Taking a page from Robot Wisdom editor, Jorn Barger:

if i compiled a personal 'canon'
the primary criterion would be
how often, day to day
i'm reminded of an artist's work

I would like expand the criterion to not only include artists, but everything else that has influenced me (books, shows, objects, etc).

1981- I was born

1986
"¢Transformers the Movie. This is the introduction of the generation 2 transformers (Rodimus Prime, Galvatron, Unicron). I remember liking this movie and the tv show following the movie much more than the first season where the generation 1 transformers fought on earth. I think the parts that were so great to me were Unicron and the Matrix. I liked the idea of planet that could devour other planets. This gave me my first taste of creation myth.

1986-1988-
"¢Nickelodeon airs. I remember not being allowed to watch a show called "You Can't Do That on Television" because of the gross-out humor. I remember watching a show called Spartakus and the Sun Beneath the Sea about some kind of ancient pirates. I think the style of art from this french show is what later attracted me to the work of Moebius. I also watched a show called the Mysterious Cities of Gold which I think started my interest in Central American history and, consequently, Central American Politics.
"¢Garbage Pail Kids-I was never allowed to have these, which is why I horded them. I think not being allowed to do things has made me really enjoy doing those things to this day. I still look at my Garbage Pail Kids in their sticker album.

1989
"¢Tim Burton's Batman- This was before I knew how much I would love comic books. I couldn't tell you what I saw in it at age 8, besides the cool gadgets. I haven't watched it recently, but I'd imagine it would work on a few more levels than it did back then.
1990
"¢I started collecting comics. I bought these two:


"¢I got Nintendo and started playing RPG's like Dragon Warrior and Final Fantasy
"¢Comics and Videogames were it for the next few years
1993-1994
"¢Grunge movement leads me to Sonic Youth. When I bought the Dirty album, I was completely blown away. I bought re-issues of their old albums as they were re-released. I snuck the bio "Confusion is Next" in and read in the chapter titled "Here Come the CyberPunks" that Sonic Youth were influenced by these two science fiction writers named Philip K. Dick and William Gibson
"¢Watched Bladerunner and loved it. What I understood of it, anyway.
"¢I won the county wide spelling bee on the day they discovered Kurt Cobain's body. My dad bought me a cd player.
1995
"¢"Awkward years" begin as I enter seventh grade. I wear sonic youth tees and read P.K. Dick books. Eighth grade football players don't like my green jacket and start calling me trench coat and hassling me before homeroom. My asshole teacher would make me go in the hall and talk to them because he didn't like the way they loitered outside of his door. I didn't really click with the kids that would become the punk kids, either. I wish I had made more of an effort to know them. Instead I was just kind in my own world.
"¢I make the jump from American comics to manga, when I see this poster in my local comic shop for Otomo's Akira.
The slickness of this image still gives me chills.
"¢In math class, I sat behind a girl that would draw her name in grafitti letters. She broke my heart later on, but I think this is what laid the groundwork for my fascination with graf and tagging
"¢I finally make some friends.
1996-2000
"¢I buy a playstation. Streetfighter Alpha 2 and Final Fantasy VII are my favorite games
"¢Discover Wu-Tang clan. I like the fusion of comic book hyperbole and gangster mythology.

2000
"¢College years begin. The classes that stand out are:
oLatin America and the Caribbean-An overview of the political systems of countries of the various Latin American countries. I read Isabelle Allende and other Magical Realism authors
oReligion and Spirituality/Philosophy of Religion-Two separate classes that had the exact same teacher and syllabus.
oIntroduction to Meta-Fiction-Didn't see the significance of this at the time, but looking back it taught me a lot about seeing the different layers in literature. First glimpses of Borges, Atwood, Antonioni's "Blow-Up!"
2004
"¢Read Neuromancer by William Gibson, devour the rest of his books immediately
2005
"¢Join the WilliamGibsonBoard as Architect. Learn about the other Cyberpunk authors like Womack and Rucker. Learn about Delany. Learn that I'm Bravus
2006
"¢Discover Juxtapoz magazine and the "low art" scene. Alternate sneaker colorways and Medicom toys fascinate me.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Archie,

