1. I have been a jazz fan for 49 years. The first jazz recording I can remember hearing was “Jazz Goes To College” by the Dave Brubeck Quartet. After that I was totally hooked. I could never get thue sound of Paul Desmond’s sax out of my head. So naturally I became a collector and amassed a collection that has reached over 3000 albums and 5000 CDs. Of course, I can’t play any musical instrument or read music. Despite these drawbacks I teach jazz history and listening classes at a local school.
2. After listening to music, my second favorite thing to do is read. I love hard-boiled crime fiction(James Ellroy is the best), science fiction and horror fiction. My geek/nerd gene is definitely NOT recessive. I love Stephen King. He’s about the same age as me so his cultural reference points are about the same as mine would be. My SF favorites are the Golden Age guys like Asimov, Heinlein and Clarke. The newer people I read are David Brin, John Varley, Greg Bear & Robert J. Sawyer.
3. At age 33 I had Stage IV Hodgkin’s Disease. Talk about something that will make you face your mortality at an early age! Took chemotherapy and radiation for about a year . I don’t recommend it for a fun time. My five year survival rate odds at that time were around 25%. But here I am and damn glad to be here.
4. I love really bad science fiction and horror movies from the 1950s. The worse they are the more I like them. I’ve seen hundreds but my personal favorite is a little gem directed by Roger Corman called “Not Of This Earth”. You really
should look it up. It’s goofy, funny & just a little bit creepy. A great combo!
5. I’ve owned a series of cats and loved them all. My latest is named Charlie(after the famed jazz alto player, of course). I cry every time I lose one, but hey, that’s just the way I roll.
6.Saved the best(or worst) for last. The first time I had sex I was 62 years old. That would have been this past March. At the Ranch and it was a transformative experience. Think I’ll pass on telling you who had to endure that fist time but I will say she was beyond belief and waaaay out of my league. How’s that for a geek /nerd confession?
So that’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.
JM007