My username should actually be "Mass Freakish Talent" for reasons which are left provocatively vague at present. However it didn't fit, though, in an odd way, it fits (hint: it's an anagram).

Bay-Area native. Marin kid, UCSB and UC Davis, lived in and around the Bay for most of my life. Folks have been in Chicago for (gasp) a quarter century now, so I know that area pretty well too.

I've been active most of my life: swimming, cycling, water polo, hiking/backpacking, rowing, lifting. I've found it pays off. Health-conscious omnivore, having considered (and tried) a few alternatives.

I've done less traveling than I'd like, though that's managed to rope in few trips to Germany, a few cross-country road-trips, and extensive meandering through California and the West, as well as 'Straya and En-Zed. Kilimanjaro, anyone?

While I like city amenities (culture, art, healthy food, backpacking supplies, walkable neighborhoods), when I need to recharge I head to the hills, the open highway, or beyond the end of the road.

Day gig is wrangling Linux boxes for a great little not-for-profit.

Staying fit, sane, informed, rested, and healthy occupy much of the rest of my time.

Naps.

Sleeping in late, backrubs, outrageously healthy pancakes, explaining things, building and/or fixing things, picking up heavy stuff (squats, deads, global issues), singing Chris Isaak songs, tech stuff, causing storms in the Sierra (I've perfected the high-country rain dance), and a range of other talents, not all necessarily freakish.

My exquisite stapedius development, and latent karaoke abilities.

Ye gads ... had we but world enough, and time.

Books: pretty much anything Neal Stephenson's written, which isn't enough for my liking. Particularly fond of his heroines and hope to marry one some day. Currently going through America's Best Short Stories 2010, some Neil Gaimen, Daniel Pink's Drive (if you haven't watched the animated TED talk, do), Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and sequels were good fun, a pile of texts on economics, politics/world situation, fitness, and nutrition, and A Million Random Digits with 100,000 Normal Deviates. Honorable mentions to xkcd and Sinfest.

Movies: Don't get around much any more, though I caught "Restrepo" (the filmmaker Tim Hetherington was killed in Libya in 2011) and two of the Steig Larson films. Love love love "Casablanca", fan of "Princess Bride", enjoyed the first "Iron Man". Epics can really get me ("The Last Emperor", "Lawrence of Arabia". And sometimes just plain fun: "Shanghai Noon", "Men in Black". I'm a lot more susceptible to a good romantic comedy than I should be.

Shows: Is this supposed to be TV or stage? I don't watch the former, saw "As You Like It" on Navy Pier in Chicago recently. I do listen to NPR, particularly fond of "Selected Shorts", "On the Media", and usually the lecture shows (Cambridge Forum, City Arts & Lectures, etc.) , and the quiz/game shows (Wait Wait, Sez You). Terry Gross's "Fresh Air" has been improving with age.

Music: Wide and varied tastes from blues to indie rock to jazz, classical, and ancient music. Not so much for hip-hop/house/rap. Of contemporary and/or recently contemporary artists: Cowboy Junkies, Natalie Merchant, REM, Paula Cole, Miles Davis, Sutro, Paul Desmond, Dave Brubeck, Sting, Elvis Costello, Dylan, Lyell Lovett, Lambert Hendricks and Ross. Die, Lady Gaga, die .... OK. Maybe she's among the better of the current lot, but Goyte was a surprisingly good recent find (as well as the various covers of STIUTK).

Food: Yes. Preferably real (big Michael Pollan fan). Good food, well prepared, preferably simple, that's not going to kill me is best. Could be a fresh salad, a burger, tacos from a street vendor, or the odd fine dining experience (though frankly I really don't get the whole fixation on that). As much as I value quality, good, healthy food, I don't grok this whole "foodie" thing. Stuff I make in my own kitchen (or over a campstove) is best.

Air, water, food, sunlight, sleep, and love.

Everything else is optional, but a world lacking good espresso, rowing shells, the Sierra Nevada, Mt. Tam, warm lazy summer afternoons, Bach, cold bedrooms, free software, and power cages would sort of suck.

Apparently I also need an enumeration limiter.

Why my systems are or aren't doing what they should be, my next gym workout and/or row, where the country and world are headed in a social / environmental / economic sense (Occupy is a very interesting development), where my phone is, whether or not that girl actually wants me to say "hi" or not, how to convince the NY Times to see truth and light and adopt the Oxford comma, and plotting the popular uprising against skinny jeans. And shirts.

Hitting the gym, heading to a cafe for a post-workout nosh and glass of pino grigio, and if I'm smart, an early bed so I can get in some rowing on Saturday.

Or I'll be bad and catch some live music, and a shot or two of Islay neat.

It's rumored that I exist.

Fears: http://www.sinfest.net/archive_page.php?comicID=3852

(Though I also have standards)

You're seriously smart, sane, sexy, fit, have (and appreciate) offbeat humor, are serious about starting a family, and still haven't found what you're looking for.