1960- 0
1962-63 Rock n Roll radio
1964-TV Top Cat/Felix, Highway Patrol
First movie- A re issue of the 1948 Three Muskeetres. Told my sisters movies were a waste of time, we had a tv at home! Had to be dragged to the theater. Ended up going to film school. Figures... TV- Rin Tin Tin
1965- SF enters stage left- Spaceship xL5
Comix-Superman/Woody Woodpecker/Archie/Marge's Little Lulu... Played all summer with a Marx Fort Apache Playset TV- Troop F, Combat!, 12 O'Clock High got me hooked on WW2 planes.
1966- Learned to direct actors with GI Joe(tm)
Sis gave me the fab 4 Revolver as Bthday present! TV- Batman. Got the soundtrack LP for xmas... The start of the VietNam Atrocity Exhibition on the late news.
1967- TV-UNCLE/Wild Wild West/Rat Patrol/The Invaders Had a plastic thompson sub machine gun,that summer we killed more nazis than Eisenhower...
1968 Hendrix on AM radio.TV-The Prisoner.
Watched the May 68 "events" on the news... Someone (sister/mom?)asked me why was I smiling... BAD SIGN! Creature feature-
Them, Wasp Woman... A local tv station started showing all those 50s SF flicks. Manna. Film-
Asked to see 2001 as bthday present. Wow. Stanley Fckng Kubrick.
1969-Apollo tv...Hippies everywhre, out of nowhere... Older sis became one of them! TV-More Creature Features!!!
1970-Watching every movie I could on TV. Heavy Comix addiction A friend played King Crimson's Lizard King,we were freaked out by it! Book addiction begins with library card...
1972- Read a lot-J.Verne.Watched tons of movies on tv. Realized I liked the movies most other kids hated.
1973- Book addiction grew worse as I spent 6 weeks in hospital(asthma)Watched as Nixon got into a mess. Got political because of Chile...
1974- Electronic Music and Marxism. Costa Gavra's State of Siege
1975-Jazz. Salsa.Prog rock. More politics.
1976-Heavy SF addiction. Clarke/Strugatskys...
Into weirder movies now.
1978- College- Deep into film geekdom. CE3k!!!
ETc-----

This message has been edited. Last edited by: RUR,

that's great, RUR!

1985: birth

1990: begin school

1990-1991: Desert Storm, the first big news event I remember

1993: begin reading Guinness Book of Records (when it still wasn't so obsessed with celebrities), beginning my continuing love of works of reference

1994: Discovered Star Trek: TNG. Am in love with ST universe for about 1/2 decade before discovering cyberpunk

1995: My first brother is born. Begin playing BattleTech and MechWarrior, my first RPG. I've been a pen-and-paper RPG snob ever since.

1997: puberty

early 1999: family (finally) gets Internet. I soon begin writing in (and occasionally trolling) BattleTech forums.

2000: I see The Matrix for the first time. Soon after, I pick up Virtual Light from my school's library. I am enthralled. Also, I discover Boards of Canada.

2001: My 2nd brother is born on the last day of the Clinton administration. Then, 9/11.

2002: I begin to feel seriously depressed.

2003: Graduate from high school. Begin college at Pacific Lutheran University. Discover Bjork. Discover WGB, Wikipedia. Discover GURPS. Read about memes for first time.

2004: Leave PLU due to depression. Begin to occasionally write on WGB.

2005: Am rejected by Western Washington University. Decide to go to community college. Discovered Alan Moore.

2006: I overcome my depression. One of the best years of my life. Made some incredible friends.

2007: My depression may be returning. About to graduate from CC with AS in chemistry. Then, onto UW for a BS in I don't know what.

1981-born

1983-remember going to the theater to watch 'E.T.' with my parents--scares the crap out of me. still scares the crap out of me, actually.

1984-am given my first My Little Pony. It starts a life-long collection.

