, is -10C. But that’s just the beginning b/c the windchill (the effect from the wind) makes it feel like 5F or -15C, as you want.

I had only experience once such a cold weather and it was skiing. We don’t have snow at all these days. On the contrary, the sun shines and it seems like is warm and nice outside….wrong perceptions!

No many news. The semester keeps going. This week I am gonna start three new courses. Three electives with a strong media component: Entertainment & Media Industries, to get a perspective about the whole industry, sector by sector; Business of Sports, which seems like is gonna be great fun, going through the world of professional sports and the way in which money is made; and M&A, a self explanatory course but with a special focus on media and taught by the COO of Viacom!

So far I am enjoying quite a lot my Corporate Finance course with Damodaran. The guy is really good and the lectures are good fun. However, it’s a pity that he’s so popular b/c we are more than 300 people in an auditorium and the class is not interactive. Anyway, we have this project consisting of analyzing a company and I have picked Dreamworks. I will have to go through every single aspect of it, from corporate governance (something that we have already covered in class and that has taken me back to the very first presentation I had to give to the partners at one of my previous jobs) to valuation. Then I will have to compare my findings with those of my study group’s mates’, who have picked companies such as China Mobile or Apple.

The weekend was good. I went out on Thursday night and I went with some friends to a German restaurant to celebrat a friend’s birthday…some wheat beer and then some fooling around with a girl from the early first semester. Nothing happened, though. I was able to cool down and prevent things from going “out of control”. Much better this way. I also went out on Saturday to another friend’s birthday party at a place in the Lower East Side. It’s funny because before heading over to the bar we got kind of drunk at home watching Dirty Dancing (I hadn’t seen it!) and Girl Next Door (you guys gotta see it!). I ended up in my room singing and dancing on my ow, pretty wasted actually, before leaving for the party…

Well, time to finish. I am a new addict to Heroes, a show from NBC. It’s really cool, about some guys who are a little bit like the X-Men but in the real world. I am gonna see a couple of episodes on my labtop before sleeping. Oh, almost forgot….and yesterday I watched the whole Super Bowl game, 4 hours in front of the tv, commercials included….this is America!

Ciao

A day to remember

2007-01-31T01:06:00.000-05:00

It’s already Wednesday. 1 am. Today it’s been a key day, one of the most important ones since I arrived in NY.

First, we have had our first big snowfall. Well, it has not been exactly big but it’s been snowing quite a lot for an hour or so and the streets have gone slippery and white. It had already slightly snowed some other days but today I have felt like the very big snowfall is a little closer.

Second, I love Sex and the City. When I used to watch it with my flat mates back in my country on those great Sunday evenings I never thought that I would “learn” so much. It has been so much fun to go out for dinner with a girl and comment on the show… and get personalities’ definitions in terms of Sex and the City’s characters: she claims to be somewhere between Carrie and Charlotte and I am supposed to be somewhere Big and Aidan (she said I was a little bit like Aidan but I pointed out that some of my fears definitely stem from Big, no doubt about it). So much fun!

Thirdly, and more importantly, I can say – only subject to very final confirmation next week – that I have secured an offer for my summer internship. I am excited…and relieved. The rejections suffered so far may pay off. I will hopefully join a big media conglomerate (won’t say the name but did I tell you how much I dislike MICE.... until today?). I will hopefully be joining the business development division, which is exactly what I was looking for to have the big picture of the industry and some of its businesses. The slight flaw is that I will be returning to my country. I was more keen on remaining in the US for the summer but the opportunity is so good that I don’t mind coming back for three months. I am sure that I will be able to leverage on it after the summer and it will provide me with a great experience.

Well, going to bed now. Tomorrow will be a long day and I definitely need some sleep since I haven’t recovered yet from the weekend. In the meanwhile, white snow flakes keep falling outside….

