Spirituality, music, photography, meaningful conversations with friends, gourmet cooking, fine dining, traveling, working out, cycling, hiking, metaphysics, science, mathematics, and learning about other countries & cultures.
I'd like to meet:
1) Interesting people from every walk of life, country & culture for interesting and open-minded conversation. I appreciate people who can talk candidly and directly about almost any subject, and can tolerate opposing views.
2) I especially like discussing math, the sciences, and spirituality. I am not "religious" in that I am not glued to any particular dogma or religious persuasion, but like to maintain a spirit that is "open to anything and attached to nothing" to the degree that this is possible. I am equally comfortable talking with Christians, Muslims, Jews, Hindus, BaháÃs, Buddhists, Atheists, Agnostics, Pagans, or any other persuasion - as long as you have an open mind and we can agree to disagree from time to time.
3) A HOST of musicians that play stuff I like - and that covers a lot of ground. There are a concentration of artists who have been influenced by Pixinguinha, Jobim, etc., but I like almost any kind of music from classical to kick-ass rock and roll, and from country to international, except assaultive and excessively morbid.
4) I am also learning Portuguese so I can understand my favorite songs in their mother tongue. Although I am learning, I'm still quite a novice! Eu gosto que as pessoas me deixem mensagens em português, mas tenham paciência, eu estou começando a aprender português.
5) Networking for Business. I am co-founder and CEO of an Information Technology firm specializing in verifiable confidence in deploying IT systems and applications.
Music:
I love all kinds of music from classical to jazz and from rock to house, and from country to international music.
I have many of my favorite artists on my "friends" list, and a lot of promising up-and-coming artists, so check them out.
I play guitar, piano, and sing. I'm especially fond of Samba and Bossa Nova. My favorite composer is Antonio Carlos (Tom) Jobim.
I have also become very fond of a friend I have met here on myspace named Rene Gruss, who composes and produces what he calls "Classic Cool" music. His story is amazing. Please click on the link on this page. You are in for a treat.
Genre artists I follow include:
* Tom Jobim
* Joao Gilberto
* Astrud Gilberto
* Bebel Gilberto
* CéU
* Caetano Veloso
* Chico Buarque
* Vincius de Moraes
* Milton Nascimento
* Elis Regina
* Gilberto Gil
* Luciana Souza
* Baden Powell
* Rosa Passos
* Manfredo Fest
* Eliane Elias
* Ali Ryerson
* Roberto Menescal
* Stan Getz
* Aloysio de Oliveira
* Ray Gilbert
* Marcos Ariel
* Billy Eckstine
* Carlos Barbosa-Lima
* Gilberto Santa Rosa
* Karrin Allyson
... and ... well ... you get the idea!
I'm also very fond of artists LOCAL to the New York City and Boston jazz, rock, and alternative scenes, many that I've been introduced to through myspace, including:
* Mari Rosa
* Rene Gruss
* Modern Bossa Band
* Brandon Patton
* Jodelle
* Lin McEwan
* Katja Endemann
* Sonya Kitchell
* Tine Bruhn
* Gino Sitson
* Chris Tref
* Andy Santospago
* Alice Peacock
* Lisa Roti
I also like many American and World artists, including:
* Frank Sinatra
* Big Band-era
* Beatles
* Rolling Stones
* James Taylor
* Carly Simon
* Joni Mitchell
* John Fogarty/CCR
* Moody Blues
* U2
* Steely Dan
* Dave Matthews
* Barenaked Ladies
* Michael Buble
* Brian Setzer
* Pat Metheny
* Lyle Mays
* Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
* Carlos Santana
* Jeff Beck
* Paco de Lucia
* Jaco Pastorius
* Bela Fleck & the Flecktones
* Oscar Peterson
* Wynton Marsalis
* Ellis Marsallis
* Burt Bacharach
* Jimmy Webb
* Michael Franks
* Annie Lennox
* Toots Thielemans
* Van Morrison
* Paul Simon
* Phil Collins
* Natalie Cole
* Linda Rondstadt
* Rod Stewart
* Pink Floyd
* Queen
* REM
* Chicago
* Sting
* Aerosmith
* Sublime
* Madeline Peyroux
* Ray LaMontagne
* Jimmy Hendrix
* Stevie Ray Vaughan
* Thievery Corporation
* St Germain
and way too many others to list - you can fill in the blanks! ;-)
Movies:
Well, "What the bleep do we know?" is right up there (what a surprize, huh?), Shawshank Redemption, Sideways, Crash, Brother Sun Sister Moon, The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Year of Living Dangerously, Cool Hand Luke, Duel, Gone With The Wind.
