I've always hated talking about myself, but here goes. I'm currently 36 years old, and I was born and raised in San Diego, CA. I spent the several years in the country of Estonia, but returned to the US in 2012. I've been hacking away at computers since I sat down at my first one, an Apple II with a greenscreen CRT in an elementary school computer lab. I was eight at the time, and discovered that I had a natural talent for working with and understanding computers. I've also had relatively short stints working with wood, mechanics, and electronics. But now I mostly just program computers, and bake artisan breads.
The reason I like to program is because it's a challenging, creative activity that exercises a wide array of mental skills. The primary draw, however, is the joy of creation, which is why I enjoy many creative activities. I have also dabbled in art, music, cooking, and baking, and am pretty good at at least one of those.
I'm also deeply intrigued by and interested in science and philosophy, as well as the study of consciousness, hypnosis, sleep, the brain, and similar topics.
I currently work as a computer programmer, which, given that programming is my hobby, is supposedly a good thing. Implementing other people's ideas is not all that fun, though, and programming all day at work usually leaves me too burnt out to work on any of my own projects at home.
In a past life, I studied Japanese language and culture. (No, I'm not particularly interested in anime.) I thought I would like to live and work in Japan, but after staying there for a while, decided it was not for me. I do love other cultures, and think it would be exceedingly interesting to learn all the languages of the world and live in each locality, sampling the cuisine, culture, and philosophies of the people there.
In another past life, I was a singer, and a pretty good one.
If you want to see a photo of me, here it is. And here's another one. And here's one more. ("taken by bu. all write reserved by bu!")