Issuing supreme power to you...one moment.

My self-summary Propose an edit

Okay. It was recently pointed out by a thoughtful individual that I might do well to work on a little updating here (I believe that the exact wording was something along the lines of “Dude, are you ever going to update your profile?”) and, after a short period of attempting to justify to myself the fact that I had not, in all probability, updated my profile in something like two years (except perhaps to say I was GOING to update), I had to admit that perhaps they had a point. So. Where to begin (get the negative out of the way first, I suppose, and hope you'll bear with me)...

Problem is, when the time actually comes for me to flesh out something like this, I can never seem to come up with anything interesting to say about myself (until I begin rambling, at which point the very concept of brevity goes out the window). Which is likely why I've been putting this off for so long. It's not exactly that I consider myself a boring individual; I may not be the proverbial Life Of The Party, but I think that I'm a basically decent guy who's generally good company and fun to be around, and I like to believe that I have a lot to offer. Unfortunately I do have a tendency to be the quiet type, and sometimes a little on the shy side until I get to know people (on the other hand, I sometimes warm up even to complete strangers very quickly if I discover we share some sort of common ground) which, sadly, occasionally leaves me feeling something like just another Face In The Crowd.

That, and I have a tendency to worry that I'm going to say too much, or say the wrong thing, and maybe offend someone. Which rarely seems to be a genuine problem; I've found that most people would prefer to hear what's on your mind, even if they don't necessarily agree 100%. And to be completely honest, always trying to second guess people gets awfully old, not to mention stressful, awfully fast. It's definitely my worst habit (along with general procrastination, I guess), and one I'm definitely working on breaking (okay, that wasn't so bad...not very impressive as far as Skeletons In The Closet are concerned, huh?).

I always enjoy meeting and getting to know new people, and I have no problem with “long distance” friendships; for what it's worth, I first met many people who I now count among my closest friends online...and no, that does NOT mean that I'm into Cybersex (if that's what you're looking for, sorry, but no, not interested, better things to do with my time.). But while I am in no way opposed to forming new friendships here, please understand that what I'm ultimately looking for is a long-term, committed relationship. And, despite my relative lack of luck in the romance department, I do believe that love is out there. I suppose that it may not be the most “macho” (do people still use that word? I guess so; I just did...) thing to admit to, but I am an unrepentant, card-carrying Romantic; I probably have maple syrup running in my veins (Self-Deprecating Sap Joke). So if you don't mind your guys a little on the sensitive side...

I'm an avid reader and when time allows something of a writer (excepting a handful of dalliances into the realm of self-publishing among the Internet-based fan community and online product reviews and unpublished one—although, ironically, response to my handful of posted writings has been mostly positive), and I also enjoy drawing (but at the risk of appearing to be my own worst critic, I don't think that I'm very good). I'm also a big movie fan (basically I'm a wanna-be storyteller myself, one who appreciates nothing so much as a well-told story, and I'm not terribly particular when it comes to subject matter—although I'm NOT a fan of really gory horror or moronic comedy).

Like I said above, I'm probably not exactly a “typical” guy. I'm not a big sports fan, for example (I couldn't tell you who won the last Superbowl or World Series on a bet). Nor do I much care for beer, and rarely drink at all (except socially). I really just want to meet someone who I can talk to intelligently; someone who I can share interests and ideas with. I like to cook, both preexisting recipes and meals of my own creation; I especially enjoy stir-fry. I've actually been told I'm not a bad cook, even though my family seems to find the idea that I enjoy cooking somewhat ludicrous, and would like to meet someone that I can play chef to.

As far as children are concerned, I suppose that I could be best described as “undecided”. While I am not presently a parent, nor do I currently have any plans to become one (something that might change were to meet the right person), I do have two wonderful nephews and an adorable niece who sort of fill that role (on an extremely part time basis), and I do like children—perhaps because I can be something of a big kid myself at times. So I would not necessarily be totally against the idea of meeting someone who already had children of their own or—despite what it says over on the sidebar under Children—having my own some day.

I suppose I might as well confess before I wrap things up here that, for better or worse, I haven't exactly had a lot of experience on the dating front. Read into that whatever you want, I guess, but the bottom line is simply that I haven't dated a lot, and I haven't been in a serious relationship in like Forever, it seems. It's not that I'm afraid of commitment (at least no more or less than just about any sane person, and even that would probably be better described as a fear of screwing up) or that I enjoy being alone (I actually hate being alone). I simply don't feel that at any given moment I have to be in a relationship, serious or otherwise, to prove my worth as a human being. There's actually a lot more to me than I feel that I can adequately summarize in a few paragraphs, but I guess you'll just have to take my word for that. If you'd like to know more, though, then by all means drop me a line!

What I'm doing with my life Propose an edit

Right now—for lack of a better way to put it—I'm simply marking time. I'd like to be able to tell you that I was some sort of successful professional, pulling down six figures a year, but that's simply not the case. I'm currently working in retail, not exactly loving it but I suppose that it DOES pay the bills, at least for the time being. One day soon, however, I hope to be managing my own business; the idea and the willingness to work as hard as necessary to make it a reality are there, even if I haven't yet got the financing figured out.

