I'm an island of stability in a seeming world of chaos. Interested in many things, you'll find a wide variety of books in my library. As you might guess, I have a natural curiosity about the world we live in. Of course, this means that I can converse about many topics - and tie seemingly unrelated things together.

Being widowed has given me a new perspective on life, giving me an appreciation for the "now" - a chance to "smell the roses". I've started to travel within the USA, and have built a "bucket list" of places I want to see and things I'd like to do (with someone special). Hopefully, I'll be able to check off as many things as possible from this list which includes the following regions/areas/sites/cities:

1. Great Britain and Ireland
2. Germany and Scandinavia
3. Australia and New Zealand
4. Patagonia (Argentina and Chile)
5. Hawaii (all islands)
6. Hong Kong, Bejing, and the Great Wall.
(Throw in a trip to Tibet and a side trip to
Dharamsala - the latter after leaving China.)
7. The Galapagos Islands
8. Chicago (I've been there, want to get know the city better)
9. California (with a road trip from SD to SF on the PCH)
(I love the region, and recharge my batteries there.)
10. The Pacific Northwest (Washington & Oregon).
11. Yellowstone National Park.
12. The Grand Canyon

Most of all, I'm a person who tries to take a positive view of life - even when the world is crashing down around me. No, I am not a Pollyanna - I am a realist. It is this general faith that things are not terminal that helps me make it through the day.

ps: If you like what you see, don't wait for me to write you.
I don't bite --- but if you'd like, I'll nibble. :-)

Commuting to a location in Lower Manhattan for a career that I hope to extend until retirement. A byproduct of being in NYC is that I can enjoy all of the cultural things that only NYC has to offer, as well as meeting people in reach of our mass transit systems.

I'm also catching up on pleasure reading that I put off while studying for my degree. Besides that, I'm meeting with new people, seeing new places, taking part in new activities in order to keep growing as a person.

Moderately obscure trivia and solving problems. (This comes in handy when playing Scrabble, as I do know a three letter word for the cross between a Yak and a Musk Ox.)

Actually, I am a information sponge. And I tend to use this trait effectively, as it has been a great help for me in my career. Having both breadth and depth of knowledge allows me to come up with ideas which are keys to solving important problems on the job - and allows me to more easily deal with problems that pop up in life.

Actually, I'm not really sure about this one....

Yet - if one gets to know me a little, one will find that I have a big laugh when genuinely amused. I find a lot in life which will bring a smile to my face....

And I shouldn't say this being a New Yorker --- But sometimes, on rare occasions, I will pay attention to the Walk/Don't Walk lights that NYC erects to test our innate jaywalking skills. :-)

If you haven't guessed - I have an unusual sense of humor....

Books: Any Mickey Spillane "Mike Hammer" novel
and "Harpo Speaks". (I wish I could have met
both Mickey Spillane and Harpo Marx.)

If you were to look at my book shelves, you'd find them overflowing with books. Recently, I finished a book called "The Disappearing Spoon" - a trip through the periodic table of elements. It's something I read in short spurts, having once been a chemistry major in school. But it's not all serious stuff that I read - I have enjoyed "trash" such as "The Carpetbaggers". (The movie is also a guilty pleasure of mine!)

Plays: (Off Broadway) Freud's Last Session and Million Dollar Quartet. (Broadway) Chicago and revivals of The Man Who Came to Dinner, Boeing Boeing, and Don't Dress for Dinner. Recently, I saw "Old Jews Telling Jokes", and it was a hoot.

Movies (in no order): A Hard Day's Night, A Night at the Opera, A Day at the Races, Duck Soup, Casablanca, The Left Hand of God, Champagne for Caesar, My Man Godfrey, The Great Dictator, The Godfather (parts I & II), How the West was Won, Once Upon a Time in the West, The Americanization of Emily, and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly. (I love old films - both drama and comedy.)

I'll admit to being a movie buff - and will go into NYC to see esoteric films such as "Fanfares of Love" (I'd love to get a copy of this film - but "post war" German films are not that popular in the US) and "Barry MacKenzie holds his own" (a "fair dinkum" Aussie film that even a "ratbag" could enjoy). Recently, I had the pleasure of seeing a restored copy of "Dial 'M' for Murder", and it is as good now as when it was first released.

