Lets see, I'm a web designer working for The Hillsboro Education Association , a beaded jewelery maker , an a premier gourmet caterer right now, but I'm always looking for additional clients. Plus, I do my share of volunteer work, I think its important to give something back. I have lots of energy & love doing things with people.
I'm currently trying to get my first book published, and am already writing my second book. They're murder mysteries about a pro poker player who uses his powers of observation and ability to read people to solve murders. I can write, I simply am no good at selling what I write. They're completely different skills.
I'm not a party animal mind you, I prefer one on one time with friends over coffee or exploring downtown rather than all night parties where its too loud to talk. I like helping people, my friends say I'm the nicest guy they know. I'm basically kind & honest, but I'm not a goody two shoes. I have a good sense of humor & can laugh at an off color (not racist) joke. I can be completely goofy & silly at times, but I can come down to earth and have an intelligent discussion on a variety of topics.
I love movies & good coffee (no Starbucks doesn't fall into that category). I spend most nights reading or watching TV. Although, I must say that 99% of sitcoms annoy me to no end. Except for a rare few, I find sitcoms to be mind numbingly stupid & boring. Give me a good mystery, an imaginative piece of sci-fi, or a drama that makes you think and I can hang in there all night.
I also love good food, I especially like trying new foods. Now its true that because I go to specialty stores such as Trader Joe's & Pasta Works to buy cheese I've been labeled as a bit of a food snob. However, while I do seek quality and I'm careful about what I spend my money on, one of my favorite meals is Campbell's tomato soup & a grilled cheese sandwich.
Bottom line, I'm just a nice, hard working Joe who likes to have fun.
FILE (CLASSIFIED-A1 OPERATIVES' EYES ONLY)
NAME: - JAMES K. DATE OF BIRTH: - 02/12/70 PLACE OF BIRTH: - A HOSPITAL IN PORTLAND, OR - 4TH FLOOR, LAST ROOM ON THE LEFT JUST PAST THE BROOM CLOSET KNOWN ALIASES: - LUCKY JAMES, AKA JAMES THE GREAT, AKA JAMES THE HAPPY GAMBLER, AKA HOT & SPICY JAMES, AKA JIM, AKA JIMMY, AKA LOVE STUD, AKA BOSS JAMES EDUCATION: - B.S. IN PSYCHOLOGY FROM OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY OCCUPATION: - WEB SITE DESIGNER EXTRAORDINAIRE/ WRITER KNOWN ASSOCIATES: - SEE LIST ON BOTTOM OF PAGE KNOWN SIGHTINGS: - DESSERT NOIR , BORDERS, CITY MARKET, TRADER JOE'S KNOWN HOBBIES: - SHOPPING, DRAWING SCI-FI ART, DVD COLLECTING, RECIPE COLLECTING, READING, WRITING POETRY, POKER, BACK GAMMON, COMPUTER GAMES, HANGING WITH FRIENDS, SURVEYS KNOWN AFFILIATIONS: - DEMOCRATIC PARTY, RESPITE CARE NETWORK OF WASHINGTON COUNTY (FORMER PRESIDENT 2003-2006), KEYSTAR RESEARCH/WEB DESIGN SERVICES (OWNER), KNIGHTS WHO SAY NIGH KNOWN TALENTS: - WRITING, WORD PROCESSING, HTML PROGRAMMING, LIMITED CSS PROGRAMMING, DEDUCTIVE REASONING, LISTENING, FINDING BARGAINS, CULINARY GENIUS KNOWN DEFICITS: - OVERLY SENSITIVE, FAR FROM ATHLETIC KNOWN TURN ONS: - SMART, FUNNY, COMPASSIONATE PEOPLE WHO CAN HAVE AN ADULT CONVERSATION WITHOUT TAKING THEMSELVES TOO SERIOUSLY, SEXY FEET, LEATHER & CHROME KNOWN TURN OFFS: - SHALLOW PEOPLE, SELFISH PEOPLE, CRUELTY, DISHONESTY, SOCKS WITH SANDALS PREFERRED FOODS: - FILLET MIGNON, LINGUINI WITH CLAM SAUCE, CURED MEETS, SMOKED SALMON, MOST CHEESES, FRIES, POPCORN, ANYTHING CHOCOLATE PREFERRED BEVERAGES: - DIET COKE WITH LEMON & NO ICE, 140F DEGREE RASPBERRY MOCHA WITH SOY MILK & NO WHIPPED CREAM IN A GLASS MUG, HENRY WEINHARD'S VANILLA CREAM, V8 WITH TOBASCO, MOSCATO D'ASTI (A SWEET WHITE WINE) SEXUAL PREFERENCE: - AS MUCH AS POSSIBLEMy Poetry:
I've been writing poetry off & on since my Jr. year of university. It's hard to know when a poem will come to me or what form it will take. My best stuff has come to me out of the blue while riding the bus, grocery shopping, etc... It's almost as if these poetic gems are floating through space, and I simply collide with them from time to time allowing me to write them down.