1985-watch 'She-Ra' on TV for the first time, she becomes my hero and i want to be her when i grow up.

1989-finally get the hang of reading, tear through all of the Nancy Drew books in the library in about two months. I move on to bigger and better books and become a summer hermit. this is also the same year i decide i want to be a vampire when i grow up, although i can't remember exactly why....

1990-have a Japanese exchange teacher, which begins my obsession with all things Japanese, TNMT was pretty cool too.

1992-i (re)discover 'Star Wars' and the sci-fi genre. fall in love with Harrison Ford and decide i want to be an archeologist when i grow up...or an interior decorator....

1994-start borrowing my father's Clive Cussler books, fall even more in love with the idea of archeology and adventure.

1995-read 'Interview with the Vampire' for the first time, and buy the entire series as it was out at that time. begin to entertain the idea of being a vampire when i grow up again.

1998-go to France and fall in love. decide i want to go to art school in the quartier latin. realize for the first time the devestation of WWII and the reasons why my grandfathers never talked about it.

1999-start reading Nietzche, Vonnegut, Kerouac, decide that my AP English teacher is someone I want to hero-worship (the woman had 6 degrees and perferred teaching highschool to college), graduate from highschool with no set plans for the future, but entertaining the idea of going to art school in Bend, Oregon.

2000-give birth to my daughter, refuse to marry her father, start going to school at the local Catholic University.

2001-give birth to my son, still refuse to marry their father.

2002-meet and convince a hippish man who possibly read more than i did to move up here from mississippi. later elope with that same man. our book collection expands in leaps and bounds, and we're now out of bookshelf space.

2004-discover the German Expressionists, Art Nouveau, Ingres and Munch.

2005-noirjyre suggests i read 'Pattern Recognition', discover it nearly impossible to find in the local bookstores but when i did find it, i sat down and read the entire book in one day and didn't realize it. go on to read whatever else of William Gibson i can find, which isn't much considering how hard it was to find his new novel. am happy to learn that manga is now accessible in the local bookstores, and spend a small fortune.

2006-discover Pop Surrealism, Mark Ryden and other west coast artists. go to NYC and contemplate becoming a travel photographer.

2007-start the never-ending Senior Thesis project for my art degree. still no closer to graduation, because i still need to finish the history requirements for my other degree, in september i shall be going on seven years as a student. find inspiration in my 80 year old philosophy professor, and decide i quite like his idea of humanities. succumb to noirjyre and the wiffle bat and join WGB, on which i've been lurking on and off for a year or so.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: sanity_escape,

quote:

Originally posted by sanity_escape:
2000-give birth to my daughter, refuse to marry her father, start going to school at the local Catholic University.

2001-give birth to my son, still refuse to marry their father.

2007-start the never-ending Senior Thesis project for my art degree.

You are my hero!

*blushes* thanks

1988 – born in Regina Saskachewan
1989 – lived in Regina Sask.
1990 – moved to Yarrow BC
- my first brother was born
- first memory: flipping in a canoe at Manning Park with my aunt and uncle. The water was really really really cold.
- met my "diaper buddy" best friend
1991 – can remember singing along to John Cougar Melloncamp in the car
- wanted to be either a ballerina or a princess
1992 – started drawing (not just coloring in coloring books)
- started to try to read
- went to my first movie at the theater (Aladdin)
1993 – mom read The Chronicles of Narnia aloud to me and my brother
- liked The Rolling Stones
1994 – first sister was born
- began Grade One at home
- finally learned to read
1995 – moved from Yarrow to Terrace BC
- first crush (his name was Anton and he ignored me)
- decided I wanted to be a nurse
- read The Hobbit
1996 – second sister was born
- was by now an avid bookworm who read everything from Nancy Drew to Betsy-Tacy.
- loved Neil Young
1997 – became best friends with a boy! Haha
- listened to Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill
1998 – third sister born
- played clarinet in a homeschool kids band
- read Egyptian mythology
1999 – second brother born
- read Greek mythology
2000 – moved to Sardis BC
- read Roman mythology
- read Burning Chrome
- realized I loved to sing
- started long-distance romantic relationship with best guy friend
2001 – watched The Matrix and became a Trinity Wanna-Be
2002 – read everything by William Gibson that I could find
2003 – third brother born
- ended long-distance romance
- tried to start a garage band
2004 – figured out the eyeliner thing
- wore Levis 501s and a black t-shirt year-round
- cut my hair really short
- went to LA
2005 – started wearing only black (its not Goth its Science Fiction!)
- moved to Agassiz BC
- discovered the internet
- joined the WGB as count0interrupt
- read Orson Scott Card
2006 – 4th and 5th brothers born (twins)
- graduated from homeschool-highschool
- didn't wear quite so much black
- first real boyfriend
2007 – you know all! I don't wear black all the time, but I think I look great in black. I'm a voice student and I work 3 jobs. Still live at home but I'm not even 19 yet so its okay. No romance at the moment, though a nice guy did ask for my number the other night...

