I was born and raised in Wadesboro in Anson County, where my father’s family had lived for generations. When I was a kid, I wanted to become an archaeologist. I read about the great American civilizations of the Inca, the Aztecs, and especially the Maya, and I dreamed of discovering lost cities and ancient artifacts. Recently, my son joined me in Mexico City to visit the National Museum of Anthropology and the Pyramid of the Sun in Teotihuacan.

In my youth, I worked on farms and sold produce door-to-door. I framed houses before the advent of the nail gun. I rode west and washed dishes in Yellowstone in the year of the Great Fire. I’ve lived in Eugene Oregon, Monterey California, Taichung Taiwan, Shanghai, Beijing and Mexico City.

I lived all over the great state of North Carolina before settling in Asheville to partner with my wife in raising two caring and smart people who we love very much. Two decades of steady working and supporting a family makes you see the world a little differently. More recently, we have gone from needing to feed two mouths instead of four, and the mortgage is (mostly) paid. This allows us time and energy to travel more, while  managing a few rental properties.

I love books and music. Along with Kathy Mills, an artist and retired professional librarian, we have hundreds of books all over our house. I love great writing including works of Steinbeck, Poe, Le Guin, Hemingway, Dickens, Vonnegut, Hunter S. Thompson, Emily Dickinson, and Basho. My songwriting heroes include Bob Dylan, John Prine, Kris Kristofferson, and Townes Van Zandt. We turned our love for books into a small business called Flying Carpet Books.

I love philosophy, science and the study of human behavior. My enemies are sloth, ignorance, and blind obedience. I try to question authority in all forms. I respect authenticity and honesty.