I'm a geek, with all the baggage that entails...no tolerance for mediocrity, a somewhat eccentric set of interests, and a healthy disregard for what 'other people think', since they generally either don't notice or don't actually care. I can find enough entertainment in most things to keep me occupied for an evening. It's up to you whether that's a good thing or not...my friends seem to think it is, but it has the potential to be infuriating if you aren't expecting it. I have no patience for apathy. I don't sweat what I consider the small stuff, but one might regard my definition of "small stuff" as odd.

I am mellow, easily amused, and confident.

Programmer, baseball geek, gamer. Occasional poker player (badly). Occasional drinker, permanent beer snob. Part of that peculiar class where "interesting problem" beats out "highly valuable solution" for retaining my attention. Adjusting to the weirdness that comes with working in Beverly Hills.

Simplifying things, asking the right questions. More narrowly, programming and math, although that's more a question of background than essential aptitudes.

Physically, my height. Socially, that I'm quiet until I get to know people.

Books: Snow Crash is quite possibly the single best work of science fiction ever written. I dig Stephenson and Gibson, but Stirling never did it for me. Heinlein: naive politics, crappy characterization, cringe-inducing "science", and despite all that the man tells a good enough story to read and enjoy. I can't explain it. The Gunslinger was an awesome read. Red Storm was Clancy's finest book and if he'd stopped after Patriot Games he'd be regarded as a good author.

Movies: I'll just break this down by category:

* Aliens: the quintessential SF action movie

* Any John Carpenter flick: B-movies that don't try to be anything more. Thoroughly enjoyable, albeit often due to unintentional comedy as much as action.

* Beverly Hills Cop and 48 Hours: Eddie Murphy when he still had his best fastball. Wow.

* The Sixth Sense: have you ever seen Bruce Willis not bring something to the table in a movie?

* The Matrix: pretend the sequels didn't happen, they just left a soundtrack in stores. I do, I'm happier this way. High-quality wire-fu, good soundtrack, things go boom, Keanu's "range" is turned into an asset. What more do you want for your $6?

Music: The correct answer to Beatles or Stones? is, of course, The Who. The bulk of my collection could be described as "80s hair bands" but then, really, weren't all 80s bands hair bands after a fashion? I own a disturbing amount of U2 and listen to disturbingly little of it, I've been through my Nine Inch Nails phase, and the playlists that get me through the day rotate through classic rock, metal, and rap. If it has a beat, isn't just an excuse to wank with the distortion pedal, and has more than six words, I'll probably give it a listen.

Foods: I am a magnet for the unhealthy things in life. My definition of "civilization" is "delivery pizza, chinese, and mexican are all available at a reasonable price and with reasonable quality/selection". I grill a decent steak, make chili that will kick your ass, and know bratwurst like nobody's business. Anything that requires too much effort I regard as a sign that you're starting from insufficient quality ingredients. Vegetables should be fresh, meat should need minimal treatment, liquor should be drinkable straight unless it exists solely to be mixed.

Taking another stab at this one in the spirit it's intended (and read "could never" as "would never willingly"): * global network of friends * network access * enough income to support a modest lifestyle * interesting problems to solve * at least one person who responds to my shouts of unbridled glee with more than smiling and nodding * comedy

Random cross-section from recently:

* Why are people lazy/stupid about security? Why does one apply just enough security measures to inconvenience the users they want, without doing anything to so much as slow down the users they don't?

* What should the Cubs do this off-season to fix their team?

* Why is it that each time I've moved to LA (3 times now) I move farther west?

* How do we keep deluding ourselves into working hard (or not-so-hard) on providing niche luxury goods and services? Is our standard of living still slanted towards stuff, rather than time, as the thing of most value? For that matter, has it ever been?

at home, unwinding

I don't like disappointing people.

You're talented at something and passionate about it.