This message has been edited. Last edited by: GreenRobot,

I came,

I saw,

I grabbed that dead goat by the arse!

vendagoat.jpg (39 KB, 363 downloads)

November 20th, 1973 - It begins...
Augest 8th, 1974 - President Nixon resigns amid the Watergate scandal, the Ford years ensue.

1976, spring Uncle Joe gives me a guitar and mentions that "practice makes perfect".

March 11th, 1977My little brother is born.

1977, summer Cousin Rob gives Boog his first skateboard. Chaos ensues...

77 - 81 Carter years lull my countrymen into some strange behavioral patterns including but not limited to:
Massive cocaine importation and the rise and fall of Disco. At some time, Punk is born.

1981 - 1989The Reagan years... Reaganomics restructures the distribution of the wealth of the world, causing entire civilisations to be redefined as "third world", and teh US starts shipping weapons to parts of teh world that ought not to really have those things. Then he forgets the whole thing.

Somewhere in here, my reading habits trurned toward teh slightly futuristic.

...and I am still skateboarding adn practicing guitar every day.

1987 Recieved my first camera and took a photojournalism class. Love of photography takes root.

1989 - 1993 The man who spawned the biggest idiot in the history of idiots takes office. Then he starts a war with his own operative from his years in the CIA, and loses, leaving the "monster" in charge and abandoning the people he claimed to be concerned about. Also manages to convince most of the poor african americans in Los Angeles of the need to kill eachother for crack, thereby creating a black budget for his old stomping grounds , the SS, er.... CIA, paving the way for an absurd propaganda manuever aimed at putting his son in office a few years later.

1991 Dropped out of HS to work as a projectionist for the next fifteen years.

1992 Lived in Tijuana for six months building houses for the homeless. Finished 7 houses.

1992 - 2000 Oval office BJ's-.-.-Nothing much happened here.

Summer, 1999 Enron fakes an energy crisis to raise funds for an utter morons bid for presidency, and the rigging of the election. It works.

spring 2001Got my first job in litigation, lasted 'til 9/11 whent the firm I was working for dropped all their cases in favor of the federal ones. I was laid off.

9/11 2001 GHWB's best laid plans bear fruit. Leaving the country, my country in the hands of a simpering idiot. Simpering idiot lies and lies and lies and fakes a war.

Nov., 2001 Got another projectionist job, til the millionaire hired someone to do my job for 1/3 of what I charged.

Summer 2002 Got another Litlgation job, lasted for five years. redundant, redundant, redundant, redundant, redundant, add infinitum. Read a lot of evidence, saw a lot of crime scene photos, duped a ton of disks.

Oct, 2005 Went to the Grenadines aboard teh S/V yankee clipper. Returned a week later.

April, 2006 Ran away to the Caribbean.
May, 2006 Ran away from teh Caribbean.
June, 2006 Managed a venue for the Seattle International Film Festival untill...
July, 2006..when I was hired by a corporate law firm, effectively selling my soul to the highest bidder, who may or may not be the devil.

