I am playful and sometimes downright silly. I am affectionate without being clingy. I highly value critical thinking and yet I am gleefully prone to whimsy.

I'm a thinker. I have an intense curiosity about how everything works. Sometimes this gets me into trouble. Other times it leads to interesting places.

I try to walk the line between being a responsible adult while holding on to my childlike sense of wonder. By most accounts, I do a fine job of this. Though there are those that find the combination a bit annoying. My own observation is that there is a tendency for such people to have an unnecessary seriousness about the things that don't matter, and an indifference for those things that do. To each their own - I make no apologies.

Apparently, in recent years, I have become what young ladies refer to as "adorable" and "cute". This comes as quite a shock to me, and my best guess is that these words do not mean what they did a dozen or so years ago. UPDATE: While "adorable" and "cute" would seem to still apply, I have been informed that I technically fall into a niche more precisely described as "adorkable".

Kids and animals love me.

I am fortunate to have both an awesome dentist and a wonderful mechanic. Actually I moved, so I'm down to just the dentist. It's still a pretty good life.

I enjoy writing self-summaries that lack cohesion.

I've gotten a shiny new job doing software development at a largish software company in SF (the lawn here would seem to be of a more verdant hue).

I enjoy Travel, Reading, Hiking (to be clear, light hiking - we're talking Mt. Tam, not Half-Dome), and Cooking. I love new experiences. I like to cook - most recently, I've been experimenting with curing bacon and making sausage. Mmmmm...porcine goodness.

On 11/11/11 (at 1:11 pm) I married banzai_kittyand am totally looking forward to spending my life with her. We continue to date others and plan to continue so in the future - though obviously she pretty much has dibs on the "primary" position. I am however, certainly open to a range of platonic to romantic relationships so if you think that we would get along, don't be too discouraged to write. Feel especially encouraged if you would like to have fun in the kitchen together.

In 2011 banzai_kitty and I bought a house in Daly City. Well technically it's Daly City...But it's in the 415 (three blocks from the SF border) and you need to try really hard to get out of my neighborhood without going through SF. In a fit of suburban deniability, I'm calling it the extreme outer mission. :) Home ownership is an interesting new experience. Mostly I'm wondering why I spent a bunch of money on a house if I'm spending all of my time at Home Depot.

I am adept at quickly establishing rapport with people and making them laugh. I'm a good listener. People have a tendency to confess secrets to me on a first meeting.

My interest in almost everything seems to make me a satisfying conversational partner - usually I either know enough about subject to keep the discussion going, or am interested enough to ask good questions. I've also been told that I pay attention more than most guys. Apparently this is not always considered a good thing, but it usually is.

But more importantly: I rock when it comes to cooking lobster - Sadly this is incredibly easy, but virtually all cookbooks and most restaurants believe in overcooking them. Listen grasshopper: return the water to a boil as soon as possible and then cook it for 5 minutes for a 1.25 lb lobster, and add a minute for each additional half pound.

One thing that I'm not quite so good at - faces. On more than a couple of occasions I have found myself in conversations on OKC with ladies that it turned out I had previously met. Awkward much?

I'm a smart ass.

The blue eyes also seem to be quite the sensation. But honestly I work a lot harder on the smart ass thing so it gets listed first.

Books: I read lots of non-fiction - History, How things work . . . especially when dealing with morbid subjects (e.g. Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers, The Unthinkable). I like Tom Robbins as well as old John Irving (Ok, so he tells the same story each time, but he tells it really well).

I do read some sci-fi and pulp-intrigue (but I hide them under the bed and wash my hands afterward). Heinlein was always a favorite - "By his Bootstraps" is the world's most perfect time travel story.

Favorite magazines include The Atlantic, Harper's, Reason, and McSweeney's (although I never seem to have time to read them all).

Movies: I am a sucker for non-standard narrative techniques (e.g. Angel Heart, Memento, The Usual Suspects, Jacob's Ladder . . . although I'm annoyed by some plot inconsistencies in the latter), Film Noir, Nashville (and most Altman for that matter). When I was a toddler I adored Willie Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, but have found that as my tastes have matured it has failed to live up to my initial enthusiasm.

I find "The Fog of War" fascinating - besides the revelations that McNamara shares (about the bombing of Japan, the Cuban Missle cCrisis, and Viet Nam), I am amazed that the decisions that he made seem to make so much sense as he presents them - despite the consequences that occurred as a result. I've concluded that I should never be Secretary of Defense.