I'm really good at Propose an edit

I'm a good listener, and I'm not nearly so full of myself as to be bored by, or unconcerned with, the next person's interests or problems. I think I'm a fairly decent conversationalist, too.

I'm creative, writing as time permits; I've been known to dabble in both original and fan fiction. Unfortunately, I haven't been having a lot of success in getting my ideas out of my head and onto paper (or my hard drive, as the case may be) lately. Which is sort of ironic, as I've been told that I have considerable talent as a writer. It would also explain why I haven't been published...yet.

I'm also an information sponge, a veritable font of useless knowledge. Some people collect coins, some people collect bottle caps, I collect neat little factoids (and quotations, but that's another story...); I love Wikipedia! I'm the guy you want on your team if you're playing Trivial Pursuit.

The first thing(s) people usually notice about me Propose an edit

I really have no idea; I don't think that I generally make that great an impression on people just in passing. I have been told more than once that I "Look like that guy from 'E.R.'" Which I can only guess means I'm supposed to look something like Anthony Edwards, because I know for a fact that I'm no George Clooney! I can only say that it's a superficial resemblance at best.

My favorite books, movies, music, and food Propose an edit

Even an abridged list of my favorite books would be ridiculously long, so I'm only going to hit the highlights here. Probably my all-time favorites would be Tolkien's Middle Earth series, and I try to read all five books (from The Hobbit to The Silmarillion) once a year. I have also read (and yes, enjoyed; so sue me) all of the Harry Potter books. Other authors that I especially enjoy include Haruki Murakami, F. Paul Wilson (whose “Repairman Jack” is easily one of the most compelling characters in contemporary fiction), Jack Higgins (another author who's responsible for creating some of the best characters around), Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child (both individually and in tandem; these guys are great both as a team and when writing on their own)...the list goes on and on. I currently have about two dozen books, plus or minus, on my “to-read” list (or more accurately my “to-read” stack), both fiction and non-fiction.

My favorite movie of all time is probably The Shawshank Redemption, and my favorite comedy is probably Planes, Trains & Automobiles (it's a shame that Steve Martin and John Candy never had a chance to make a second movie). I would also give both Blade Runner and The Fifth Element high marks as science fiction films (and—while it's technically television and not a movie—I would have to include Babylon 5 amongst my favorite science fiction series of all time). In recent years I also enjoyed Troy, I Am Legend and Cloverfield; again, there are really too many to list. I should note that I am also a big fan of animation—particularly, I may as well admit, anime—since, as something of an aspiring storyteller myself, I can't help but admire the fact that as a medium it is so ideally suited to capturing a storyteller's vision while simultaneously crossing genres with ease. I especially enjoyed Finding Nemo and The Incredibles. I really like most kinds of movies, with the exception of really gruesome “horror” films (in particular the modern trend in zombie fare—yuck! I'm hoping that horror films trading gore and shock value for genuine scares and creepiness is a trend) and moronic comedies (of note are Adam Sandler, Ben Stiller, Mike Myers and Will Farrell who, while not necessarily hopeless, are nevertheless all responsible for some criminally stupid material).

Music...that's a hard one. I pretty much like all kinds, genre notwithstanding, except for really hard core stuff. I've even been known to listen to classical music on occasion; so it would be difficult, if not impossible, to single out just one or two favorites. My tastes in listening material are actually somewhat fluid, often changing entirely from one day to the next. For that matter, some of my favorite stuff isn't even mainstream music but rather is taken from various film scores.

Favorite food...that's a bit tricky, too. I really like Chinese, Japanese (especially stir-fry and sushi) and Italian (particularly lasagna, but I also confess to a weakness for pizza), and most kinds of seafood. My favorite sandwich is probably a Monte Cristo (probably all sorts of terrible for me, but what can I say?) and I have a definite fondness for raspberries. For as long as I can remember one of my favorite beverages has been tea.

The six things I could never do without Propose an edit

Lord, I hate questions like this. Oh, well. I guess foregoing the obvious survival-based stuff like air, food and water, and in no particular order, I'd hate to have to do without: my eyesight; my hearing; my imagination; my mind (sanity, memory, whatever); books; and creative freedom.

I spend a lot of time thinking about Propose an edit

Wondering why are there are so many people on a dating site who are already seeing someone, or claim that they're "not looking for a relationship" (and no, if their answer is "I'm just here to take the tests," then they really need to get out more).

On a typical Friday night I am Propose an edit

Unless I'm working, I'm probably not doing much of anything at all (which is, I suppose, in large part why I'm here; I'd probably be doing more on a Friday night if I had someone to do it WITH).

The most private thing I'm willing to admit here Propose an edit

I'm a sucker for those cheesy romantic movies and the Warm-And-Fuzzy feelings that come with them. Anything more private than that, you'll just have to ask me about yourself. :P

You should message me if Propose an edit

If my ramblings haven't bored you to tears by now. If any of what I've said about myself interests you. If you are here looking for friends. If you are here looking for more than friends. If you're unsure what you're looking for. If you want to? I promise I won't bite.

Tests He's Taken View all