25 Things You May or May Not Know About Me

Ok, so internet peer pressure can be a powerful thing — and after seeing dozens of my online pals write up their lists of 25 things about them that people may or may not know as part of the “25 things meme,” I’m giving into the peer pressure.

Better late than never.

1. I’m the oldest of eight children. 7 boys and one girl. When I was in kindergarten one of my siblings drowned and died in a swimming pool accident when he was one and a half — so now I have six brothers and one sister. I haven’t seen my oldest brother in years and he’s been part of a cult for over a decade now.

2. I rode my bicycle from Lincoln City Oregon to Rehobeth Beach Delaware when I was 15.

3. I was the editor-in-chief of my college newspaper. I graduated from Westmont College in Santa Barbara. After College in 1990 I moved to San Francisco.

4. The worst job I ever had was collecting carts for Gemco in Southern California when I was 16. I did the job for about 2 weeks while it rained constantly and finally quit but felt really nervous about quiting. I worked most of my high school and college days including several jobs telemarketing and interviewing and a job at Jack in the Box for a while.

5. I’ve voted in every Presidential election that I’ve legally been allowed to vote in. I voted for the following Presidential candidates: Dukakis, Perot, Dole, Bush, Bush, and Obama.

6. I started taking photographs when I was 7 or so. I got my first SLR camera when I was 15. The only formal training I’ve had in photography came for a class that I took at Glendale Community College when I was 15.

7. My favorite restaurant is Tommy’s Hamburgers (all over Southern California). My second favorite restaurant is Henry’s Hunan in San Francisco.

8. My right eye is far sighted and I never use it. Mostly I just see out of one eye, my left one.

9. My favorite kind of pie is cherry.

10. My favorite beer is Saporro.

11. When I was a kid I had a bb gun. I mostly just shot cans with it until my dad told me that I was allowed to shoot the birds that ate the fruit in our fruit tree. I shot a sparrow in the tree once and felt about as awful as I’ve felt. I never shot another living thing with that bb gun again.

12. I hate the sun and much prefer the rain and cooler weather.

13. My favorite author is Hunter S. Thompson. My favorite book is Catch 22.

14. My favorite film is Lost in Translation.

15. When I was five I used to get paid a nickel each week for bringing in the garbage cans. When I was eight or so my dad started paying me 25 cents per Hardy Boy book that I’d read. I read every single Hardy Boy book and early on became very interested in both earning money and reading.

16. My favorite color is green.

17. My favorite television series of all time is the Wire.

18. During the past 18 years I’ve worked in the financial markets. When I was in college I read the entire Los Angeles Times every single day, but every single day I’d throw out both the business and sports section without reading them.

19. I’m a proud father of four, 2 boys and 2 girls aged 4, 5, 6, and 8.

20. I’ve been married once and for 12 years to the same woman, mrsth. We went to Prague and Vienna for our Honeymoon.

21. I used to raise pet rabbits and sell them when I was a kid.

22. I first kissed a girl when I was 15 (Jody).

23. I shaved my head in high school once. I had longer hair in college.

24. The first time I ever got drunk it was by drinking a fifth of Bacardi that I’d smuggled up in a Mexican blanket from my high school Spanish Club’s field trip to Tijuana.

25. Someday I plan on walking across the United States with my camera and documenting both American portraits and the American landscape.