I also find it fun to come up with double features where one movie provides insight and context for the other. The Killing Fields and Swimming to Cambodia is an obvious pairing. It is also kind of interesting to watch Dr. Strangelove immediately after Failsafe.

Music: It's varied. College 40 / Alternative, Lemon Juju is a current favorite, Barenaked Ladies, Ben Folds Five, Talking Heads. I have a certain nostalgia for the seventies (Joni Mitchell, CSN&Y, Steely Dan, Pink Floyd). Some funk. Some bluegrass. Lots of stuff really. While usually not a big jazz fan, I've been listening to some Herbie Hancock lately and like what I hear.

Food: I'm a carnivore. Hey, I like to assert my position in the food chain. Can you handle it? I like cow, lamb, and seafood (I love Sushi). I feel no guilt about any of this. For what it's worth, this does not mean that vegetarians need not apply - Just don't be upset if sometimes I'm eating fillet while you are chewing on the sex organs of plants.

1) Sentience
2) Sense of humor
3) Sushi
4) Intimacy
5) Lots of things to read
6) A list of another six things that I could never do without - Yeah, I'm the guy that ruined it for everybody else with the genie and the lamp. Sue me.

Why do good things happen to bad people - and what does it say about me that I'm far more concerned about that then "Why bad things happen to good people"?

I think about the nature of consciousness. Not in a New Age sense, but in a cognitive science sense.

I wonder if Leni Riefenstahl and Michael Moore are related. [Yay - someone finally understood this reference...most of the previous responses asked who Riefenstahl is, and mentioned how much they admired Moore.]

Lately, I've been having a lot of fun exploring my dna results from 23andme. Apparently I'm virtually 100% from Ashkenazi stock, except that my maternal side came out of East Asia. My best guess is some tea/spice trader brought home a wife from a business trip. I know it's a cliche to marry someone like your mother, but apparently I married someone like my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandmother.

Its pretty random. Any of the following:

Getting on a plane.
Hanging out with friends.
Going out for a nice dinner.
Leaving the microfilm at the dead-drop

. . .oh wait, my handler said that I'm not supposed to mention that last bit. Don't tell anyone. Okay?

1) Vinnie Pescado is not my real name.
2) I was born in a major city just a couple of miles North of Windsor, Ontario.
3) I can perform the sideshow stunt known as "The Human Blockhead"
4) I have a minor in Philosophy, but sadly remember very little of it.
5) I once made a telemarketer cry . . . and felt really bad about it.
6) I find both intelligence and kindness very attractive.
7) I have been known to fly to central Europe for lunch (It can be done over a weekend without missing work on Friday or Monday). More recently I have gone to Australia a couple of times for brunch (again, without having to miss work on Friday or Monday). This year has been Singapore, but it requires a vacation day.
8) I convinced my surgeon to let me keep the leftover parts from my vasectomy (a short section of each vas was removed). I have two small plastic jars: one labeled 'L' and the other labeled 'R'.
9) I have operated (albeit briefly) a San Francisco Cable Car.
10) Due to a small misunderstanding I once went on a five day nudist rafting trip with a bunch of Mormons (technically one had been excommunicated). I thought "clothing-optional" meant that there would be some skinny-dipping hippies. Who knew? Live and learn.
11) I am a licensed locksmith. I also have a California Assault Weapons permit. Combine these with my occasional involvement in pyro and my peculiar travel habits and you'll understand why my brother once described me as a B movie waiting to happen. :P
12) I once snorted the ashes of a dead guy off of a cute girl's ass.
13) My Erdős number is 2 - So I got me some geek cred.
14) Sometimes, when I am alone in an elevator, I will walk in a circle, because it pleases me to know that I am transcribing a helix.

You want good conversation, a hearty laugh, or to share a good meal. . . or ideally all three.

Beyond that, you probably should review the list of private things above. They're all true. So if, for example, going out with someone who on a whim will snort a dead guys ashes (after briefly considering how unlikely it would be for prions to survive the cremation process) would cause you consternation, I very well might not be your soulmate. To be fair, I don't tend to do such things very frequently - but the possibility always lingers.

On the other hand, if that sounds precisely who you want to add to your circle of friends, go ahead and message me. I'm probably equally psyched to get to know you.