I also like stupid comedies like all of the Naked Gun movies, Airplane, Caddy Shack, and any Monty Python movies.
I also LOVE a lot of musicals - especially the older ones. My dad was an amature stage actor as a hobby, so I have many fond memories of the excitement and magic of musicals. These include:
* The Music Man (my ALL-TIME favorite)
* My Fair Lady
* Anything Goes
* South Pacific
* West Side Story
* Fiddler On The Roof (My daughter played Tzeitel once - I had to sit there and hear them sing "Sunrise, Sunset" to her! Yes - I cried like a baby!)
* Phantom of the Opera
* Les Miserables
* Miss Saigon
* Annie Get Your Gun
* Oliver
* The Sound of Music
* Cats
* Oklahoma
Television:
Major League Baseball, NFL and College Football, 24, American Idol, Discovery Channel, NOVA specials, History Channel, News in very small doses to stay on top of things.
Books:
This is next to impossible - there are so many!!! Let's see ... I'll start with my favorite authors: Wayne Dyer, Debbie Ford, Gary Zukav, C.G. Jung, Steinbeck, Michael Crichton, John Grisham, Tom Clancy, Frederick Forsyth, M. Scott Peck, William James, James Gleick, Michael Guillen, Paul Ferrini, Keith Miller, Dan Wakefield, Patanjali, Soren Kierkegaard, Nietsche, Sartre, Kant, Ben Franklin, Thomas Merton, and Victor Frankl.
As for books, I'd have to say: The Power of Intention (Dyer), Your Sacred Self (Dyer), The Active Side of Infinity (Castaneda), Power Verses Force (Hawkins), The Power of Silence (Castaneda), Think on These Things (Krishnamurthi), Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (Pursig).
Now, for books more geared toward math and the sciences, I'd also have to add: "The Physics of Baseball" (Robert K. Adair), "Godel, Escher, Bach: The Eternal Golden Braid" (Hofstadter), "Chaos: The Making of a New Science" (James Gleick), "Anton's Calculus" (Howard Anton), "A Brief History of Time" (Stephen Hawking), and there are quite a few more I could put in this category!
Heroes:
As a person schooled in the Christian pursuasion, I'd have to start out with Jesus Christ for living a life that is exemplary by any standard, and for paying the ultimate price for us.
After that, I'd have to say all of the brave young men and women in our Armed Forces and their families.
I also admire Krishna, Buddha, Moses, Mohammad, Lao Tzu, the Dalai Lama, Mahatma Ghandi, Hillel, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, Patanjali, Rumi, Bahá’u’lláh, Mahavir, St. Francis of Assisi for many of the same reasons - living examplary lives that serve as beacons to others.
Closer to home, I admire Dad (for living a life of integrity and honor in everything he did - till the end of his life), Mom (for showing me unconditional love), my wife Lori (for too many reasons to include here), my daughter Janelle (for following her heart, staying true to her calling, and for her warm, compassionate nature), my son, Eric (for being such an authentic person, following his heart, and for caring so much about the less fortunate).
I would also have to add Steven Hawking, Richard Feynman, Albert Einstein, Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson, Wayne Dyer, Lance Armstrong, and Patrick Byrne (CEO of Overstock.com) for overcoming adversity, bucking the trends, and living authentic lives.
