I'm an aspiring technocrat and lawyer, with a lifelong dream of ushering in a global, tolerant future for humanity and living on a floor numbered higher than my age. Hm. My two lifelong dreams are creating a utopian future, living in my own aerie, and finally actually writing that novel. Wait. My three lifelong dreams...

Both a bookworm and a bon vivant, I'm never afraid to laugh at myself or try something new (which frequently leads to laughing at myself, so hey, two birds!). "Something new" has ranged from "nude modelling" to "eating a goat head in a sketchy restaurant in Nigeria" to "hitting a dance floor despite needing a cane to leave the house".

While I have several magical body parts - just ask the witch doctors who'd want to cut them off me - I think my mind is the best of them, and try to find as many uses for it as I can.

Jumping through the last set of hoops before getting my law license. My education's focused mainly on changing technology (particularly the Internet) and its potential impact on society and law. I've been lucky enough to land a great job right up this alley, and really excited to start it next summer.

In the meantime, I'm writing a monthly magazine column, doing freelance software testing, enjoying being finished with school and the bar exam, actually having time to read and write for pleasure again, working on my French, and exploring all the delightful options Ottawa offers in cuisine, cinema, comedy, music, museums, art, and theatre.

Waxing eloquent. Whether read, written, spoken, or played as tiles on a gameboard, words are my tool, my toy, and occasionally my weapon (those who suggest that this weapon is "terrible puns" tell lies.)

Probably my cane or crutches (not a fashion accessory) and my spectacularly pale skin and hair (also not a fashion accessory, but a handy coincidence given some of my musical tastes and my penchant for dark clothing).

Otherwise, an easy laugh, an enthusiastic reaction to music, and my eyes.

I prefer stories that focus on character interaction and dialogue: "character vs. character" rather than "character vs. environment" plots. More specifically:

Books: Far, far too many to list here, but particularly political/historical books (both fiction and nonfiction), novels of manners, and fantasy and science fiction (especially when they fall into the first two categories). Favourite authors include Alexandre Dumas, Guy Gavriel Kay, Terry Pratchett, Jane Austen, Douglas Adams, Neil Gaiman, Iain Banks, Robert Graves, and Lois McMaster Bujold.

TV: The West Wing, Game of Thrones, Yes, Minister, The Thick of It, Babylon 5, Battlestar Galactica, Rome, The Borgias, Daria, Gossip Girl.

Movies: Elizabeth. Kill Bill, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, The Godfather, Cruel Intentions, In The Loop.

Music: Enough kinds of alternative rock that my playlist for it is called The Term Has Lost All Meaning (Garbage, Metric, Nine Inch Nails, Tool/A Perfect Circle), Gothic metal/symphonic metal (Epica, Apocalyptica, Lacuna Coil, Paradise Lost), some electronica, industrial music and synthpop (Delerium, Massive Attack, Collide, VNV Nation, and the Cruxshadows) , orchestral music, film scores and game soundtracks.

For more examples see my last.fm.

Food: I'll give all kinds of food from all kinds of places a try, but anything involving seafood easily takes top spot, particularly grilled fish or shrimp.

Desserts, fruits (oranges, grapes, pineapples, pears especially), and things merely flavoured like fruit are rarely safe around me either: I learned to bake as a kid because it was easier than wheedling my mother into indulging my sweet tooth more often (and she'd be damned if any child of hers was helpless in a kitchen anyway).

Fruity drinks of all kinds.
Music, whether I'm singing or listening.
Witty banter, satire, and commentary.
Access to information through books and the Net.
Urban living and all the options that come with it.
Stunning views from high places.

The little moments in life that make you glad to be here, and the people that show them to us through words, or art, or song. I don't know if I believe in magic, but I like the idea of a little glamour in our lives.

I'm also generally very interested in history, politics and current events. Though these days the latter two seem calculated to drive me mad and destroy my faith in humanity. And I liked my faith in humanity. Please don't take it away.

If I'm not out at some new show or chilling at home with a book and some tunes, I'm usually talking and unwinding with a few friends at a pub, cafe, house party, or gaming night.

If I somehow got three wishes, I'd stay an albino and I wouldn't heal my legs. We are the sum of our experiences, I like the man I've become as a result, and airports are a lot easier to deal with when they give you a wheelchair, send you through the NEXUS line, and leave you in a nice, long concourse to use as a racetrack while you wait for your flight.

If Dorothy Parker, Hypatia, or Catherine the Great are among your role models.
If you're not-so-secretly delighted by thunderstorms.
If you want a karaoke partner or a ringer for your pub trivia team.
If you want to show me what makes you love this crazy city of ours.