Ciao

Welcome back to reality

2007-01-26T03:29:00.000-05:00

It’s 313 am and I just got back home. Yeap, it’s been the first Stern “official” party. Beer blast as every other Thursday and then bar blast at a cool place in the Lower East Side. Holidays are over and after listening to lots of stories from so many people, by looking at people’s attitudes you may say that most of them are happy to come back to NY.

I didn’t know what music to play for this post. In the end I have chosen Alchemy by Dire Straits. It’s been ages since I listened to this record for the last time…

As I said before, people were kind of looking forward to this party and that necessarily translates into lots of drinks and flirting…or teasing… or whatever…It’s nice to hang around with your buddies again. It’s nice to talk to people about their holidays and stuff. And it’s also funny to see that you don’t remember some nice chicks from the MBA and that the chicks that you used to like keep playing the same kinds of games in the new year. I ain’t talking just about myself, it’ something general: flirting, dancing, teasing… and then somebody else shows up. SOme things will never change.

I have decided to come back home walking from the party. It’s getting freezing cold in here and now it’s around -12 degrees Celsius although the windchill makes it feel like even colder. I prefer not to think about it since in around 7 hours our first winter soccer practice will be taking place.

The first week has been nice. The courses I am taking look pretty good and it looks like it may a good term. In addition, the media industry seems to start waking up and some opportunities have already arisen. I may have an opportunity back in my country with a big studio. Returning to my country was not my main priority (at all!) but if this opportunity turns into an offer for the summer it would be too good to reject it…. We’ll see.

Going to sleep now. I’ll keep you posted

Ciao

Hangovers

2007-01-21T19:57:00.000-05:00

Damn it, it’s almost 8 pm and I’m terribly tired. After three days going out and having very little sleep, my whole body is complaining. The day has not been very productive so far. A coffee and some hummus at one of the many places around where people go to have brunch, laundry and some ironing. Cool, isn’t it? Well, let’s see if I call the girl I met yesterday night to do something a little bit more “productive”.

But today I’m also experiencing a kind of hangover after this week’s job interviews. Although, as you know, I’m targeting the media industry. However, outside of that industry I only applied to a very good program within one of the big American banks. You know, very well paid internship, possibilities of securing a full time offer after graduation, sponsorship to stay in the US…although it was not my dream job…and I got in the closed list. Great efficiency.

Last Wednesday I had the first round with two interviewers and it was pretty bad since, for some reason, from the university’s career services my resume with all my media interests was provided to the bank (interests that I had obviously hidden to the bank when I did apply). As you can imagine, I was on the spot several times to try to explain all the media stuff and to make these guys sure that banking was on the very top of my list. When I finished the interview I was pretty upset about this and, of course, I didn’t expect to make it through to the second round. Surprisingly I did.

Then, on Thursday afternoon I went to Park Avenue for the second and final round: two half an hour interviews back to back, with one interviewer each. By 3 pm I was out and pretty happy. I felt like I had nailed both interviews, on both the behavioral and technical side. I felt like I was gonna get an offer. But I didn’t in the end. I got a call on Friday and I was told that they weren’t very sure about my finance interests. That was the feedback I got. And I guess that’s just right. Taking a look at how the first and second rounds went, I can say, once again, that the MBA recruiting process is pretty (if not a lot) random.

The best thing about this is that I won’t have to make a decision, a decision that was driving me crazy. As time was going by I was feeling like I would be accepting the eventual offer. Certainty was about to beat my tastes. Talking to your friends and realizing that many of them have already secured great offers from banks and consulting firms doesn’t help to make a bet on the uncertain track. But now I will have to take such a bet, there is no alternative. Many people think that not getting a banking offer is the best thing that could have happened to me.
I have to be confident. I have been told that many openings will come along, like they did last year. I will still have to work my ass up to get an interesting (and hopefully relatively well paid) summer internship. I will have to live with (and defeat) uncertainty, which is something I can barely stand. But now, more than ever, I will be pursuing what I want to do or, at least, what I think I want to do.

