There is a fictional contest going on at the arbitrage desk where I work. As anyone who watches CNBC often will attest, the commercials that run on the network are quite repetitive (after adjusting for the local commercials). But I am sure that everyone would be aware of Vermont Teddy Bears (which are "so much bigger than [the girlfriend] thought"), Pajamagrams (which include "all that spa stuff that women really love"), real US-government-issued gold (which trades at about a 25% premium over spot gold, despite the claim that the vendor is selling them "at cost"), PowerShares (with the man who has had only one giant idea about investing ever), and Video Professor (who promises that the next time you have computer learning needs you'll come back to Video Professor), among others.
In any case, the contest involves being able to recite these commercials word for word, the "winner" being the one who can recite the most. I've no real clue how this started, but sadly, I think I am in the lead. The commercials just subliminally insert themselves into my mind while I trade. But that's what commercials are supposed to do, right?
I miss those "Citi never sleeps" commercials, though we still see "Bank of America, Bank of Opportunity".
12 March 2009
01 March 2009
What do you do?
Since I just moved here to Chicago recently, I'm still building up a social network out of the people I meet off of the floor. And meeting people, of course entails the question "What do you do?"
My official job title is "market maker", but I find that it is cumbersome and often requires further explanation, since most people wouldn't know what a market maker was. The clear title that most people would understand is "stock broker" but since I work at a prop shop, it's not like we really have clients to broker trades for. So I settle on "trader".
But something must be wrong with my pronunciation of the word, since most people hear "trainer" and proceed to confirm by asking "personal trainer"? Those who know me know how funny this is. But the one that really took the cake was "traitor".
"Like Paul Revere?"
I was flattered by the comparison to the American patriot, though betraying one's country isn't really what I would consider an honest day job.
My official job title is "market maker", but I find that it is cumbersome and often requires further explanation, since most people wouldn't know what a market maker was. The clear title that most people would understand is "stock broker" but since I work at a prop shop, it's not like we really have clients to broker trades for. So I settle on "trader".
But something must be wrong with my pronunciation of the word, since most people hear "trainer" and proceed to confirm by asking "personal trainer"? Those who know me know how funny this is. But the one that really took the cake was "traitor".
"Like Paul Revere?"
I was flattered by the comparison to the American patriot, though betraying one's country isn't really what I would consider an honest day job.
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