Oct, 2006 The Chineese begin their attempts to kill me, leaving my cat in an urn.

2006 - present SSDD

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Boogerhead,

Hey Boog, you have exactly the same birthday as my ex-husband. Scary.


1972 – born to a music teacher mother and a warehouse worker father

1973-1977 or something like that – Mom watches Star Trek on TV. I tell her I like Dr. Spock

1975 – my mother finds me in my closet with the light on, reading Cinderella.

1976 – see Star Wars for the first time. I don't remember it, but my mom says she took me and I seemed to like it. So, she took me again when it was re-released, and that I do remember. Learned to play violin.

1978 – Dad goes off to training to learn this new-fangled "computer programming" thing.

1980 – my parents put me into the GATE (Gifted and Talented Education) program at school, hoping I will get more interested in something other than reading and help me make friends with other geeks like me. Takes me over twenty years to realize I'm as smart as the tests say I am because geeks, too, can be cruel.

1982 - Started piano lessons. Started Figure Skating lessons.

1984 – 1989 – spent nearly my whole secondary-school education as an outcast, not so much because of my overt geekiness but because I was white. Sure, I learned how to get along with people of all races, but I never learned to like R&B or rap (other than the Beastie Boys), and that guaranteed my out-cast-ness.

1983 – got my first listen to the Dead Kennedy's. Can't say I was a fan, but it's the first punk rock I remember hearing. Also the first time I heard Depeche Mode.

1984 – heard Agent Orange's "Bloodstains". Got hooked on surf-punk, but unfortunately Stockton, Ca wasn't really the best place to hear that kind of thing so I dove headlong into "New Wave".

1986 – saw Cyndi Lauper live in concert. Was more impressed with the opening band Lower-East Venus, famous for the song that goes "I might like you better/ if we slept together". Started reading Jane Austen and getting it. Saw a college production of "The Importance of Being Earnest" and fell in love with satire.

1987 – quit my school's orchestra because the teacher, my mother's friend, ratted me out when I got detention for being late to class. Didn't play my violin again until ten years later. Dad disappointed because I failed my computer programming class. (Not because I didn't understand the programming, but because I refused to cut out articles from the Wall Street Journal and summarize them. Stupid "business-oriented" class).

1989 – family moved to southern California. Had no friends yet, so I spent the summer reading Dante's Divine Comedy, Stephen Donaldson's Thomas Covenant series, all the Stephen King I could get my hands on, and various other fantasy and sci-fi writers. Discovered KROQ before it started to suck and had my senior year of high school with kids just like me! (That would be at Norco High, where even now the population is mostly white and rich-esque. Started Role-playing, mainly Robotech and D&D 2nd Ed.

1990 – started "clubbing", mostly on Gothic/Industrial nights. R.I.P, Club Metro.

1991 - quit figure skating. I was never going to "make it" and didn't want to waste any more of my parents' money.

1993 – played Cyberpunk for the first time. Hooked completely! Saw Bladerunner and decided I wanted to be a Replicant.

1995 – read Neuromancer, devoured all the Gibson I could find up to that point. Got married for the first time. Moved to Georgia and learned that California is, indeed, it's own country.

1997 – moved to southern Arizona the first time. A coyote crossed the highway in front of us and I fell in love with this area all at once.

1998 – learned that I cannot function living alone. (My husband deployed to Kuwait for a year). Experienced depression and all kinds of other self-pitying things that military wives the world over have dealt with for centuries. Should have quit my Army Wife job at this point, but foolishly thought I would learn to "get used to it". Joined the SCA. Picked up my violin again. Started taking Tang Soo Do.

1999 – Moved to Maryland. Learned how to play Irish and Bluegrass fiddle, though only marginally. (I still can't improvise very well or do those fancy trill-like things, but I get by). Finally went back to college with the intent to finish in the near future. Couldn't continue my Tang Soo Do because of the expense. So began my re-softening.

2001 – Moved back to Arizona. Was shocked and amazed at the rate of growth around here, but glad to see a multi-plex and that my favorite coffee shop was still open.