Ciao

Unprecedented load

2007-01-21T07:21:00.000-05:00

It’s 7 am and I am sitting in font of my desktop, after drinking some traditional drink from my city made of coke and wine and listening to some music by a flamenco-influenced guy I essentially identify with that day in last July when my friends and I were in Ibiza and went sailing with two cute Italian girls.

It’s been a nice day. I have been showing a friend around NY: Soho, Chinatown, Little Italy, Financial District…, I have watched The Scoop by W. Allen on our brand new 42” screen and I have gone out with some friends. First to Meatpacking, back again to Hotel Gansevoor (beautiful 14th floor with Hudson views) after some time, and then to a party at a place in the West Village with a very Spanish touch…. I think I’ve been pretty close to score but in the end it’s just been a phone number. I will be calling her tomorrow most likely, though…but after that place, instead of going home I have gone to Macdougal St. to have some pizza with some friends and a girl that one of them had met at a bar. On our way out and before heading home, me and my friends have helped a girl to take (i.e. in our arms) his boyfriend to his place (literally, right in front of the kitchen) since he was so drunk that he could hardly stand on his feet. Pretty funny situation for us since the guy was completely numb but when have suggested to take a pic he has just showed us his middle finger. Hilarious!

Then back home with my friend who is staying at my place and the girl he met. Some drinks, music, nice talks and looooooots of imagination going on. In the end both of them are sleeping (or whatever) in the living although my friend does not know what is gonna happen. She was kinda hot and friendly but my friend met her so there was no point in “fighting” about her… some sleep will be better for sure, hahaha…
Ciao

Back to business

2007-01-17T22:02:00.000-05:00

Hi there! It’s been some time since my last post but it’s been pretty hectic since I came back to the US. Very hectic, indeed, from the very beginning.

Let’s start from the beginning. I arrived in Newark airport on January 8th at 8 pm after an 11-hour trip, took a shuttle to my new place in the East Side, unpacked my luggage, packed a new suitcase and, following a couple of beers with some friends who were in town and 2 hours of sleep , a van picked me up at around 330 am to go back to Newark and to leave for LA on the first flight of the day to go on the so called LA Trek to visit a bunch of media companies – mainly studios – in the LA area. After 6 hours of sleep on the plane and with 55 bucks less after paying for a cab ride, I arrived at Fox around 1030 in the morning. I joined my mates there although I still didn’t know exactly where I was…

The trek was good. We had the chance to meet people from Fox, EMI, WBros (btw, I saw Dr. Lockhart and Dr. Weaver from ER having lunch!!! – why the heck didn’t I approach them to tell them how much I love that show? Once in a lifetime opportunity lost!), Disney, NBC Universal and Sony. It was really good to know about some of the opportunities available at these companies and I felt like that media is what I really want to do. The downside is that the presentations were informative rather than job-search oriented so, although I was able to make a couple of contacts, I will have to apply like anybody else through the websites. It’s gonna be tough, though…

I must also say that we attended a presentation at the new venture of Richard Rosenblatt, former Chairman of Myspace.com. It was great to know a little bit more of the typical Californian internet company. It’s amazing how the culture, approach and style differs from anything I had seen before. Moreover, it was awesome to be sitting next – and ask a question – to the guy who has created operated and sold companies amounting $1.3 billion. And he’s cool and laid back… meeting this kind of people makes me think what “doing business” means…it’s so diverse…

On January 11th I stayed at a friend’s place in the LA area and we went for a drink to Manhattan Beach with another friend. What an amazing place! I think I could live there. Living by the beach, surfing, sun, gorgeous chicks…and a little work. That sounds just like an amazing life. It was a little bit of the American dream that is usually exported overseas. Actually my friend told me that the beach house that the 90210 guys had (sooooo long time ago) in the show is located there. At 4 am Friday, January 12th a Supershuttle van picked me up at my friend’s place and I caught a plane at 7 am at LA International and flew back to New York. I was supposed to go on a short trip to San Diego and Baja with a friend but he had a health problem and we couldn’t make it in the end. It was a big pity but, at the same time, I was happy to be flying back in NY.

