My personality is generally laid back, especially in social situations. I tend to speak up only occasionally in a group situation, but one on one I'll open up - and on some subjects I tend to ramble on (don't ask me about the pitfalls of multithreaded programming unless you really want to know). I am loyal to my friends, and I tend toward optimism in my opinions of others. I've got a somewhat twisted sense of humor, I think, and I like making people laugh.

I use big words in everyday conversation and sometimes get odd looks for it.

Working hard, relaxing hard, taking a short break from planning for the future while I get more comfortable with where I am now.

Thinking and related activities. Solving complex problems. Wasting time thinking about impossible but awesome things. Planning projects I don't really have the time to see through.

My hair, my eyes, and the fact that I'm usually not saying much if I'm in a crowd I'm not familiar with. I make a much better impression one-on-one than in a group situation.

My favorite author is Terry Pratchett, followed closely by William Gibson. Neuromancer is my favorite by Gibson. His prose in that book is less polished than his later works, emphasizing the grittiness of the Sprawl. It's impossible for me to decide on a favorite among Pratchett's work, or even a favorite subset (though I'm very fond of the ones focusing on Vimes and the City Watch). The Dresden Files books by Jim Butcher are great reads. Ayn Rand deserves mention, even if she is more a philosopher than a writer. Anthem is easily one of my favorite works, but I'll admit its brevity is one of the reasons I like it.
I am a bit of a Marvel buff, especially the X comics and Punisher, though I've been reading back on the Avengers and some of the Cosmic story arcs.
I've been picking up the hardcovers for Chew and the trades for The Unwritten, both are incredibly good ongoing monthly serials.

I'm not a big movie watcher, but I'll enjoy anything with good action and humor. Jackie Chan's flicks from the 80's and 90's are some of my favorites. I have a few movies I truly love, but not many. Recently, the Marvel movies in the Avengers continuity have been the only films I bother actually going to the theater to see. My tastes are pretty varied and I find it easy to like films for what they are.

I like science fiction TV shows. Babylon 5, X-Files, Stargate, Star Trek (Next Gen especially), Farscape, and Red Dwarf are all excellent. I'm also a big fan of animation, with Venture Brothers and Adventure Time at the top of my favorites list. I dabble in interesting dramas like Lost (which I still haven't gotten around to finishing) and Sons of Anarchy. Comedy shows that aren't just formulaic sitcoms tend to be favorites, too (IT Crowd, Father Ted, various other British comedies, Arrested Development, Scrubs, etc). I used to watch a lot of anime, but got burned out on it years back - it takes something exceptional like Redline or Paprika to get me interested in anime nowadays.

My music lately has been primarily classic rock, Southern rock, electric blues, power metal, and death metal. Particular artists I've been listening to lately are Ayreon, Skynyrd, Zeppelin, Blind Guardian, Amon Amarth, Symphony X, Kamelot, Stratovarius, Stevie Ray Vaughan, E. S. Posthumus, and ZZ Top, among (many) others. I like a lot of music that goes so far over the top it borders on the ridiculous. The Darkness (I BELIEVE IN A THING CALLED LOVE), Helloween, Stratovarius and Gamma Ray all manage this feat fantastically.

I love food, and am an adventurous eater. I'll try nearly anything, and there's not much I don't like. "Bizarre Foods" is my favorite food-related TV show, and one of the only ones I can sit through consistently.

1. Headphones for when I need to shut out the world.
2. Netflix/Youtube
3. A few friends
4. A big HDTV
5. Music
6. Books (and audiobooks)

Computer Science concepts and such. Information theory and graph theory are really interesting. I tend to distract myself by buying cheap out-of-date CS textbooks on Amazon so I have something new to learn.

Lately I've been getting my life back together after a bad breakup with my ex-fiancee. Stages of grief and all that. Took a while to get back on my feet but now I'm better than ever, and wiser for the experience.

Mostly now I don't have time to think about anything besides the whole transition from student in San Antonio to software engineer in the Woodlands.

Update: Settled in now, and realizing I don't have a social network in the Houston area anymore. So more than ever I'm up for hanging out with someone I meet on here.

Hanging out at home or at a friend's place, playing video games or watching videos. I'm occasionally out with friends for a few drinks, but it's been rare these days. I always enjoy going out for some kind of laid back outing, but I rarely take initiative to do it on my own unless it's something really good. Dating outgoing, social people is great - for me, going out alone is boring at best, but with a friend or partner I always have a blast.

I'm a night person, and having to get up early on Friday morning makes me more laid back on Friday nights.

I drive a girly car and love it.

...you want to talk. I'll always respond if it doesn't seem like a copy/paste stock message (Sometimes I notice a message when I'm too busy to reply, check it, then forget about it for a few days. It happens - I try to always reply, but if it's late, sorry!)