Who am I? I'm an occasionally-professional-artistic geek who bakes a mean chocolate chip cookie. You can find me at local SCA and pagan events and Public Dreams festivals, or around the gaming table. I'm co-parent to a couple of awesome kids, in a cozy apartment not far from Commercial Drive, which is hippie headquarters in Vancouver.

I'm polyamorous, kinky (and rather switchy about it, though usually more playful than serious), gender-apathetic (really not transgendered, but I don't feel strongly enough about being male OR female to stick to a conventional gender role, except when it's something I like anyway - okay, I tend to present as male, mostly out of laziness) and somewhere in the neighbourhood of pansexual.

Religion/spirituality-wise, I'm some blend of agnostic/pragmatic neopagan and vaguely-Buddhist-mellow. I don't have a problem with any religion that isn't expansionist and doesn't demand deliberate ignorance of science. (Talk to me about that one before you write me off as a cold-blooded materialist. I've experienced and heard far too much not to keep an open mind...)

And (dramatic pause here...) I have many names:

In the SCA, I am Guillermo Portelli... bard, rake, writer of travelogues, armchair tactician, and erstwhile den mother to Ad Nauseam, the mediaeval and Renaissance dance music consortium of the Barony of Lions Gate and the Shire of Eisenmarche. Guillermo hasn't been seen around much lately. I don't know if I'm in a huge hurry to fix that, but he's always around if I need him.

I have also been Ferran al'Shihab abdul'Salam, drummer with Neferu Dance Collective, a Middle Eastern dance group. Neferu is no longer together, but I'm always happy to pick up the doumbek for a belly-dancer in need of a beat.

My superhero identity is D'Arclyte, Master of Shadows... black-robed wizard, wielder of shadow and illusion. Well... no, I'm not actually a superhero, although I really enjoy role-playing one. I tend to wind up playing the wizardy types, though I'll try anything once... (I did mention the geek thing, right?)

I'm also known as Baby Cthulhu for the 7-foot-tall green-and-purple plush costume I sometimes wear at SF conventions. (No, I'm not a furry... though a woman did once snuggle up to Baby Cthulhu and purr, "Can I do you in the monster suit?") I am a fan of most things Lovecraftian, from calamari to creepy tales of gothic horror.

But most folks know me as Breklor. Of me, it has been said... "Andrew is not his real name - he is actually a multi-tentacled creature of almost unfathomable horror from the 11th dimension. I call him... Breklor! He's bad news, I can tell you that - his evilness is the green tinge on the pimento loaf of life. And when you can't eat pimento loaf, what can you eat, especially when you're on a restrictive diet. Not Spam, that's for sure - or Spork, or Spicken, or even Spurky! And that's just wrong!!!"

Summer being festival season, I spent some of my summer making lanterns for the Vancouver Folk Festival and the Illuminares Lantern Festival. This year I had big plans involving giant puppets... they didn't quite work out, but that gives me more time to plan for NEXT year...

I'm hanging with the Open Air Orchestra, more commonly known as the Carnival Band. It's a big loose conglomeration of musicians of all levels of talent (actually we're generally pretty darned good); it's about 50% percussion and while we play pretty loose, we sound great, and we have a hell of a lot of fun. Infectious fun.

I have a couple of novels at the Extremely Embryonic stage - a young-adult urban fantasy novel, and an alternate-history novel set in Roman Empire-era Greece. The gods only know if I will get past the research stage and actually write something...

And I'm busy shrinking. My physical health is slowly progressing from atrocious to not entirely laughable, thanks to the Miracle of Modern Medicine, plus suitably altered dietary and exercise habits, including yoga. I'm even working out twice a week, with plans to bump that to three times.

When I grow up, I want to be a game designer, a published author, or a professional musician; these days I pay the bills by working for the Gubmint. Hey, it's a living.

Last year I moved into a co-operative housing apartment, and wound up as President of the Board of Directors. We're working to hold our little community together in a decaying building ("Leaky Condo" syndrome, ack!) It's not glamourous, but I think it's rewarding.

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Not taking things too seriously. (As in, don't take the "superhero" thing too seriously... I don't wear the cloak much, except at SCA events...and cons...and pagan festivals...and when it's cold...and um...hm. Let me get back to you on that one...) Solving problems. Hugging. Playing the doumbek. "Being there" for someone. Diplomacy.

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You know...I really have no idea. When I'm feeling insecure, I'd say my size; otherwise, I'd like to think it's my cheerful disposition.

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Books: Terry Pratchett's Discworld books are probably my favourite ever. I have also been revisiting and enjoying William Gibson's stuff. I'll read just about anything, but I've pretty much given up on fantasy and science fiction as genres 'cause they just keep saying the same damn thing over and over.

Movies: The Lord of the Rings movies; anything by Tim Burton; the original Star Wars trilogy; Hero; decent superhero flicks...

Music: I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks. (Geeky? Yeah. Fun, though!) I like Dead Can Dance, Tori Amos, early Sarah McLachlan... also a lot of "world" music, especially fusion stuff.

Foods: Japanese, Chinese, pizza, Greek... though there's not too much I won't eat. I don't like fishy fish (you know the difference between, say, mackerel and salmon?) or excessively spicy foods, and I have to go easy on the grease and the dairy and the sugar, but I'm pretty open.

Hmm, this is tough, because I'm pretty self-sufficient...

My computer. Something to draw and/or paint with and on. Music. Intelligent literature. Sunshine and fresh air (eventually! In Vancouver, sunshine is sometimes rare, but it always comes.) Freedom of thought.

...my latest creative endeavour. Lately this has been the transformation of the story of Hades and Persephone into a musical. So far the working title is "Persephone! The Musical, or The Sound of Maenads", but I'm sure I'll come up with something better :) switch, geeks, dancing, tarot cards, massages

...hangin' with the kids over pizza and movies.

One of my favourite fetish-night costumes is Casey the schoolgirl ("Casey doesn't have scary dreams because she's just a piece of plastic" -- bonus points if you can ID the quote.)

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I intrigue you!

Like, why else would you message someone on here?