CURRENT MISSION

To see the invisible, feel the intangible, and create the impossible

ABOUT ME

I am originally from Long Beach, California and I have been living in the San Francisco Bay Area (Oakland/Berkeley) for the last seven years. I came here to study and graduated a few years ago but I liked it so much I decided to stay and work at a progressive law firm. I spend my leisure time exploring the surrounding cities on foot, riding my bike, traveling (train is my favorite way to travel), cooking real food, reading all sorts of stuff but especially poetry and short stories, writing, spending time with friends, and going to the beach.

My best friends would say that I am dedicated to lifelong learning. Hopefully they would say I am loyal friend, a good listener, and that I make them laugh. Isn't that the greatest joy in life? To laugh? I think so.

Interests

My interests over the years have varied widely and I think of life as a fun adventure and that you best serve yourself and others by doing what you love. That may seem obvious, but in modern society, it's not so easy to follow your passion and make a living. I believe helping others is essential to our happiness (we are primates after all!).

Reading and writing have always been part of my life(short stories, novels, poetry, biography, etc.). I discovered anthropology seven years ago and fell so deeply in love I went to Berkeley to study anthropology and primatology (the study of great apes, monkeys, and lemurs).

I started training in seibukan jujutsu two years ago and I love it! It has been a great way for me to strengthen my center, create greater awareness and cultivate myself as a peaceful warrior. My most recent passion is real food and nutrition and the accompanying environmental stewardship which is essential to preserving nutrients. I love to cook and I like to make everything from scratch if the items are available (everything from homemade ice cream, yogurt, and sour cream to fresh chicken and beef stocks for stews to sauerkraut and the list goes on).

• arts
• writing
• poetry
• dining
• cooking
• reading
• traveling
• cycling
• martial arts
• anthropology
• law
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: One of my favorite directors is David Lynch. I prefer his earlier films including: Eraserhead, Blue Velvet, and Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me. THX 1138. I like silent films, such as Metropolis. I also like Pedro Almodovar films like Carne Temblor (Live Flesh) and What Have I Done to Deserve This? Also, I love Cheech & Chong films such as Up In Smoke, The Next Movie, Still Smokin', Things Are Tough All Over and The Corsican Brothers. Between Your Legs. My Cousin Vinny. Harold and Maude. Ghost World. The Silence of the Lambs. A Clockwork Orange. One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Safe. Children of Men. Quills. Reservoir Dogs. The Graduate. Mar Adentro (The Sea Inside). The Cook, the Thief, His Wife and Her Lover. Vincent and Theo. The Barbarian Invasions. The Usual Suspects. Monster. Napolean Dynamite. Supersize Me. Secrets and Lies. Citizen Ruth. Apocalypse Now. Real Women Have Curves. Sid & Nancy. Phat Girls. Outfoxed. Unprecendented. Volver. Uncovered. Iraq for Sale. Bowling for Columbine. Withnail & I. Pan's Labyrinth. My Left Foot. The Science of Sleep. Body of War. Blood In, Blood Out.

Music: I listen to jazz, blues, ragtime, so-called "classical", opera, electronic, techno, drum and bass, house, dub, reggae, ska, old-time punk rock, some classic rock and roll, rhythm & blues, rap, etc. Some of my favourites include: Plaid, Autechre, To Rococo Rot, Boards of Canada, Jamie Lidell, Grace Jones, The Black Dog, Aphex Twin, Mike Ink, Luke Vibert, Prefuse 73 Ice Cube, Lauryn Hill, Shante, Cypress Hill, Bomb the Bass, Lamb, Arovane, Frank Zappa, Augustus Pablo, Lee Perry, Keith Hudson, Bob Marley, P.J. Harvey, Fila Brazilia, Mira Calix, The Rolling Stones, Public Image, Magazine, Big in Japan, Pink Military, My Bloody Valentine, Big Mama Thornton, Muddy Waters, Lee Perry, Cat Stevens, Sex Pistols, Pole, X-ray Spex, The American Analogue Set, Twilight Dub Circus Sound System, Burial, Pole, Kode 9 & the Spaceape, Benga, Siouxsie & the Banshees, The Slits, Bach, Telemann, The Fall, The Cure, John Tejada, D.J. Nobody, Dntel, Tortoise, Otis Redding, Languis, Bill Withers, Lena Horne, Dizzy Gillespie, Speedy J, Domakesaythink, Bow Wow Wow, Portishead, Bjork, Jimi Hendrix, Bessie Smith, Desmond Dekker, Lena Horne, Vicente Fernandez, Sarah Vaughan, Tito Puente, Hector Lavoe, Dizzy Gillespie, Marvin Gaye, Simon & Garfunkel, Skip James, Amon Tobin, etc.

Books: I read quite a bit. Some highlights that I've read in the last few years:

The Meat You Eat by Ken Midkiff
In the Presence of Fear by Wendell Berry
Veronica and Don't Cry by Mary Gaitskill
Can't Buy My Love and So Sexy, So Soon by Jean Kilbourne
Without Miracles by Gary Cziko
Always Running by Luis Rodriguez
A Place to Stand by Jimmy Santiago Baca
Natural Capitalism by Amory Lovins et al
Behind My Eyes by Li-Young Lee

My library includes poetry, art, photography, psychology, philosophy, archaeology, biology, religious texts, anthropology, novels, short-story collection, history, etc.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

When I did my green belt in seibukan jujutsu, it was one of the proudest moments of my life! I didn't know that I would cultivate such courage practicing martial arts.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Mexico, United States

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