I tend to consider what I'm going to say before I say it. this gets interpreted variously as "enigmatic" or "stand-offish," or sometimes one at first and then the other as one gets to know me. on the whole I'm pretty cool with it.

I grew up in a large (state-sized) suburb of New York, spent a few years living across a river from Boston, and moved out here a couple of years ago. California's great! who knew.

some things I like: music, yoga, computers, my bicycle, trips to new far-off places, and good food.

overcaffeinating, working for a cool start-up, locomoting by bicycle, going to shows, listening to as much music as possible, playing not nearly enough, making lots of stupid jokes and generally grumbling about things.

I know a lot about computers, but that's so often a liability in social situations that I shouldn't mention it.

some people think I'm funny.

I think they usually wonder, "what's his problem?" But really it's because my eyebrows just default to the "angry" position. no really, I'm having fun. >:(

for fiction, Philip Roth, Murakami, Vonnegut. non-fiction, stuff like Malcolm Gladwell or Michael Pollan. Didion. for movies, I tend to like the dark and strange.

I spend lots of time with music, but trying to explain it in this space is unpossible. Dylan will always be near the top of the list. Elliott Smith, Neil Young... I like a lot of old blues and bluegrass, some West African (Fela, Ali Farka Toure?), some Latin. the "world" label kills me. Pavement and Sonic Youth, ..., Miles, Coltrane. Tom Waits. the Roots, Tribe,... the Arcade Fire, Built to Spill. lots of stuff, really. I can't get enough.

food: I'll try just about anything at least once, and even if I don't like it I may still try it again in case I was wrong. (Actually this approach is not limited to food.) Perhaps someday I'll enjoy raw onions. In any case, I like Indian and sushi, good burritos, and the new-american/californian/"slow" stuff. (Delfina and Zuni are two favorites.)

sustainability, how this human thing will play out, and what my part ought to be. how people and animals think, and how much of my perception of reality is subjective. how little time we have here, and how to make it worth it.

and, music. I usually have at least one song stuck in my head. hopefully it's not "Gold Digger" again.

my first crush was on Penny from Inspector Gadget.

also, I find washing machines weirdly hypnotic.

how should I know? we should probably just try it.