Despite what the algorithm here tells me, I am secretly an optimist.

I am sweet, moody, and sensitive

A few years ago, I embarked on a second career as a registered nurse. I work in the emergency department of a large pediatric hospital in Boston, where I keep odd hours and see lots of strange things. I have a graduate degree in nursing and am in the process of completing a post-graduate nurse practitioner certificate.

I have a bachelor's degree in psychology and completed some coursework for a master's degree in public health. Before nursing school, I was project manager for an academic research lab that specialized in neuroscience, linguistics, and developmental psychology.

Half a lifetime ago I was a musician, and I am trying to resurrect that part of myself. I was on track to become a professional violinist until I was involved in an unfortunate accident in 1999 which made me unable to play well, but I miss playing music like crazy and so I'm very slowly learning piano.

I spend my precious leisure time reading basically anything I can get my hands on - see favorites below, writing (mostly nonsensical ramblings but occasionally a short story or really dirty fan fiction) or practicing piano. I like to take long walks as long as it's not too hot outside. I enjoy cooking and baking, and it is my secret ambition to be a pastry chef.

being calm when it matters. Picking out errors in grammar and spelling and being annoyed by them. Staying up all night. Assembling Ikea furniture.

I have also been known to complete a New York Times crossword puzzle.

I am very tall. I apparently also have a natural scowl, since people are constantly asking me if anything is the matter.

Favorite books: The Lord of the Rings (duh) and everything else Tolkien has produced, Discworld and anything else by Terry Pratchett, Stephen Jay Gould's essays on natural history, anything by Stephen Fry, Neal Stephenson, P.G. Wodehouse, and Neil Gaiman. I also enjoy works by Lewis Carroll, John Steinbeck, Flann O'Brien, Kurt Vonnegut, Robert Anton Wilson, Umberto Eco, Philip Pullman, H.P. Lovecraft, Douglas Adams, Marion Zimmer Bradley, Pablo Neruda, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Federico Garcia Lorca and Harlan Ellison. It's a secret, but I have also read all of the Harry Potter books several times. I also like to read books on the history of medicine, how the brain works, psycholinguistics, and public health. I recently enjoyed Hugh Laurie's (yes, the actor) first novel, The Gun Seller. I just read Twilight and...ahem...didn't care for it. I picked it up partly out of curiosity, and mostly so that I would have something to discuss with my many co-workers who are obsessed with the series. If that's what the kids are into these days, then I'm glad I'm no longer a kid.

Movies: Lord of the Rings (duh), Delicatessen, City of Lost Children, Amelie, David Lynch's stuff, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Brazil, Bladerunner, Dr. Strangelove, The Rocky Horror Picture Show, The Mystery of Rampo, Star Wars (the original ones...the new ones make my eyes bleed), The Princess Bride, Serenity, Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Donnie Darko It's a secret, but I have also seen all of the Harry Potter moves several times.

TV: Because I work a rotating schedule, I generally can't commit to watching a show on any particular night, so I'm at least a season behind on current shows (yay Netflix!). Among my favorites are Monty Python's Flying Circus, The Kids in the Hall, Buffy, Firefly, House, The Simpsons, Family Guy, Invader Zim, Ren and Stimpy, Arrested Development, The Office (both versions), Community,Ali G, Blackadder, Red Dwarf, Jeeves and Wooster, Flight of the Conchords, Metalocalypse, and Twin Peaks.

Music: They Might Be Giants, Portishead, Tori Amos, Massive Attack, R.E.M., Rasputina, Philip Glass, J.S. Bach, Garbage, Kronos Quartet, Pearl Jam, Primus, Radiohead, Amorphis, Bjork, Strapping Young Lad, Pink Floyd, The Who, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Motorhead, Hawkwind, Apocalyptica, Nirvana, The Dead Milkmen, The Bonzo Dog Band, The Magnetic Fields, GWAR, The Smiths, The Decemberists

Food: I am a vegetarian, but I don't care what other people eat (although it's kind of gross to watch someone else eat lobster...and yes, I have tasted lobster and I do know what I'm missing). I love Indian, Thai, and Japanese food the best. I will also eat breakfast for any meal. I am a big fan of greasy diners and picnics in unconventional places.

sleeping late
peanut butter cup ice cream
gut-straining laughter
crossword puzzles
a pencil
socks

what's for breakfast. Seriously, I plan my life according to my next meal.

human interaction. Motivation for most of our actions can be boiled down to basic biological urges, and most of us don't realize this.

how the human body works. I like to understand the pathophysiology behind diseases and how medicines work to cure them. If I have a patient with a disease that is not familiar to me, I will often spend hours reading about the disease until I understand it.

doing the same thing we do every night, Pinky...

I have a very juvenile sense of humor and laugh at fart jokes and the number 69, even if it's in secret.

I enjoy kinky sex, for certain values of kinky.

I would theoretically be open to poly relationships. I had a very bad experience with one several years ago, so I would proceed cautiously, but I believe these kinds of relationships can work with the right people.

you are patient. I am shy and a little bit quirky, and can be difficult sometimes. I offer nearly infinite patience in return.

I am unlikley to respond to random IMs. In fact, I probably will not respond to an IM from someone with whom I have never had communication, but I will probably respond to email.