Well somehow this blog leaked and some brokers at my old firm have read this, and of course I know who leaked it. Not really a big deal though, just want to let everyone know that I know when traffic is coming into my blog and where it comes from. I just wanted to make some edits and stuff before spreading this blog around too much.
Okkk, so what the fuck have I been up to?
Once I quit the firm, I ended up going on like a city tour and a spending spree. I went to Boston with a few people and stayed at the Boston Park Plaza hotel. I saw Blue Man Group for the 2nd time, and it’s not as sick as the Vegas show but it’s still awesome. Then I hit up Roxy Red nightclub, which turned out better than expected. Somehow, my group got a ton of girls to roll up at our table, and I ended up paying my share for a few bottles that I only got like 2 drinks from.
There was a week that my sister brought back her boyfriend and some girl friends from Ohio. I entertained them and went out with them for several days. The highlight was a trip to AC, staying in a megasuite for $360 a night, eating at The Borgata, and partying it up at The Pool at Harrahs for afterdark Wednesdays. I made the mistake of drinking too many redbull vodkas before going to sleep. The next day I drove to NYC with everyone and felt like I was going to die. To fix that problem, I drank another energy drink for the trip into NYC Chinatown/Soho/Greenwich Village. Good times.
I’ve also hit up Philly a few times with some friends, going to some places like Raven Lounge, Ladder Fifteen, and Pulse afterhours. There was a MUSE concert I went to at Wachovia Centre in Philly with my friends from Rutgers. It was a goddamn amazing rock concert, they set the bar pretty high. I tried go karting in New York for the 1st time in a long time with a few girls and guys I know. Then there was another trip to Jersey City and New York City where I helped rack up a bill at a harem in Greenwich Village for wine, $15 shots, and hookah.
Since it was my 24th birthday last week, I am trying to get a Ferrari F430 for 24 hours in the next few weeks, and I will drive that around on some nice roads in New Jersey on a warm sunny day. Cars are my personal brand of heroin. When I was younger, I would love flipping through books with pictures of concept cars and super cars. When I was shopping around for a car, I would obsess over looking at every detail of every car that I considered buying. I’ve subscribed to countless car magazines. I’ve watched almost every car review from the British TV series 5th Gear and Top Gear and listened to the snarky, clever reparte delivered by a cast that could only have come from Britain. I could go on and on. I think the major reason I’m not a mechanical engineer working for Volkswagen or some other huge car brand is because I never thought it would lead to a distinctive life.
There’s a quote that I’ve seen floating around supposedly said by Frank Sinatra. He said…
“You buy a Ferrari when you want to be somebody. You buy a Lamborghini when you are somebody.”
Everybody wants to be somebody, and so here I am trying to get a Ferrari from the most reputable supercar club on the east coast to experience a brief moment of awesomeness. I always envisioned a lifestyle where I would have a stable of supercars that would act as a symbol of my accomplishments in life. It’s IMPORTANT to set goals, otherwise what the hell are you working for? If I didn’t want to buy expensive things or spend money on expensive activities, then I’d be fine with $50, 000 a year. I’d sit back and call it a day. But no, I have goals. If you can afford a $200, 000-400, 000 car, then you’re good to go. Oh, and I mean AFFORD; not lease, not finance, not borrow from a friend, AND spending no more than 5% of your net worth.
For this weekend, I’m going to paintball and possibly meet up with some people in NY. There’s Rutgersfest to look forward to next week. Also, I’d like to visit my “therapist”; probably the best way to describe it at this point. You’re my personal brand of heroin as well. It’s kind of interesting when two people from different worlds connect in an unexpected place, and the circumstances of how such meetings take place makes you think a bit. That mystery, and that spirit for adventure makes me reach for more.
My break from the rest of the world doing this brokerage gig has enabled me to come out now with a stronger passion and interest for everything I’m missing.
What am I doing job-wise/career-wise?
I’ve been hearing that there’s been a bunch of people who dropped or are dropping as I speak from the firm that I quit back in February. Sucks for them, I saw the writing on the wall early.
I am looking to get into high finance so I spent 1.2gs just to register for the CFA Level 1 examination for 2010. There’s so many books and so much to study, it’s making my head spin. The Series 7/63 is an absolute joke compared to this. It took me approximately 2 months to finish the 7/63 while studying for 13 hours a day. They recommend you study for 300 hours for the CFA. However, I probably will need to study 600+ hours since I don’t actually have a background in finance, and I need to make sure I pass this on the 1st try. You have to wait 6 months if you fail and you’ll have to pay for the exam again. Last year, the pass rate was 34% and over 44, 000 people took the Level 1 exam. That’s a really shitty percentage and people smarter than me with years of finance experience are taking the exam.
For people who don’t know, the CFA (chartered financial analyst) is the gold standard by which investment professionals are measured. Once you complete all three levels, have the necessary work experience, and become a full charterholder, then you are an expert in finance. You can practically go anywhere. If an MBA is a well of knowledge a foot deep and a mile wide, then a CFA is a mile deep and a foot wide.
Wall Street is a place where ordinary people control extraordinary amounts of money. You don’t need to be an innovator to get a piece of the action. Once you’re in the jet set club, you’ll be privy to a world where all the good things in life are kept secret. Money doesn’t buy happiness (well maybe 75%), but I’d rather cry in a Ferrari.
I’m not one to worry too much though, what comes will come.
“Fear not when, fear not why, fear not much while we’re alive. Life is for living not living uptight. See ya somewhere up in the sky. Fear not die, I’ll be alive for a million years. Bye-byes are not for legends, I’m forever young, my name shall survive.” – Jay – Z – “Young Forever”
Wall Street Broker 