How we spent the weekend

I don’t have pics of everything, but here are a few highlights:

• Visiting a startup: We caught up with my buddy, Spaly, who is the founder of Bonobos at their HQ. It’s really cool, and looks like it’d be a blast to work their. It sounds like amazing workspaces don’t just build themselves either. Those guys put a lot of planning and work into getting their dream space.
  
• Eating at a classic NYC deli: We had lunch at Katz’s, where there’s the famous lunch scene from When Harry Met Sally. The pastrami was incredible.
  
• Seeing a musical: We thought Avenue Q would be a good compromise between Lisa’s interests and mine. We were right. It was hilarious, incredibly well executed, and a little raunchy (there’s an explicit sex scene with puppets).
  
• Hitting a museum: We both enjoy bruising museums, even though neither of us have tremendous “talent” when it comes to art appreciation. The MOMA hit the spot perfectly. It was exciting for me to see this one, too, after being in a play about it.
  
• Dining in style: We both love steak, and Mecca for steak lovers, is a place called Peter Luger’s, in Brooklyn. It did NOT disappoint.
  
• Catching up with old friends: We both know a bunch of people that live in NYC, so we tried to squeeze in a bunch of get-togethers. We could have spent a week doing this, and we didn’t get to see everyone, but the reconnections felt fantastic.
  

Alex’s last minute gift guide plugging his friends’ companies

I figured I’d throw in a last minute plug for a handful of companies where I know the at least one of the founders well. I know a bunch of great entrepreneurs that aren’t on this list, but their products don’t lend themselves to gifting.

I hesitate to put this up, because I know I’ll forget someone obvious and important, but I’m doing it anyway.

• For the fisherman in your life: Give him an amazing travel rod from March Brown. Owner, Kevin Sousa, sat next to me for the whole first semester of b-school, and he has forgotten more about fish than most people will ever know. This rod is at the high-end of fly fishing equipment, and will delight the recipient.
• For the stylish working woman in your life: Get her a bag from Bobarra. These bags are trendy, but also the perfect way to tote around a laptop without looking geeky.
• For an email fiend: Get him or her a Peek. For only $100 (and $20/month), you get a device that let’s you check email anywhere, easily. It’s not a phone, but that’s a good thing for someone that already has a phone they love.
• For the guy you know that could use some new pants: Get him some Bonobos. These pants are as fun and hip as the people that make them. For ~$120, you get a pair of pants that’s made with quality materials and stitching that would cost >$300 from any other company. They’ve stripped out the unnecessary costs (advertising, models, retail stores) from a typical fashion business model, and can deliver top notch pants at reasonable prices.
• If you still don’t have a tree (and live near Boston): Get it from Pakeen Farm. I went to high school with the manager, and the farm has been in his family for something like 100 years. It’s also the only place to cut your own tree within 90 minutes of Boston (it’s ~20 minutes down I-93, in Canton).
• For the sports nut that’s always on a computer: Get him a subscription to TeamRankings.com. the brilliant minds behind this site have figured out a devilishly clever way to predict the outcomes of most sporting events with pinpoint accuracy, and a subscription to the site buys you deeper insight. Anyone you know that occasionally, um, profits from sporting events would love this.
• For the guy that wants a decent haircut and lives in San Francisco: Get him a membership to MR, the coolest barbershop in America. You pay a monthly fee to visit as much as you like, and they treat you like kings while you’re there. You don’t feel like a sissy in a salon, but you get a sharp coif.

I hope this list gives at least one or two people a decent idea for a last minute gift. If I’ve omitted anyone obvious from the list, or you know a great entrepreneur you’d like to see included, drop it in the comments, and I’ll amend the list accordingly.