Jake's place | ||||
| A little (ok, a lot) about me | ||||
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If you still wish to contact me after reading this minor novella, my e-mail link is at the bottom. Please include a photo, or a link to one. I am a 28-year-old (as of July) software consultant with a company here on the Seattle Eastside. I am 5'6" and have long black hair (it has nothing to do with music preference; maybe I'll tell you the story some day) and brown eyes. I'm about 30 pounds overweight (I'm told I carry it well, whatever the heck that means), but I've already lost 20, and hope to shed the last 30 within a couple months. My main interests outside of technology are music and travel. I'm a Montana boy, but from the "big city" (if you can call a population of 120K big). I'm not a cowboy in any sense of the word. I go back to visit a couple times a year (I just got back from my summer trip), and love my visits. Every once in a while I consider moving back in a few years, but I've really grown to dislike Montana winters... :-) I cooked at my parent's restaurant for several years, so I know my way around a kitchen (I make a mean Shrimp Scampi). However, I do best with a recipe in front of me. I'm not very good at making it up as I go. I'm a bit of a Sci-Fi/Fantasy fan. I watch the "Star-Trek:Voyager" and "Star-Trek:Deep Space 9" series, and for some reason even I don't understand, I just can't miss a new episode of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". I read a lot as well, particulary Mercedes Lackey, Orson Scott Card, David Eddings, and Margaret Weis, just to name a few. I watch too much TV, although I realize that my heart won't stop beating if I miss a favorite. I like "The Pretender" and "The Profiler" as well as the ones mentioned above, and occasionally catch the lawyer and hospital shows ("LA Law", "ER", etc.). I like "Caroline in the City", but don't go out of my way to watch it. I just find it difficult to get too attached to a sit-com. I'm a light drinker, but I don't get drunk. I usually limit myself to two pints. I'm a "beer snob", and don't drink domestics. Some day I plan on trying to home-brew. I was never much of a sports fan until I got here three years ago. My sister turned me into an M's fan, and then moved back to Montana. I also love watching live hockey, but haven't been to very many games here. In Montana, my family has had rink-side season tickets since I was a kid. I dislike head-games and "tests". If you want to know how I'll behave in a certain situation, just ask me. I'll put some thought into my answer, and I'll tell the truth, even if it causes me a little grief. Most of my friends back in Montana are women, so if you are the jealous type, turn back now. However, I've known them all for years, and if anything was ever going to happen, it would have by now. I've never cheated on a girlfriend, and I believe I never will. | |||
| Music | ||||
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I listen to just about every type of music there is, although Rap/Hip-Hop is still a little difficult to listen to. Lately I've been listening to a lot of Sarah McLachlin, although my three all-time favorites are still Rush, Pat Benitar, and Styx (in no particular order). I'm only just starting to appreciate Country a little, as well. My CD collection has a little bit of everything, from John Denver to Metallica, 10,000 Maniacs to Blondie. I even have a CD of a folk/rocker that yodels (I know it sounds strange, but Laura Love really makes it work). My collection is a little heavy on Celtic/New Age and Classic Rock, and a little light on Hard Rock/Heavy Metal. I am also a classical Cellist, although I'm a little out of practice. Once work settles down, I hope to get in a quartet again. I played professionally throughout high school and college, but would like to keep it a hobby from now on. | |||
| Travel | ||||
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I just got back from a drive to Montana, which I do once every summer. I also go back for Christmas, but I fly then (I hate driving all those passes in the winter). Last October I got my first chance to leave the continent when a friend decided to have his wedding in Italy. Unfortunately, I could only afford a week, but it was terrific! Five days in Rome just isn't enough, but we saw as much as we could. We spent a day in Pisa, which wasn't really very exciting, but the wedding itself was in a tiny castle about 40 miles outside of Pisa, and that was incredible! We spent the night before in a villa surrounded by vineyards. It was also an international cooking school, and the dinner was a fabulous seven-course meal. I'm not a wealthy man, but I have to try to do a REAL vacation like this at least every other year, now. I REALLY want to go back to Italy (five days just is NOT enough, and we completely missed Venice), but everyone says I should go someplace else next time. Right now, I'm thinking "To hell with everyone else, I want to see Venice!" | |||
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