I was born in San José, California in November of 1967. I am the middle child of three with an older sister, Lisa, and a younger brother, Trevor. My father, Gerald, is an ordained minister, with a Ph.D. in History of Education from Stanford. Dad spent most of his career in Christian higher education both in front of the classroom and in administrative work. My mother, Patricia, spent our early childhood years attempting to keep up with all the joys of rearing three children very close together in age. Then, when we were older, she entered the workforce as a legal secretary to help make ends meet. My sister makes her home in Corvalis, Oregon with her hubby Jim and two step-kids. My brother is the happy father of two sons and makes his home in southern California with his wife Tiffaney.

We grew up primarily in southern California in Orange County. My folks never really fought or beat us or subjected us to any of the other "horror" stories one hears 'Gen X'ers' tell about their childhoods. I am sure ours was better than average in most respects. Our parents planned a year long excursion to Europe for us during my twelfth year. We only stayed eight and a half months, but this fact alone should offer some perspective on the quality of our upbringing.

We also spent a tremendous amount of time at our church. While I no longer adhere to the entirety of what I was brought up to believe, as far as religion goes, it did offer a base from which I still draw the majority of my values. I will be forever grateful for my grounding in Christianity, if for nothing else than the constant rattle of voices inside my head prompting me to be less selfish. Without the influence of said voices, I think I'd like myself a lot less than I do.

I've traveled what I consider to be a decent amount, and plan to do more still. Highlights have included trekking in Nepal, touring Bhutan, fishing for Piranha deep in the Amazon forest, trekking to Machu Picchu in Peru, and running with the bulls in Pamplona, Spain. I have a great affinity for Great Britain and have been about 8 times now. One of my fondest memories was searching for the Loch Ness monster on a bitter cold winter day in Scotland...we were on the loch for five hours and never saw a thing. Still, it was the kind of day that 12 year old boys usually only dream of.

Other than my background and interest in visual arts, my greatest passion is a love of all things musical. There isn't another experience that elevates my soul more than a LIVE rock n' roll show. Now, at age 41, I've finally committed to learning to play guitar myself. I'll keep you posted and you can see my loaner axe under Pete's Fender. Who knows, hopefully I'll be able to update this site by my 42nd birthday with something I've composed?

I love Survivor, LOST, and Heroes on American television and generally can't get enough of all things BBC, whether it be their great documentaries or shows like Primeval, Survivors, Little Britain and Robin Hood. I also wish that Real Time with Bill Maher ran uninterrupted all year long.