vRusczyk and I went to see a play about Beethoven Saturday night called 33 Variations. The quick synopsis is that some rich music publisher paid 50 great composers of the time to write variations on a simple waltz he wrote. Beethoven apparently at first turned him down (and was the only one to do so), but then changed his mind and wrote not one, but, you guessed it, 33 variations over a few years. The play was both about Beethoven during this period and a woman in modern times trying to unlock the mystery of why Beethoven spent so much time on such a seemingly simple piece of music.

We enjoyed the play a lot -- it's tough to beat a well-done play for entertainment. Aside from making me wish I understood music, the play made me think a lot about the nature of obsession and its relationship to success. I've often had people ask me why I left trading because it's so lucrative, and I usually answer something about not liking New York or wanting to do something creative (in the sense of making something). While these are both true, the play 33 Variations pointed at what probably is the most accurate answer -- trading did not inspire anything remotely resembling obsession. I didn't spend many idle moments thinking about trades or thinking about work (except maybe wondering about the bonus during bonus season, I confess). While I enjoyed a lot of my time at work, it wasn't a reason to be excited in the morning.

Of course, this also explains a lot about why I like what I do now. It's much more stressful than trading was, but only because I care so much about it. I wouldn't say I'm obsessed in the way Beethoven is portrayed in this play, which is likely a good thing, but AoPS consumes a great deal of my free cycles. I'd like to say this is part of why it's been successful, but it's more true to say that it's why I find it so satisfying.