I have lived in Indianapolis my entire life. I grew up on the west side and and now live on the South side near Greenwood or the G-Wood for the the truck driving wannabees that populate the area. (Notice: If you're black I forgive you, you deserve to preserve your identity in this island of white. I know there are only 34 black people in Greenwood, I counted them.)I commute daily to Franklin College where I make inappropriate jokes in science classes where the professors have more of a sense of humour than the students. Maybe it's because it's 8 in the morning, but the dead baby jokes don't go over well.
I am a free spirit and my desire to explore what excites me doesn't lend itself well to the well worn path of academia. I never seem to want to read the parts of the book professors assign. I want to run around rainforests, take pictures of old buildings, and blow things up. My hope is to meet other crazies in grad school.
I was originally a double major in psychology and philosophy and then decided that I couldn't stomach being a therapist and wasn't brilliant enough to be a philosopher so I switched to pre-med. But I always have a goal and never a clear plan. So I've taken a hodgepodge of research psychology, biology, chemistry, and physics classes and am turning them into an individualized major. I am hoping I can get the Academic Rules Committee to approve the most pompous title I could come up with - "biophysical neuroscience."
To that extent I am working with Dr. Horia Petrache - a delightful Romanian-born biophysicist with extraodinary clarity of thought and a disarming wit.
I spend at least one day a week in his lab in the area of the IUPUI science building that says "Warning Strong Magnetic Fields and Radiation. Authorized Personnel only." If I had some kind of key card, it would nicely complete the sense of importance in walking through such a door. An eye scanner would be even better! But I digress.
Here I am learning to conduct research on the structure and behavior of membranes using small angle x-ray diffraction and ion channel voltage clamps. The math of this process eludes me, much as we try to elude the lab director and his no food or drink policy.
The realization that I would read about these things whether I was in school or not makes it no more encouraging to write my way into carpel tunnel. I enjoy just about any non-fiction - politics, economics, philosophy, psychology, linguistics, hobbyist ballistics, but I'd probably read a history of cockroaches if it was in front of me. And I'd probably write one if I had cockroaches in front of me. I wish I had the time to learn to paint and play piano. If I was more singly minded I might be successful in life.
I am a three? Four? I forget, year student of Senso-Ryu Aikijujutsu and Soto Zen under Theodore Hanulak Sensei, and I still suck at it. I go for the challenge and a challenge it is. You might say there's something wrong with a group of people that pay to get the shit beaten out of them two to three times a week. At least I can say I try.
I very much enjoy things that allow me to get outside of my head and so the formal meditation ("sitting" in Zen parlance) helps, but I enjoy weightlifting and cardio intensive stuff just as much for that reason.
I want to go to Asia. Japan first. There's plenty of good reasons. I hope I can study Rinzai when I go, I am curious about this strand of Zen. If I can do grad school there, I will. I want to go to India second. It's an invariably fascinating country of a thousand cultures, languages and religions. Something tells me there's something to be learned from Indians. If they can get along, with all of their differences, ANYONE can.
I love music of almost any kind, the louder the better. I don't keep on it as much as I used to. I'm not a huge classical fan, but I respect it. I am big fan of the Romantic movement.
I tend to like electronic music, but there are certain things you can only do with a guitar, so my favorite music form will always be Industrial Rock because it has elements of both. I can't say I have a favorite band as that's like saying you have a favorite child, but Pig (after Steve White joined) and Nine Inch Nails ranks up there (yes, Nine Inch Nails. Fuck you rivetsnobs. Throbbing Gristle is not music by my standards you elitist pieces of shit). Then again if I go far enough back I have to say Pearl Jam will always be my favorite band.
I find piercings and tattoos fascinating. I think they're cool on guys and hot on women (so hot). Right now I have 8 gauge nipple rings and a tongue bar. My 8 gauge earrings didn't work out and I miss them. Maybe I'll give them a second try sometime in grad school. I'm sure I'll just have to get rid of them again. I'll be limited in where I can get my tattoos if I want to land a position as a tenured professor. I would like sleeves, but I don't know if I want to have to wear long sleeve over them to every job I work.
I'm a political radical and a Libertarian. I hate the Federal government and I think they are in breach of social contract. I think that freedom has moral implications and that Leftists, Marxists and Socialists are sadly misled because we cannot solve the problems of government using more government. I believe in individual sovereignty, self-empowerment, and personal responsibility. I also believe that when people have these things they are happy - they believe in themself and the world around them. We cannot control everything, but we must do what we can. "In the world, not of the world," as Jesus the Nazarene said.
I love animals. I have two dogs and two cats (the roster changes frequently as they all run away or die of rare disease). I think hugs are awesome. The most important thing to me is people because they're endlessly fun. I inherited my dad's love of conversation, particularly of politics, philosophy and religion and I inherited my mothers longing for authentic spirituality.
I love getting drunk, probably because I stopped doing real drugs after a bad acid trip New Year's of 1999. I've cut back though since I discovered kinky sex. I don't know much about cars, but I'd like a really fast one because I love speeding. I havent traveled much, but I cant wait to. I want to get married on a weird island of Japan if possible. The unlucky girl is a Jewish social worker with a predilection for serial killer books and Hello Kitty. If I have time for kids, I'll definitely have them. I'd hate to think that all these people have loved me through everything and I wouldn't do that for someone else. I hope one day to impart what wisdom I've gathered to others, so that their journey may be a little less painful. But if they tell me to stop rambling like an old man, I'll just go back to video games.
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