Year-in-Review & New Year's Eve

Last year was quite eventful for me, to say the least. I worked as a financial advisor with Merrill Lynch for 9 months, but then decided to leave given the fact that it would require a miracle (or someone's stupidity) for a 24 year-old man with no investment experience to find $15 million to manage within 12 months, compounded by the fact we're in a bear market that has baby-boomers clinching their computer mouse every time they check their declining portfolio values. So, given 1) that reality, 2) the dire economic situation in America, and 3) the fact that I'm unmarried and without any (known) children, I figured it would be a good time to SEE THE WORLD.

Prior to setting foot on Communist-Chinese soil, I interned at the City Council of San Diego for a little over one month and I stayed  with close family friends who were kind enough to let me live with them. In San Diego I learned how to drive a stick-shift (stalling out of the highway once), observed both the wonders and lunacy of American democracy through the lens of city-level government, bonded closer with family and friends, chilled out on the beach watching the waves, ate too many carne asada burritos, took early-morning hikes up Cowles Mountain with Jim, visited some of the California wine country with my sister, and I got to see San Diego as an adult.

When mid-June rolled around, it was time to embark on a new journey, down a path that still has an unknown end. I vividly remember the first couple of months here in China. Everything was new and interesting, I was starting to get my bearings, and I was trying to avoid getting hit by taxis (still a problem). Six months later, my experience in China is equally interesting as the first couple of days. I've started to pick up the language (which is by far the most difficult one I've ever tried), sampled all sorts of Chinese food (and gotten food poisoning twice), traveled a little, salsa danced around Shanghai, met many friends, gained an appreciation for my own country, and learned a lot about Chinese culture. Most importantly, however, the past 6 months have been very important because this time away from America and the "corporate world" has given me time to think about life and it has allowed me to live in another country, which is one of my life goals.

At times, I feel down when I think that my career is being side-tracked by this teaching job, especially when I compare my situation to friends who are working in top-notch companies and in positions that are preparing them for a great career. I have to remind myself, however, that it is okay not to know exactly where I am going in life and that it is okay not to be on a clear career path. What is important, though, is that I have never been as consistently happier as I have over these past 6 months.

New Year's Eve Party