Gender

Male

Location

Fort Washington, MD

About Me:

I view things in a progressive, sometimes peculiar, way. I am unique, optimistic of the future, pragmatic in my approach to life, and hopeful for harmony in all states of being. My first experience with science fiction came when I was nine years old. I read a short story by Isaac Asimov about Robbie the robot in an English reader. I was hooked. From that moment on, I started reading the "I, Robot" series (along with the Hardy Boys mysteries). Eventually, I progressed to reading all the other Asimov collections, novellas, and novels. Next, I expanded my reading to other authors, such as Robert Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, Ben Bova, Arthur Clarke, Frank Herbert, Larry Niven, Poul Anderson, and others. There was no concept that I could not fathom, no alternative existence that I could not believe in, no theory I could not conceive of disbelieving. I thirsted for knowledge and understanding. I craved the next book, the next paragraph, the next word. I was a sci-fi junkie, a word addict that could not sleep at night until I finished the book, and invariably would receive a rebuke from my parents for not getting enough sleep. Science fiction superceded my religion by the time I was a teenager. To balance my life, my parents sent me from a Catholic private school to a conservative, private, southern baptist school to finish my schooling. There I betrayed my first passion, and emersed myself into bible studies, band music, and sports. But I never felt as if I belonged in music or sports (except in my fantasies). So I began reading science fiction and gorged myself on thick literary tomes of great import. For me, War and Peace sized novels would last only a week. I needed more, sought more, thirsted for more. Somewhere along the way, I got distracted. College, friendships, relationships, courtship, marriage, parenting, spirituality and career building seemed to intrude on my devotion to reading science fiction novels. In time, these novels got thinner and less engaging, and seem ethereal and less scientific. Fantasy replaced the hard science in most books that I read. Today, I yearn for the simpler, more satisfying era of pure speculative science fiction based upon concrete principles in science. I yearn for the return of the poetry and rhythm that a good science fiction novel imparted upon your soul. I miss the riveting page turner, one with depth and character, one that can be read and reread a decade later and still retain its majesty and grace. My spirituality enables me to understand a great deal more about myself and my purpose in this earthly realm. Consequently, my neglect of my first love and led me to an epiphany. I realize now that spirit and science can and must coexist and cohabitate the same mind. The harmony of both is beneficial to man and is necessary to synergize the hopes that humankind has yearned to develop. Science fiction is the literature of that hope, a means to teach the young in mind how to overcome the numerous, self-afflicting wounds that we daily inflict upon ourselves and one another. Through this medium, we can return to the days of childlike curiosity for knowledge, that fascination with self-improvement, that love of surprise for the unknown. In that end, we can hope to touch the face of God, the supreme being that spawned the likes of human consciousness. I now seek to fulfill a lifelong goal of publishing some concepts in story form that I have been mulling over for quite some time. I hope that I can give back a small measure of passion for what I have felt devoted to most of my life. I find that I have a great desire to write my thoughts, to share my visions, to document my dreams in the genre of science fiction. In order to do so, I must reach out to the community that is around me that can help in my endeavor. I seek to reach out to you in this forum that has similar goals. I hope to develop a friendship with you who are peers. I seek wisdom, encouragement, and camaraderie. I am a sci-fi junkie.

Relationship Status:

Married

Your Occupation

Software Engineer, inter alia