I am, essentially, a professional geek. I work with computers doing things that other people are not expected to find interesting. In my spare time I like to go out and explore how other people see the world – through theatre, music, art, cinema, etc – or just get out of London for a little while.

I love music in all its forms, but who doesn't? I like a wide range of genres from rock through indie and into folk, twee, & electronic with some classical on the side. I did a thing online that told me that I liked triphop and singer-songwriter too; I didn't think I liked the former until I looked it up and I didn't know the latter counts as a genre. Apparently so. I play guitar, clarinet, and piano - all of them poorly. I would love to learn to play the accordion, mostly because of Yann Tiersen.

I've been getting back into photography lately, after a hiatus of a couple of years. I'm trying to create something a little more special than "Here is a pretty girl/landscape/building" etc. You know that quote about genius being 10% inspiration and 90% perspiration? I think photography is like that. I also try to write things, but I am 1/5th writer and 4/5ths writer's block. I'm not very good at it, and never write fiction – I do short articles about miscellaneous stuff.

I cycle to work every day and love it. My year in industry taught me to juggle. I love warm weather and spending time in green places. I like to try new things – I'd rather see a new film, read a new book, see a new artist live, or travel somewhere new instead of returning to the familiar. The culture and world in which we live is so broad that I can't help but explore it.

I'm vegan but not evangelistic. You don't try and convert me and I won't try and convert you. That said, it would be peachy if you don't think I'm a freak for it. I'm also teetotal, which definitely freaks people out. For me it's no big thing – I really don't care if you drink, and I like (quietish) pubs, but drinking isn't for me right now. I don't care if you drink in front of me and I don't mind if you eat meat in front of me.

I hate mandatory text boxes in web forms.

Not very much, but I'm OK with that. I found a quote the other day on a shoebox that said "There is no path. The path is made by walking," and I finally realised what that meant. So I try not to worry about the future, and focus on enjoying the present. And if you can't trust a shoebox, what can you trust?

I keep saying I'm going to emigrate to Spain. I've never been, and I don't speak Spanish, but I think I'd prefer the climate. English weather sucks.

Right now I'm working full-time and trying to enjoy my spare time. I live an independent life, earn a reasonable income, and have no real responsibility (like a wife, kids, etc) so I'm just enjoying that while I can.

• Not being afraid to try something new.

• Dealing with awkwardness. A full third of my life is spent in awkward situations.

• Not getting killed when cycling on the roads.

• Seeing the best in people. Possibly to a fault.

• Making friends with random cats.

• Procrastinating.

The hair. It's long partially because I don't know what style I'd cut it in if it were short & partially because I'm afraid of hairdressers¹.

¹ I'm not really afraid of hairdressers. I made that up to sound cool.

I really hate picking favourites because it's so absolutely final - stating "This is as good as it gets. Ever." isn't something I like to do. If I'd made a list of these 5 years ago and reviewed it now I would probably put out my eyes. People's tastes change, and there's nothing wrong with that.

I try and read when I can, as broadly as possible, but I don't have the time like I used to. I recently read Girlfriend in a Coma by Douglas Coupland and thought it was extraordinary. Not so much for the plot or the characters (although both were good) but for the sheer use of language. It's poetic and yet effortless – it's not trying to beat you over the head with its own cleverness. It's just there to be found if that's what you're looking for. Neal Stephenson's OK (Cryptonomicon, Zodiac, etc) and he does the intermingled-storylines thing quite well, but he's a bit of a one-trick pony and I wish he could write a believeable female character. I read Zorba the Greek and really liked it. I read Beyond Good and Evil and hated it - avoid it. Have you ever heard anyone praise a philosopher for their prose? No. It's all about the ideas. Do yourself a favour and read a friendly summary book instead of grinding through the original texts. I also like Toby Litt, Chuck Pahlaniuk, Nick Hornby, George Orwell, and Colin Wilson. I find it really hard to talk about favourite books because I think a good one would stand up to repeated readings and on the whole I don't re-read books. I'd rather read something new.

At the moment I am reading a biography of Walker Evans, and Middlemarch.

As for film, I like pretty much anything that Jeunet or the Coen Brothers have touched - Amelie, City of Lost Children, Delicatessen, O Brother Where Art Thou?, The Big Lebowski, No Country For Old Men (wasn't that film sparse?). I have a soft spot for John Kusack, Kevin Spacey, and Samuel L Jackson which pulls in Grosse Point Blank, Pushing Tin, American Beauty, Pulp Fiction, and so on. I like Dark City. I haven't seen much by Woody Allen but what I've seen I've really enjoyed. Wes Anderson films are a bit too self-consciously quirky but good fun nonetheless.

Music's the easiest to talk about. I listen to at least 8 hours of it a day. I am totally head-over-heels for a band called Miracle Fortress, which is odd for me as I'm not normally much of a fanboy for anything. They sound like my perfect relationship would sound - ethereal, unusual, and sensitive. I highly recommend you check them out. Others include The Divine Comedy, Mike Oldfield, OK Go, Led Zeppelin, Frightened Rabbit, Wild Beasts, Nick Drake, The Dodos, Dubstar, Jeff Buckley, DJ Shadow, Yann Tiersen, Midlake, Camera Obscura, and so on. I could easily write a mini-essay about each of these.

I enjoy cooking, but I'm not a great cook. I get by, and can turn out a reasonable meal, but whenever I cook for any of my foodie-friends I mess up and end up serving them burnt chips and burst pies. I never, ever burn anything when I'm cooking for one.

I like most world cuisines. I have recently been making my own sushi.

Six? That many? I don't live like an ascetic, but I try to bear it in mind.

In no particular order:

• Music

• Cats

• Good company

• Oxygen

• Water

• Nourishment

Stuff like "Melt (8) _I___L_E."

"What do I actually think about this book/movie/idea/article?"

There's some general philosophical points that I can't quite verbalise that roll around in my mind. It's basically a perpetual attempt to resolve the genuine belief that existence is pointless & life is ridiculous with the honest opinion that there's a lot of good stuff in the world that can bring real joy. I mean, humanity has done – is doing – a lot of crappy stuff to each other for a variety of not-very-convincing reasons. And yet there are trees and kittens and illustrations and avocados and so on.

Algorithms and processes, though you wouldn't know it. It goes on the back burner and every now and again a solution bubbles its way up into my consciousness.

I took up jitsu a while ago. I decided I wanted to visit dangerous places, but before I did I should learn a martial art and a foreign language. I learnt that I can't block a punch, don't know how to fall over, am not nearly as fit as I'd like to think. Then I got injured and haven't trained for a while, but I'm planning to go back soon. I'm a sucker.

Other nights I'm out at a gig, staying at a friend's place for food and a film, maybe out at a pub on rare occasions, or at the cinema or theatre. More regularly, though, I'll be passing a quiet night at home with some food and something to watch. I don't watch TV but I watch stuff that's been on TV – hooray for the DVD boxed set.

I may have a bicycle fetish. Girls on bicycles are at least 2.5 times more interesting to me. This is a handicap, of course, because you can't be suave in a helmet, reflective yellow vest, and trouser clips. And what am I supposed to do, anyway? Draw up at the traffic lights and be all "Hi. I see you're on a bicycle. I like that in a woman."? Sounds like a good way to get a D-lock to the face.

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• You're in London, aren't going to get all freaked out by the veganism/teetotal thing, and:
  
  • ... want to do things together. Galleries, cinema, theatre, gigs, meals out - the kind of stuff where it's fun to reflect on what you've just seen with someone afterwards.
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  • ... like going to random gigs at short notice.
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  • ... have read all the way to the end and are more intrigued than fearful.