fair warning: if this is too much reading for you, we probably wont get along. ** (stolen from herbaliciousnes)

"Simple Design. Intense Content" -- Tufte

That quote pretty much sums me up. I have that on my desktop to remind me to keep it simple, but don't hold back. I switch it now and then with a photo of Beaker.

I'm an unabashed nerd. My brain is my strongest tool and my most fun toy (with my hands coming in a close second). I like my women smart. I break a lot of rules, invalidate a lot of assumptions, and fuck with a lot of stereotypes. I have a very strong sense of loyalty and friendship. I don't let people push others around. I pick fights with bullies. I do not suffer fools lightly. I'm honest to a fault, anal about spelling, and know when to use a semicolon (and prefer not to use them at all).

I'm polyamorous. I strongly believe that love is not a zero-sum game. I'm currently seeing the wonderful kushali, the aloof smcatal (who won't let me look at her profile here because I list as straight! how rude!), and the beautiful "dirty" hippy A-through-Z. My dance card is pretty full, but I'm open to more casual forms of socializing and play.

I've been called "the gayest straight boy" as well as "flaming heterosexual" by my gay boys over the years. I agree with the latter and still don't understand the implications of the former.

I've been living on Capitol Hill for over a decade now. It is my home. These are my people. I bought a new place in 2010, largely because of the kitchen and I have been absolutely in love with it. I hated my last kitchen and avoided it like the plague. Since moving in, I've been cooking up a storm. My place smells awesome.

Unless I'm on a stage and/or behind a podium (which still happens a bit too much), I don't like the focus being on me. While I'm a good speaker, I prefer to listen. As a result, this section was the hardest for me to write. I... I... I... ugh. Additional challenge! No more "I" on the rest of my profile!

How to say this...

A few years back was the Life Changing Experience™.

On that day, a lot of illusions died that once helped me get through my day/week/month/life. Illusions of: control, structure, discipline... they pretty much just disappeared one day and it turns out that they weren't actually helping me in the slightest. Success and happiness can be had without controlling or planning every minute and every year...

So, the short answer is: whatever is happening that day.

Seeing patterns in people, places, and things (esp processes).

Being a catalyst.

Knowing exactly where things are in the dark. It is kinda freaky, not having to grope for something, even in a hotel room.

Cooking simple tasty dishes.

Fostering Kittens! My 3 exhausting kitties have made weight and are just waiting to get fixed before they can be adopted out. Wow. Time has passed. Since those three, all with adorable fitting names, there have been many more kittens to pass through my doors. It turns out that adorable fitting names are very hard to do. Now they get the greek alphabet, with the last batch being Xi through Rho. Dorky? Yes. Easier? Much.

My presence/intensity.

"You're huge and intimidating and you smell really good... Yeah... you smell REALLY good." -- I'm not sure how to take that.

John Steinbeck's beautiful use of the simple word, Glen Cook's worlds, George R. R. Martin's characters, David Drake's harsh depictions, and China Miéville's sexy sexy brain (if only... damn he's hot).

Guillermo del Toro, Robert Rodgriguez, the Coen brothers, Martin Scorsese, Alfred Hitchcock, the Kaufman brothers, Terry Gilliam, Akira Kurosawa, Hayao Miyazaki.

Mezzanine by Massive Attack (and omg! the new one!!), Earth Sun Moon by Love & Rockets, Music By Cavelight by Blockhead, The Fragile by Nine Inch Nails, Black Celebration by Depeche Mode, Doolittle by Pixies, Carnage Visors by The Cure, Garlands by Cocteau Twins

Eating: My first cuisine was cajun, so pretty much any variety of "ethnic" (esp spicy!) is good. Burgers, not so much. No mushrooms, please. They're all sorts of wrong.

One of my favorite photos of myself is me in a high-chair eating my first bbq--ALLLL over my face with a shit-eating grin. It hasn't changed much since, 'cept cleaner.

Cooking: Texan-style BBQ (not sweet) with grilled veggies, indian, mexican, italian, cajun, exploratory cooking, and the best damn oatmeal/porridge (sweet or savory) you've ever had.

Spices: Good salt, fresh black peppercorns, true cinnamon, whole nutmeg, fresh basil, garlic garlic garlic. And my latest two favorites, grains of paradise (NOM) and dukka (a blend for dipping... but still... NOM).

Something to read.
Something to listen to.
Someone to talk to.
A cappuccino to sip.
A laptop to create with.
Touch.

Ummm... On the less hormonal side: thinking, stuff to design and/or make, problems to solve, patterns, human behavior, drum beats.

If you're curious about something, ask.

...you want to... esp if you are local and would like to go out for coffee or ethiopian or something.