Note: I'd like to rewrite this profile completely, but, as you might surmise from my status above, it's not a high priority right now.

I'm a native Connecticuter who has made a welcome relocation to San Francisco. I have a geeky side that loves puzzles and strategy games and video games, and another that loves sports and beer and rock music.

Here is a List Of Facts that I will add to as the mood strikes.
--I swear a lot. I consider it therapeutic.
--Politically, I'm pretty safely left of center, but I try to stay open-minded. There are only a few things of which I have a very strong opinion. (On that note, if you're a supporter of Proposition 8, well, I won't say we definitely won't get along, but consider it strikes one and two.)
--Absolutely nothing about dance clubs appeals to me.
--When solving puzzles, I will erase something and rewrite it if I don't think it was neat enough. I find this mildly frightening.
--My backlogs of puzzle books, books for reading, and video games have grown to terrifying sizes. I get them faster than I can consume them.
--I edit cryptograms. If you find this even the slightest bit intriguing, that's probably a Good Sign.
--This is good for now.

I've been living in San Francisco since late May 2008 and I work at Google in Mountain View. After living in Connecticut, England, upstate New York, and Chicago, I really feel like I'm a great place for me (although I miss England). I have a great job, although I look forward to the day when I can make a living from my avocation, which is puzzles of all sorts.

Doing puzzles, particularly crosswords. It's something I've done for many years and I'm really proud of what I've been able to accomplish in that realm. I know I talk about it a lot, but it's brought positive change in more ways than one would expect it could. It's absolutely altered the course of my life and I couldn't be more grateful for it.

I love solving, constructing original crosswords for the New York Times, the Onion, and other publications, pub trivia, Bay Area Night Games, DASH, Shinteki events, the MIT Mystery Hunt, the National Puzzlers' League, games with friends... the list goes on.

Well, my red hair, probably. (We're a dying breed, you know.) I've been told I have nice blue eyes. And my volume is usually linked to my mood.

My favorite books contain puzzles, but if we're talking prose, I enjoy humor. I like Dave Barry, Douglas Adams, Neal Stephenson, comedians, you get the idea.

I don't watch movies a lot, but I'm most often in the mood for comedy. I love Mystery Science Theater 3000, My Cousin Vinny, Clue, Office Space, UHF, etc. And there's a documentary called Wordplay; I'm quite fond of that one. (Subtle!)

My favorite music genre is garage/Detroit-style rock; it's the best dose of energy I've found. Scandinavia is rich in the stuff. Favorite bands are The Hellacopters, Gluecifer, Backyard Babies, Mando Diao, Turbonegro, The Hives, The Last Vegas, Supersuckers, etc. Artists I like in other genres include Ben Folds, John Hiatt, Joe Jackson, Bruce Hornsby, They Might Be Giants, and Weird Al.

As for food, I'm an omnivorous male in his mid-twenties; infer what you will from that. I probably eat more cereal than most people. Cereal is delicious.

TV wasn't mentioned, but I like comedy there too. And game shows. I yell at frustrating game show contestants.

Puzzles: My main passion in life.

Sports: I must say I'm a big fan. I realize that many women consider this a liability, and it mystifies my friends in the puzzle world, but it is what it is. (Hey, a sports cliche!)

My favorite music: I find that if I pick the right stuff, I can erase a bad mood or enhance a good one.

Exercise: I'm realizing more and more the direct correlation between this and my energy level/mood. I will combine this with the above item and make little drumming motions while on the elliptical.

Comedy: Something else in which I need to indulge in order to feel good. It's basically impossible to offend me as long as it has redeeming humor value. My favorite comedians are George Carlin, Demetri Martin, Mitch Hedberg, Lewis Black, Jim Gaffigan, Eddie Izzard, etc. I will drop quotes into casual conversation.

Good friends: Dawwww.

(Aside: I am amazed by the number of women who put Chapstick here. I mean, yes, there are times when I'd kill for it, but I still find it odd.)

I find it very difficult to turn off the word-loving portion of my brain. I'm always noticing anagrams, puns, and other amusing manipulations, and I compulsively share them. Sometimes these observations turn into crossword themes, so it comes with that territory.

I also like to think about how I can improve myself and live life better.

I'd like to think I don't have a typical Friday night. I frequently opt to stay in and recover from the week, but I might go to a concert or a comedy show, or have a game night with friends, or what have you. I just kinda go with what comes up.

I had a very rough few years, self-esteem-wise, in college and thereafter. It's been a long road back, but my fresh start out here has been enormously beneficial. I'm trying to take advantage of that with new activities and new people.

I guess this is where I put what I'm looking for, which would be someone who...

...would like to a share a cryptic crossword.
...thinks enjoying a few pints at a pub quiz makes for a perfect weekday evening.
...enjoys watching sports (or can at least tolerate it).
...has a rich, wacky, slightly biting sense of humor that shines through in most situations.
...is affectionate and empathetic.
...becomes filled with dread and loathing upon reading something like "ur a qt lol".