It’s the last day of the year and before I delve into my wishful thoughts for 2007, I thought it’d be nice to remember some of the more interesting moments of 2006. Let’s see if I can embrace the idea of simplicity while I attempt this review.

Turning Point
In my small world of waking up and being me each day, a big change happened in my life when I walked into my Managing Director’s office in mid-July and told him that I would be quitting my job as an analyst at Lehman Brothers. A few days later, I began working full-time from my apartment in Queens, hoping to build a sustainable business that would allow me to do what I really wanted. Five months later, there are still many things to learn and to accomplish, but I have zero regrets about the decision. And while I cherish the moments I experienced in banking, I’ll take my chances (at least for now) with life outside the corporate world.

Cultural Fun
Although I have yet to attend a classical music concert or an opera where I don’t find myself falling asleep, I try to keep myself open to new cultural experiences. And while I am far from critically understanding most of these experiences, I appreciate the new things I pick up along the way. An inventory of 2006 cultural fun:

Musicals & Plays
Spamalot, Avenue Q, Sink or Swim, Spring Awakening

Talks & Lectures
Milos Foreman interview (New Yorker Festival), Malcolm Gladwell talk (New Yorker Festival), The Art of the Book with Chip Kidd, Dave Eggers, Milton Glaser (92Y), Of Chaos and Fiction (Brooklyn Book Festival)

Concerts & Events
St. Cecilia Chorus and Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, Massive Attack at Hollywood Bowl, Cut’n’Paste in Brooklyn, Rangers hockey game at MSG

Musuems
The Getty Musuem (Los Angeles), The International Center of Photography (New York), Deoksu Palace & Royal Musuem (Seoul)

Travel
I never traveled much while growing up. Even in college, I preferred to spend my vacations in New York. In the past two years, however, I’ve come to learn the importance of travel and how seeing new places and actually being somewhere else can spark ideas and shift perspectives. A list of cities I visited in 2006 (and stayed over at least one night):

Seoul, Korea
Los Angeles, California
Atlanta, Georgia
Burlington, Vermont
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Princeton, New Jersey
Boston, Massachusetts
Kennebunkport, Maine

Not too impressive of a list, but a promising start for a great deal of travel in 2007!

Repeat Stops
Everyone has a favorite “spot” in the city, whether it’s for eating, drinking, or anything else. Where did I find myself going to again and again in 2006?

Drinks
Pegu Club, Otto Enoteca, Bar Jamon, 71 Irving Place

Eat
Kunjip, Schiller’s, Momofuku Ssam Bar, Rairaiken

Books
Barnes & Noble at Lincoln Plaza, McNally Robinson, Housing Works Used Book Cafe

Well, the sun’s beginning to set for the last time in 2006. A great year to remember!