When I got back to NY I felt great. Seeing my friends again, spending my first “proper” night at my new place…. We had to celebrate and we went out and partied hard… but that was only the beginning of a hard weekend….and in a different way than the one you are thinking of…

On Saturday morning we woke up early, rented a van and left for IKEA. Some people may think of it as the perfect Saturday but spending 8+ hours there, choosing furniture, taking it to the van, driving back to NY through traffic jams and then taking all the stuff up to our non-lift 3rd floor is not my perfect Saturday. We went out for a drink to stress out a little bit but we were far too tired to enjoy. The end of the night was weird for me because I probably met with a girl I used to hang out with for the very last time. I didn’t want to finish with our story (whatever that means) but she wanted something more serious. Same old story for me….It was a bittersweet farewell...

DIY. Ikea implies DIY stuff and I hate it. Well, I spent 13 hours last Sunday trying to set up my closet, a desk, a drawers chest and some other stuff. I finally made it and I can hardly believed it. My roommates faced the same challenge. Now our place looks more like a home although there are still cardboard boxes around. A little more work is left but in a few days we will be done. Just ready for the start of classes next Monday.

I will have to give an update on academics and job search. Maybe tomorrow, once I finish off some stuff up in Park Avenue…
Ciao

New year's blues

2007-01-05T11:15:00.000-05:00

First post of the year. Second and last post that I will be writing while in my hometown. In three days I will be coming back to the US. I am strongly looking forward to it.

I started reading Tokyo Blues by Haruki Murakami three days ago and I am about to finish it. I can’t stop reading it. I only have fifty pages or so to go so I still don’t know how it finishes. So far, at certain points, I have felt somehow identified with Watanabe, the main character. I wouldn’t know how to explain it, though. It may have been my memories from my trip to Tokyo a year ago, or the references to Scott Fitzgerald or to the Catcher in the Rye, or maybe to The Beatles or to the communication (the lack thereof, to be more precise) feelings stated in the book. Or maybe all of them together.

Despite what I wrote about in the previous post, the very last days have been weird. The feelings of extreme joy and happiness that I had a few days ago for coming back have almost vanished and I want, I need in fact, to come back to NY.

It would be unfair on my side to say that I’m disappointed with the days spent in my hometown but I guess that when you are about to come back to the place where you belong you expect that everything is going to be great fun and awesome with your family and friends. That’s how I felt a few days ago. However, now that the first days are gone, I can’t help feeling misplaced. Here I am, on holidays, without much to do and just for a few days. I’ll be leaving soon and I don’t know when I will be coming back. I’m somehow waiting for a call from somebody to go for a coffee or so but nobody calls. On the flipside, however, I am unable to pick up the phone a give a ring to anybody. I feel like I am new in town. In my own town. I have realized – although it’s pretty obvious, I guess – that my people keep going on with their lives and I must understand it. I can’t expect them to change their routines just because I’m here. It’s a reasonable thing although I’d probably like it to be in a different way. Now I have a bittersweet feeling inside about this trip.

Although, as I said before, there are still three days left before I leave, I have almost finished packing my stuff. It’s an evident sign. Furthermore, receiving emails from my friends from NY or from the people that are arriving to Stern within an exchange program, following up with my networking contacts, or checking the weather forecast for NY allow me to feel like I’m back to my routine. And at that point I feel better.
It’s a little gloomy post and I guess that the trip hop music I’m listening to right now doesn’t help much. But I wanted to record how I’m feeling these days. Honestly, I never thought it’d have happened. But it’s probably good to have my feet on the ground. Or maybe not….who knows?

