I am the usual bundle of contradictory personality traits - shy but opinionated, nervous at a party but end up being one of the last to leave, and so forth.

I am a driven person who is lifelong learner (AKA "nerd").

I need personal space and privacy, but I also need friendship and companionship.

I have always been a good listener to my friends and appreciate that character trait in others.

After many years of giving my all to the corporate world, I have gone into semi-retirement to care for my parents. I was a systems analyst for over twenty years and have promised myself that I will never use a Windows machine again unless absolutely necessary or there is a gun pointed at my head.

After a disappointing experience earning a medical coding certification in 2008, I'm kicking back to look at my next option while caring for my folks.

I am currently writing a fiction novel and loving every minute of it. I have been a writer of poetry and short stories most of my life.

I walk / jog two to three miles a day on average and am starting to learn yoga, which I find extremely beneficial as well as interesting. I work out at the gym three times a week.

I also find great satisfaction doing volunteer work and putting my athletic abilities (such as they are) to good use raising money for charity. I am on a standby volunteer list for two local soup kitchens and I participate in 5k walks/runs for a variety of charities, including Alzheimer's.

1. Listening
2. Analyzing
3. Helping

And I should point out that I need the same from others on a regular basis.

My humor (dry) or
My blue eyes and long lashes (*blushes*)

I'm a lifelong reader with a book always in progress. My favorite authors are Gore Vidal, Flannery O'Connor, Ellen Gilchrist, Jean Cocteau, Colette, and Joan Didion (to name only a few). I am also a sci-fi and mystery junkie.

My favorite movies include The Lion in Winter (Hepburn version), 2001: A Space Odyssey, Cabaret, Vertigo, Casablanca, All About Eve, and Woody Allen's Radio Days. I am fond of film noir, mysteries, '50s sci-fi, and most French & Japanese films.

I like almost all music, including British pop, synthpop, '50s jazz (Miles Davis, etc.), classical, opera, selected C&W and folk, and electronic/ambient (Brian Eno is a god).

I am a decent cook fond of making simple but tasty omelettes, salads, soups, and stir-fried concoctions. I have an addiction to well-prepared Chinese chicken with garlic sauce that's not pretty. I also love Southwest/Tex-Mex food of any kind, particularly if there is an avocado involved.

1) books
2) movies
3) music
4) food
5) compassion
6) sex (Does honesty count?)

...the number of angels that could fit onto the head of pin...

Editing my okcupid.com profile until I get it right...

That I had crushes on men as early as five years old...

You are interested of course...