I was raised in an Irish Catholic, conservative family. Only the Irish part stuck, much to the chagrin of my family. I grew up in Michigan, lived in southern Illinois for a few years, then moved to Philly in 2004. I love the city, how there's so much life, so much culture. I like that I can be anonymous in a crowd.

Music fills me, brings me to life. In the past year, I've renewed my love of live music.

I vacillate between wanting to put everything out there for all to see and hiding completely. I need to work on slowly opening myself.

I hate surprises - not all surprises, just the kind that I should know about. SPOILER ALERT!!! When I learned that Santa wasn't real and everyone else in my family already knew, I was embarrassed that I was so gullible, so stupid.

I love sarcasm. Initially, I'm a bit anxious and don't do small talk very well, so I may awkwardly jump to sarcasm a bit too early, which can get me in trouble. I also place a lot of value in debate, but only when it is driven by facts, logic, and an open mind.

I am an attorney by day, but I find that my mind is more focused on listening to music or reading up on technology policy issues. I'm also working on being a better version of myself.

I'm pretty decent at grammar, though I by no means am perfect. I try not to judge others too harshly.* There are several different styles of writing, and the importance of adhering to certain rules of grammar differs depending on the audience. I'm also pretty good at editing, whatever that's worth. When a friend needs to vent or needs advice, I'm a pretty good listener.

* A friend just read my profile and called bullshit on this, said I am a grammar Nazi. I disagree, but thought I'd throw in another's opinion. To be fair, he writes "alot," so can you blame me?

Physically, the aspects that stand out are my long, red hair, my pale skin, and maybe my height.

Some examples, to give you a sense of my taste:

Literature: Breakfast of Champions, Song of Solomon, King Lear, Naked, One Hundred Years of Solitude.

Movies: The Princess Bride. I don't watch movies often, as I'm easily distracted. That said, a few movies I've enjoyed in the last year or so: Sleepwalk With Me; Melancholia; Pan's Labyrinth; and The Artist.

Shows: Mad Men, The Big Bang Theory, Doctor Who, The Daily Show, and football.

Music: Way too many to list, but Radiohead tops that list. Genres, sub-genres, sub-sub-genres - so many options out there! Rocks, pops, waves, and cores - I like them all! Just don't ask me what they mean. Some bands I've seen in the past year: Beach House, Raveonettes, Tamaryn, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Liars, A Place to Bury Strangers, Sigur Ros, The Joy Formidable, Exitmusic, Grouplove, Company of Thieves, and The Faint.

Food: I'm pro-food.

Podcasts: Even though not asked for, I think this is better than food. Lately, I've been listening to TBTL, WTF with Marc Maron, This American Life, The Dinner Party, and Comedy Bang Bang.

I think far too much about what others are thinking and feeling. I'm curious if my perception of myself matches up with others' perceptions of me. I also spend a lot of time thinking about what I want to do next. I don't have an answer, or rather, my answer changes from moment to moment.

Friday doesn't mean anything special to me. I could be at a show, at home watching TV or chatting online, at a friend's house, or out at a bar with friends. But I could be doing those things any day of the week.

My work ethic has decreased considerably in the last two years. I think this is a product of the job, and I'm not particularly proud of or happy with this, but I'm not sure how to change that.

I'm looking for a man who is open to the idea of a relationship (though that doesn't necessarily mean exclusivity, something to be determined with the person involved). This doesn't mean that one will happen with me, but I am not interested in only pursuing casual sex. If it works out for us, fantastic! If not, no big deal. That's what dating is all about. It can be fun. I've met several guys here who have become friends.

A few things/people that I tend to be attracted to: intelligence; musicians and music fans; artistic/creative minds; confidence; politically and socially aware people; and geeks. I can at times have a fairly strong, assertive personality, and I prefer to be with people who aren't intimidated, don't acquiesce, and enjoy the challenge.

Also, please message me if you have suggestions for improving my profile, such as if you notice an error.