Now, I'll admit that 90% of the poems I've put to paper are junk which are unworthy of public perusal, but this profile features only my best work.
- Crying NoHave you ever cried "No!" as fate was on the verge of manifesting itself?
As that vase across the room was about to topple,
Or as you felt you foot slip from the top rung of a ladder?
Of course you have.
And for that single second,
For a grain of sand's worth of time,
You were absolutely convinced,
The universe would screech to a halt,
And do your bidding.
But, a mere millisecond later,
You were slapped back to reality,
As your worst fears unfolded. -
Seconds From DeathHis pulse quickened to a frenzied, almost angry, pace,
As the sound of his blood rushing through his veins,
Overwhelmed his fading senses.
He'd be dead in less than a minute,
He knew that now.
He accepted the idea of not being,
The idea of everything he ever was,
Or would ever be,
Simply blinking from existence like a bubble of soap.
He cursed himself though,
For all the delicious meals he'd failed to savor,
And the wine he'd gulped down,
Never really tasting it.
He cursed himself for all the love he'd failed to make,
On those sultry nights when clothes clung to bodies like second skins.
And for the books he'd failed to read,
Containing ideas he'd never taken time to devour,
Like morsels of sweet food.
He cursed himself for…_________________ -
RAIN Splish, splash, run, dash,
Rushing home and getting wet.
Pitter, patter, falling faster,
Wouldn't do this again on a bet.
Drip, drop, ker-plop,
It's starting to really pour.
Drip, drop, mud, slop,
I'm freezing down the core.
Drop, drip, run, slip,
I think I tore my knee.
Pound down, all 'round,
Oh, dear God why me?
The Regular
It's just an average little bar in an average little town. There are a couple pool tables, a few drinking tables, a row of stools at the bar and people guzzling down booze every where you look. The air is so thick with smoke you begin to think fresh air is the exception to the rule.People who don't go to bars believe that people who do go there for the alcohol or the music. If that was all they wanted they could buy a six pack and listen to their radio at home. No, they go there looking for one thing and one thing only, every night they come in sure they'll find it, some do now and then but most leave discouraged and drunk. What are they looking for? Sex, not love, not commitment, just sex. Not that love wouldn't be nice, it's just not the most important thing. That's the way they all feel, all except Gus that is.
Gus, comes in every night at six, orders a bottle of whiskey and a glass and drinks alone at the corner table until closing. He always wears the same brown suede jacket and two day old beard [when he shaves I'll never know] and drinks alone in that corner that stupid corner. Why does he always come if he wants to be alone? What is looking for? Finally, last week I went to that corner and asked him.
"Why do you always come here just to be alone?" I asked while gingerly tapping his shoulder.
He looked me up and down for the longest time then said, "They're all dead but, you look just like them."
I knew the "you" he spoke of wasn't just me, but rather everyone in the place. All his friends are dead, all the people he played "those games" with long since gone. So he sits there in his corner and watches us like ghosts from his past. Watches and drinks.
-COFFEE SHOP LOVE
The coffee stares at me, and I stare back,Why don't I ask her?
Is it courage I lack?
Or is it that I've always been told,
To settle for silver,
For I'll never have gold.
I look at her hair so long and so black,
I notice the way it caresses her back.
I dream of her skin so soft and so white,
Her glow fills the room like a radiant light.
What cruel god made me love her?
For now I am helpless,
My mind is a blur.
Conflict
What are you oh wondrous night?The total of darkness or the absence of light?
What dark secrets do you hold?
Under your moon what lovers have strolled?
In your sky are nestled gems,
What generous loved one gave you them?
What are you oh wondrous night?
When I learn your secrets I shall see your light.
PAINTED SIDEWALKS
Painted sidewalks beneath my feet,Down upon you pours rain and sleet.
There stands a man with no food to eat,
On the painted sidewalks beneath my feet.
It curves left and right and all around,
It goes up the hill and comes back down.