Ciao

The coming back

2006-12-29T18:15:00.000-05:00

A few minutes after midnight and only a couple of days for the beginning of the new year. I am listening to Virgin Radio online. I'm at my parents' place at my hometown. I have been here for around a week, and it feels good but at the same time it feels kind of weird...

You may spend some months abroad, you may start a new life far from the previous one but it's surprisingly easy to summarize to anybody what that new life of yours entails. It takes just a few minutes to do so and then everything comes back to routine. I can enjoy routine for a few days but then I get bored of it...and NYC comes back to my head.

This week I have spent in my hometown so far has been nice. I have seen my relatives again, enjoyed Christmas dinners and lunches, received gifts, partied with my friends... things that I have missed during my time in NY. Although my time in NYC so far has been awesome, even better than expected, I have missed these little things and it's always nice to come back to where you belong.

I have also had time to visit the city where I lived for almost four years before heading to Stern last August. It's just been a 2-day trip but it's been intense and I've had the chance to see again my friends from my previous job and my friends from outside work too, to sleep again in the apartment where I used to live during my last two years, to recall memories, sensations and feelings, for both places and people...and in the end I have come back to my hometown cracking a bittersweet smile: great memories and happiness for seeing those people again on the one side, and a feeling of general sorrow for leaving once again, on the other.

I have only been abroad for four months, which is is not a lot of time. But I have realized that lots of things have happened in the meantime (I was aware of almost all of them but talking about them directly with those involved is completely different from an email): friends who have got married, who are now engaged, who are going to become parents, who have new boy/girlfriends, who have split up with them, who are thinking about changing jobs, who have moved to new places....only in four months!!! It feels like many more things happen when you look from outside.

On Wednesday night I was having a drink with some friends and one of them suggested that I should try to give an additional input to the blog, essentially in terms of things that I may be learning from all these experiences I am going through. Well, at least I will try to do so...

Just a beginning. I want to be able to maintain what I have now with my friends, but not only for the first four months (that has proven to be not very difficult), but also as time keeps going by and I spent more time far away from them. I have to engage myself and engage them in doing so. And, in the future, once my Stern experience is over, I want to be able to feel the same way about the friends I have met - and will be meeting - in NYC.

It's been a little philosophical post (I promise I ain't stoned!) but it's almost the close of the year and that's not a bad time to think a little deeply.

Ciao

See u NY!!

2006-12-20T00:58:00.000-05:00

Half an hour past midnight. My last whole day spent in NY in 2006 is gone. It’s been a long one but also a productive one. I have had an informational – great way to close the year – with one of the partners of at a pretty new company that is a kind of hegde fund investing only in movies. Everything she has told me about her job sounds great. It would be a great job, no doubt about it. They may be recruiting some spring interns so let’s see…. The rest of the day, now that classes are over, has been devoted to my new apartment, coming and going, buying stuff and so on. I’m almost done, though, and it feels so good!

By the way, talking about jobs, I have to say that I have received two invites to banks’ closed lists. One for IB in London from a bulge bracket bank (it’s funny because I didn’t even apply and I guess they liked my profile after seeing the resumes of the people in the finance club). The other one for a rotational financial program at a big American bank to work in-house. The latter is the only banking program I applied to and I have been lucky to make it into the 12-people closed list. It is not the most seductive alternative to me (you know I am more interested in other stuff, but it could be a good back up….)

But, as I said before, tonight is my last night in NY this year. Tomorrow around 6 pm I will be flying back to my city. It’s a weird feeling. On the one hand, I really wanna leave to see my friends and family after four months. On the other, I think I could happily stay in NY to walk around, going out and stuff.

Looking back now, I can’t help throwing out some thoughts about these last months and their impact in my life so far. It may be too soon to conclude anything but there are some things I can say as of today. The summary is straightforward: I couldn’t be happier. I am so glad that I had the guts to take the decision that I took about quitting my job and going for an MBA. I am so happy that I chose Stern and New York City among the alternatives that I had. I have been lucky to meet great people and to be very good friends already with a few of them. However, there are still some question marks, essentially the ones concerning my professional future: what to do and what not to do, whether to forget about risk aversion and try to do what I really like or to pursue a more traditional and secure path, etc. These are not small things. Actually, they are the very big things. Some light will be shed on this during the first half of 2007.

And a lot of some other things will be taking place in 2007. I am confident that everything will be great, even better: some very interesting elective courses, parties, a new home, girls, Jack Daniels….in a nutshell, more NEW YORK.

Ciao

Last efforts

2006-12-17T23:19:00.000-05:00

Hi there! It’s been around a week without much time to do anything, and that includes post writing. Hectic days at Stern for first years, rushing from one place to another, trying to find time to study for the last exams before leaving for the Christmas break. I guess that’s the best summary for this past week.

The week has not been that bad at school, though. My accounting exam was slightly better than expected and I think I did better than in the midterm (it was not to difficult to do so…) and the stats exam was just ok…only if I don’t take into account that I submitted it to the wrong email address (it was an exam on the labtop) when I finished and that I only noticed it around seven hours later when I checked my email and realized about a bounced back email….damn!!! Fortunately, I think it won’t be an issue in the end…

Tomorrow is my very last first term exam, the finance exam: options, yield curves, swaps…. I can’t take much of anything anymore. I just need to chill out a little bit. On Friday I went out with a girl that I met a couple of weeks ago and I found myself “desperately” asking for a drink!!! A shot of my dear Jackie played his part. It sounds like Nicholas Cage in Leaving Las Vegas, I know, but it was just one in my case…well, just two, actually.

However, the curious thing about this week has been the physical part. I “had to” do some physical work: moving. Hell, it was tough. My calves still sore…It’s been definitely too long since my last visit to the gym. On Friday evening, before becoming aware of the stats issue and before begging for a drink, my two flat mates and me pushed three carts full of books, clothes, tv’s and some other stuff for 15 blocks and then took all the stuff up to our new place. Then we also had to move two beds and a couch from a guy’s place into a van and then into our apartment. What you don’t know is that our new apartment is located on the third floor of a building without elevator. Do you guys know how much a 3-place couch weighs? Probably you don’t but I can tell you that quite a lot….just try to move the one at your place and then just think about taking it to your neighbor’s place three floors up…The best thing is that we’re done with the worst part of the moving and only some minor stuff is waiting to be moved.

Time to go to bed. I can’t believe that I’m only a few hours away from the finish line….
Ciao

Staying in

2006-12-09T22:51:00.000-05:00

1030 pm Saturday night and I don’t have a beer in my hand ready to be chugged before heading over to a nice venue. I can’t f*^*#@ believe it!!!

It’s the first Saturday like that since I arrived in NY four months ago. Actually, it’s the first weekend I’m staying in both Friday and Saturday. No, I ain’t sick, I just need to study: Accounting (next Wednesday), Stats (next Friday) and Finance (the Monday after) are just around the corner and I am afraid I am not ready for them…yet (hopefully!).

So, I am gonna go to bed soon, I am gonna watch a movie on the labtop and then sweet dreams, little boy, before waking up early tomorrow morning to continue with accounting. It’s the course I’m most worried about. In the other two I think it won’t be an issue to get a B but with accounting I will struggle, no doubt about it, even now that there are three days still to go.
This blog must account for all the stuff while in NY and this weekend is, somehow, historic. I just hope it won’t repeat but the odds of staying in next weekend are also pretty high. Sorry, no nice drunken stories this weekend….!

Anyway, time for a movie, or maybe just to sleep…

Ciao

AC

2006-12-07T23:50:00.000-05:00

It’s 2338 and I have just come back from beer blast. I was not supposed to go but once you get there you are sucked in and I have had three nice Sierra Nevada beers…I am not much into bud lights and stuff… I paid fifty bucks at the beginning of the term for all the beer blasts up to the Christmas break (instead of paying nine bucks for each of them) but in the end I have only attended three. Bad deal.