Music: The Beatles, Sam Cooke, Willie Nelson, Patsy Cline, and Frank Sinatra. (I could listen to them all day!)

In fact, my CD collection almost overflows the space I have to store it. It is more of a library, and I've used it to create playlist CDs I used to carry in my car. Now, I can do the same with an iPod....

Food: Sushi, Peking Duck, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Dim Sum, Crawfish and Sauerbraten. (Call me anything, except late for dinner!)

Need I say more here? Except, maybe, to say that I went out of my way to have Peking Duck on the last day of a San Francisco vacation. If I were in N'awlins, I'd have a big bowl of Crawfish (Mudbugs to the locals) and wash it down with a local brew. And yes, when I was in Chicago, it was a classic deep dish pizza....

1. Smartphone
2. Computer(s)
3. Car
4. Books
5. TV/DVD-BluRay
6. Friends and Family (Most Important)

Shoes and ships and sealing wax, of cabbages and kings....

Enjoying dinner with a friend or two (if I'm lucky).

If I were to admit it here, it wouldn't be private any longer.

You're curious about enigmas, are looking for friendship and/or a love interest. (The best relationships seem to develop when two people are "best friends" first.... for lack of a better description)

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Recently, I've found out how to have an OKC Journal. It seems like a good place to post some of the things going on lately. So if you're interested to find out what I've been doing, try this link....

JOURNAL
http://www.okcupid.com/profile/bearmountaineer/journal

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How to start your own okc journal.

Today – 3:33pm

In response to How to start your own okc journal. by Non_Sequential:

Welcome to OkCupid.

As a newcomer you may not be aware of the okc journal community. This is because management has decided that it might distracting you from your dating quest. And while at times that assumption may be correct I think that becoming part of journal community will help get you through the often time frustrating world of online dating. At the very least, you will meet some good people with amazing stories to share, opinions to voice, and advice to give. And all for free.

The following steps will help you join in on the fun.

1.

Download the "OKCLeft Menu" script created by okc member sharper00.
2.

While you are there, you will also need to download his"Journal Expander" script. (note- in order to properly install either of these scripts on your computer, you must first install the greasemonkey extension.)
3.

Go to the journal post of another member, like any of these by either SaneasIeverwas, Discovery80, gretagarbo9, Psychicman7, or praghmatic.
4.

At the very bottom of all the comments you will see 4 little icons.
5.

Click the one that looks like a pencil.
6.

Then click on the green post button.
7.

Finally, click where it says "Read it here"
8.

Now you have a journal and a journal tab. Bad news though, when you click "View my profile" the tab won't be there anymore. Good thing you downloaded sharper00's "OKC Left Menu" script, because that is how you are going to access your journal.
9.

Okay, some more bad news. :( That little green 'write a post' button, it won't work for you. Pressing it will just bring you to a screen, telling you that the journals are in retirement.Bullshit.
10.

Remember when you re-blogged that other member's journal post? Well, re-blog it again but from within your own journal.
11.

Now press the 'edit' button of the newly re-blogged post.
12.

Fill in the title and body fields with you new journal post. Goon, tell us all about your new goldfish. Then press the 'update post' button.
13.

Congratulations, you just posted your first original journal post. Now wasn't that fun?
14.

Next, provide a link to your journal in your profile, so that other newcomers can find it. Because, sadly, when they view your profile, the journal tab will be missing.
15.

**Also, if you don't mind. Re-blog this post and provide a link to it in your profile, so that those who follow after you can join the journal community.

See, it wasn't that hard after all. ;)

Have a blast.

And thanks to everyone who provided me with the tools, ideas,and inspiration necessary to put this all together. You're all terrific.

**NOTE: Don't just direct people to this post, re-blog it and direct them there. The more that people re-blog and link to it the better chance that the newcomers will have at finding it. Besides, I may not always be around and all you will have done is pointed them to a dead link.