The sidewalk gets me where I need to go,
I can afford to take it slow.
People use it day by day,
But not all who use it know the way.
Some feel lost as if they're beat,
On the painted sidewalks beneath my feet.
WATERFALL
Their affair begins quietly.The water caresses and tickles the mighty stone.
Time erodes,
The water cuts the stone deeper and deeper.
He begs for ungiven mercy.
Yet, he knows that without his lover,
The lush green life on his banks will die.
The lovers never part.
The water falls forever. -
Hall Ways
I stroll through the hall ways shopping for answers,Yet, around me I see man’s undeniable cancers,
Envy, lust, hatred and insatiable greed,
In those of each color, religion and breed.
I stroll through the hall ways to try to forget,
But, I can’t lose this sense of foreboding regret,
Of those I’ve loved and those I’ve lost,
Wishing the prize could have equaled the cost.
I stroll through the hall ways searching deep for my nerves,
While hoping and praying I’m what she deserves,
As like before, again it slowly begins,
And I start taking account of my multiple sins.
I stroll through the hall ways while pretending to hunt,
Lacking the courage to relax and speak blunt,
The future’s pyre burns beyond mortal control,
Through these long hall ways down which I do stroll.
Autumn Afternoon
My window frames a melancholy portrait of nature’s slumber,Reminiscent more of Hollywood’s Halloween than of an impending Thanksgiving.
Stark gray clouds bleakly decorate the early afternoon sky,
Which hangs ominously above skeletons of dark and sleeping trees.
Their lonely naked perches extend sharply in every possible direction,
Stabbing and jabbing at the frigid air embracing them.
Leaves, once rich reds and golds, now shades of auburn,
Dart furiously within wintry wind, as if late for their final resting place.
Thickly stuffed coats are pulled up over hunkering earlobes,
Protecting pedestrians from the heavens’ promise of liquid bombardment.
Warm in my window, I soak in the drama and reflect.
Does the squirrel, foraging for deposits of acorns and filberts,
Know the sun will one day re-warm the earth beneath him?
Or, does he simply accept what comes,
Free of giddy expectation and bitter disappointment? -
Christmas In My Town
A brisk chill is on the breeze,Little kids are trimming trees,
Its Christmas in my town.
Shoppers dashing here and there,
Wrapped packages lie everywhere,
Its Christmas in my town.
Carolers sing on the street,
Maids prepare great things to eat,
Its Christmas in my town.
Friendly greetings fill the air,
People show how much they care,
Its Christmas in my town.
Its Christmas in my town.
-
SNOW
Specks of lace float to Earth,From frigid skies of grayish cotton.
They land themselves upon naked noses,
And tender tongues of happy children,
Praying for the collection of tiny to flakes,
To save them from their daily arithmetic.
Besides its promise of childhood respite,
The flurry delivers merry daydreams,
Of presents shared with loved ones,
Over egg nogs and rich desserts,
As a twinkling Christmas tree garnishes the scene.
My Rules For Life:
Now, I'm not what you would call religious by any means of the word. However, I do have certain rules & beliefs which I live by. Below is a list of these nuggets beginning with the serious & migrating into the light hearted.
My Philosophical Truths
Yes, we need to eat & pay the bills, but real success is measured in the number of people we've helped & not in the amount of money collected...Never be too busy to help a friend...
Don't ask for help when you can do it yourself...
A job well done is it's own reward...
Whether we come from a God or a big bang, we're here now, and we need to be good to each other...
When confronted by truth & logic don't be afraid to change your mind...
Don't argue so loudly that you can't hear the other side...
Putting others first is good, as long as you don't neglect yourself...
Treat yourself now & then, there's nothing selfish in doing so...
Treasure your relationships, they're priceless.
Being happy doesn't mean everything is perfect. It means you have decided to look beyond the imperfections. My Other Truths Madrigal, Farm House Cheddar & Gouda are great serious cheeses, but for a grilled cheese sandwich you need processed American...
It ain't pizza without anchovies...
The best hot dogs are found at pro Baseball games...
The designated hitter rule is destroying Baseball...
Boxing needs a single governing body & one champ per weight class.
Boxing: Fighter Rankings
The greatest hits of Zab Judah, Kelly Pavlik, Roy Jones Jr., Wladimir Klitschko, Joe Calzaghe, Bernard Hopkins, and Oscar De La Hoya. Narrated by Jim Lampley.
A musical tribute to Rocky Balboa.
Slide Shows: