If you're going to read my profile, allow me to provide a soundtrack for you: http://youtu.be/oJM16Q_edQw

By day I'm a mild-mannered instructional designer, but by night I'm a writer, filmmaker, and musician (and still mild-mannered).

My name is Arend. It's pronounced "air-end".

I write fiction, screenplays, and music. I am making a short film that will be completed soon. I've written a self-published novella that is on the Amazon store.

I am vegan. It is an ethical decision, based both on compassion for other beings as well as logic. Becoming vegan has made me a much happier and more optimistic person. I will discuss this if you're interested. I mentioned it here because it's key to understanding who I am.

Ultimately, to be human is to search for love. To have love is to feel a sense of balance in one's life; no longer pulled in different directions but to have a center point you can return to. I think that's what we're all looking for, even if you don't verbalize it that way.

I recently made my twentieth blood donation to the Red Cross. I'm proud of that.

I spend a lot of time working on my films, my stories, and my music.

This is a song I wrote and recorded: http://youtu.be/a17F18y95mo

Seeing the big picture.

I'm over 6'3", so people usually ask me for the weather report at elevation.

Music: Radiohead, Neil Young, The Beatles, Tom Waits, Leonard Cohen, Ennio Morricone, Nick Drake, Arvo Part, Clint Mansell, Hans Zimmer, John Maus, Philip Glass, Rachel Zeffira.

Movies: Kurosawa, Sergio Leone, Christopher Nolan, The Thin Red Line, The Empire Strikes Back, Le Samurai, High Plains Drifter, Fletch, The Big Lebowski, LA Story, Vertigo, Better Off Dead, The Third Man, The Life of Brian, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Room (greatest terrible movie ever).

TV: I mostly watch nature/science shows, but I also like The Daily Show/Colbert Report, and Seinfeld.

Books: Anything by Loren Eiseley. I read five of his books over a three month period. "The Hero With A Thousand Faces" by Joseph Campbell. Presently, I'm on a sci-fi binge. Message me if you have recommendations.

Food: I've been vegan for two years. I don't view animals as food, because I don't accept it as a necessity.

My guitar, nature, a writing instrument, peace and quiet (2 things), my creativity.

Why our society continues to needlessly harm animals for food.

Whether I should run for political office someday.

Hopefully exploring some creative endeavor, though that depends on whether or not the muse has struck.

I have a fantasy about moving to a cabin near a lake or a river, with a canoe and a vegetable garden to live a more natural and less wasteful existence.

I recently told a female friend about how I climbed up a hill in Malibu overlooking the water to take in the solar eclipse earlier this year. She said, "you need a girlfriend to do those sorts of things with you." I suppose she's right. The trouble is finding the right girl. Needless to say, there haven't been a whole lot of them.

Above all, message me if you want to meet a genuine, intelligent, unique, kind guy who will be chivalrous with you. I'm looking for someone who will be accepting of my kind nature, and who will give in return because that's in her nature as well. It would also help if you're not a cynical person.

I want to take you to the Huntington, Getty, or (my favorite) the Norton Simon. Let's explore our intellectual connection.