About me:

I am a proud Aspie who was diagnosed last year with Asperger's Syndrome, an Autistic Spectrum Disorder, that includes sensory issues and lacking in what are considered "normal" social skills. Despite this, or what I believe is more likely because of this, I was able to make it through grade school and nine years of college. Even if I had very few friends and spent most of my time alone. The professional world has been quite a struggle. My light sensitivity requires me to be in a dark space with no overhead lights, especially fluorescent ones. I am extremely sensitive to smells such as coffee and tobacco smoke, to the point that my eyes burn and I become nauseated. Needless to say, this makes it difficult to work in an office environment. But the big problem I face is working within the social structure of an office environment. I tend to be straightforward and to-the-point, which causes many things to be misinterpreted and taken in a bad context. Being a very logical thinker, I am completely unaware of how to deal with office politics, which has led to me being fired from positions several times. Thankfully, I now work for the Government, so when these misunderstandings occur I have been reassigned, as opposed to unemployed. You may notice in my pictures that I wear I hat all the time, and many times will have on sunglasses as well, even at night. These are necessary tools to help combat my light sensitivity. For some reason, this is taboo in the workforce, but I shun the norm and wear them inside while at work. The colleagues I interact with that are from my generation and younger are usually pretty cool with this, especially after explaining the Asperger's Syndrome. But many of the people from my parent's generation that I have to deal with are not so receptive. In graduate school, the Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Science at UVa. kicked me out of his office when I arrived for a meeting with him on a bright summer day wearing my hat and sunglasses. I will never understand this mentality...to pass judgments on people for simple things like appearances.

I am also a devout environmentalist who uses his two-car garage as a recycling center. I process all paper, plastic, glass, metal, and Styrofoam for recycling at various facilities. I have not received a plastic or paper bag from any retailer in over 16 years. I always carry an assortment of canvas and hemp bags whenever, and wherever, I go shopping. Once you get used to having them handy, you'll find that they are far more convenient than the wasteful alternative. I use a large rectangular mesh container that is collapsible for making big grocery runs. Over the past eight months I have conducted an experiment to determine ways to maximize the fuel economy of my manual transmission car. Since I cannot yet afford a hybrid or a full electric, this has been a huge goal of mine both economically and, more importantly, environmentally. I have been able to increase my miles per gallon by over 3 MPG by turning the ignition off whenever I am stopped for more than a few seconds at a light or in heavy traffic. To date, I have saved more than 10x what it would cost to replace my battery and starter if this technique would happen to wear them out. I think it has been well worth the effort.

Growing up a Navy Brat, I lived my entire childhood on the East Coast. While I was born at Portsmouth Naval Hospital, by the age of two I was living where I consider home...Boston. My earliest sports memory is of Carlton Fisk's game-winning HR in Game 6 of the 1975 World Series. Needless to say, I am a die-hard Boston Red Sox fan to this day. In fact, I have camped outside Fenway Park in the rain and temperatures in the 40s for World Series tickets. I have been to every World Series game played at Fenway Park this century. My devotion to New England sports of course includes the New England Patriots, Boston Celtics, Boston Bruins, and New England Revolution. While I miss the days of Larry, Kevin, Chief, DJ, and Danny, I found my way back to enjoying NBA basketball with the 2007-08 Boston Celtics. I never stopped pulling for them, but to me the NBA died in the 90's with selfish, one-on-one play and little defense. The 2008 NBA World Champion Boston Celtics were a team and prided themselves on defense. Truly inspiring! Oh, and don't talk to me about the New England Patriots. I will never get over what happened the days leading up to the Super Bowl and the general disgust it gave me prior to the game. So much so I didn't want to watch it, despite the history that could have been made. Even worse, the outcome was extremely disappointing. I still have sleepless nights from this. Hell, I still have problems dealing with the 1986 World Series, despite the accomplishments of the 2004 and 2007 Boston Red Sox.