But today it’s been a very nice day. I have been to Atlantic City with some of my MBA mates and our strategy professor. He knows some people at Harrah’s, one of the biggest casino companies in the world. We have had the chance to meet some of the managers and to get some insights about what the casino business is like. Pretty amazing. AC is not Vegas but it’s been more than a good beginning for a fresher like me.

Needless to say, after the reception and the Q&A session we have had some spare time… and yes, I have lost my gambling virginity. I had already played slot machines and stuff but I had never sat around a table to play seriously. And today it’s been that day. After receiving some accelerated classes on the coach to AC and after watching my friends playing for a while I have withdrawn $200 (my initial budget) and I have been able to play for more than an hour at a table where the minimum bet was $15 (although most of the time I have been gambling 20+)… Concentrated, thrilled, nervous, and with a Jackie&coke close to me. I have been cleaned up but it’s been so much fun. I am definitely into it and now I am ready to go to Vegas some other time!! It is amazing how you make lose a lot, then recover and then lose again. Some of my buddies have made some good money (one of them around $800 although there's been a point where he was losing more than $300). The best thing is that I have not been blinded by the game and I have been able to stick to my initial budget. And the euro is strong now, so no need to worry about the loss! Anyway, another experience to talk about.

But the best experience will be tomorrow, when I start reviewing seriously for my accounting final exam…Time to sleep now.
Ciao

Cold

2006-12-03T16:52:00.000-05:00

Winter is getting closer. It is cold outside and everybody says this is just the top of the iceberg, it will get much colder. Damn, I still have to buy a proper winter coat. I am definitely gonna need it soon. The forecast is that tomorrow morning we may have the first snowfall, although it would be a light one. I’m kind of excited about my first snowfall in NYC ever. People also tell me that I will be fed up with it very quickly…

Sunday evening and once I am done with the blog I will start studying for my tomorrow’s Firms & Markets final exam. It will the first final and it’s not supposed to be a very tough one. I hope so b/c with the hangover that I have from yesterday’s night it is gonna be tough to keep my eyes open.

Today is a big day b/c I can say aloud that I have an apartment. We have signed the lease agreement earlier today and we will be moving there in January. Alphabet City in the East Village, cool! The landlord has allowed, though, to take our stuff and furniture before coming back home for Christmas. It is awesome, once I come back to NYC after holidays I will have my own place!!!!

It’s been a nice weekend. Thursday I did not sleep at my place…, Friday, after visiting CNNmoney and talking to some of its people, I stayed in to work hard on Saturday on my Strategy final take home exam (I have already turned it in – it’s the only course where I may get an A…fingers crossed), yesterday night one birthday party in the Upper East Side and then all the way down and farther east to Brooklyn, for another birthday party. I arrived to the second one pretty late and most of the people were gone (great advertising from my friend running the party!) but I had a good time with beer, nice music and some “freestyle”. It was the first time I saw it live and it was really good fun. It’s amazing how some guys can improvise rimes on the spot. Then (well, after 45 minutes waiting for, and then riding on, the subway) back to Manhattan to take some sleep.
The only bad thing about this weekend is that I have finally realized that I have gained some kg. Just a couple of them or so..this is the price you pay for eating pizza, burgers and crappy food...

The week ahead is gonna be pretty intense. The other finals are getting closer and I have been lucky enough to set up a couple of informationals (at a big Japanese media conglomerate and at one of the biggest sports representation and events firm) and a job interview for a spring internship at one of the American professional sport leagues. Knock on wood!!! I’ll keep you posted.

My feet are getting cold. Should I study in bed? Sounds appealing but not a brilliant idea, I guess… I would fall asleep even before opening my notes. Ciao