2003 – started the process of quitting my Army Wife job. Met my current husband on a trip to California. Was exposed to what my husband calls "Power Noise" – Somatic Responses, Beefcake, PAL, Converter, etc.

2004 – Received my official papers stating my membership in the Army Family was officially terminated. Made my own "Power Noise", using my computer, my movie collection, and my voice (though only a little).

2005 – Received my official paper stating I was over-educated for my job. (Got my BA in English)

2006 – Married for the second and last time. (Won't do it again, whether this one works or not).

the Spirit of '76. charmakarmacat unleashed upon the worldz0rZ.

early 1980s. watches Star Wars. pledges life to the study of the Jedi Arts. along with Clash of the Titans, a young charmakarmacat's imagination is nurtured. lots of time spent at the library reading books on mythology and dinosaurs.

1984. the first time i know what year it is. parents divorce. discovers Iron Maiden. listens to Iron Maiden and Judas Priest almost exclusively for the next four or five years.

1986. Expo '86. i had a season's pass. brilliant year.

1989. discovers Ice T's Power and Public Enemy's It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. music possibilities explode. end of the two band/one style era. starts heavy into comic books. lots of X-Men, graphic novels, Punisher, Batman. a shitload.

1991. first concert. Public Enemy, Anthrax, Primus. (oh, it's on!)
discovers alcohol and marijuana.

1992. driving license and first automobile.
inhaled first cigarette. honest to god, the greatest, clearest, fullest most desireable breath i have ever breathed.

1992 - 1998. parties and illicit escapades abound. i mean in a major way. comic addiction fades in the latter part of this period.

1999 - 2003. the lost years. stasis, awaiting options. a pretty dark tale.

2004. charmakarmacat is reborn in the fire of a welding torch as he begins his trade.

2005. sheds skin. meets wife that summer.

2006. moves to Vancouver.

swear to gawd, Imma come up there this summer...

Damn you guys are young

I'm not sure I can identify the landmarks that easily, but let's give it a go:

1963 - in utero when Kennedy is shot

1964 - nativity

1969 - watched the moon landing on a neighbour's snowy black and white TV

1970 - celebrations of the bicentennial of Invasion Day (Captain Cook's landing)

1977-78 - Moog plays ABBA, the science fiction section of the local library. Started reading 2-3 novels a week at this stage and have done so ever seince, although might have dropped to 1-2 with the invention of the Intarweb

1979-80 - KISS (including the movie 'Attack of the Phantoms') and The Angels

1980-1986 - motorcycles (Bombardier, Yamaha, Yamaha (crashed), Yamaha)

1987 - marriage/completion

1988 - finished college, decided to teach for a year or two before becoming an industrial chemist... still teaching nearly 20 years later

1989 - Metallica - ...And Justice For All, and Wittgenstein, on the train to and from uni after school, strung out and exhilarated

1990 - first daughter

1993-94 - Papua New Guinea

1994 - second daughter, invention of the Intarweb (ok, the WWW specifically, I *know* the net itself is older)

No real idea where WG arrived in the cavalcade of books, but there's one more iceberg:

2003 - discovered WGB

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Bravus,

haha... so i've discovered that though i believed myself to be the only teenager (i was 16) on here when i joined, xen0phile was 19.
which makes him 21 or so now?
huh
i'm not the only baby!!!

5 Encyclopedia. Dictionary a close second.
10 Playboy, October 1968 issue. Self-made explosives.
12 Beethoven, with some Tchaikovsky and Bach thrown in.
14The Lord of the Rings. Raiders of the Lost Ark. 1941. RPGs. Girls. Atheism. Wargames. Mike Oldfield. Firearms. Quadbikes. Transatlantic flights. NYC. Alcohol. 8 inches growth.
15 Bauhaus. Blade Runner. Upgrade from fantasy to Science Fiction.
16 Nyman/Balanescu live. Too much Philosophy.
17 Thinking in other language. Manchester sound. History as a guide for the present.
18 MS-DOS. Computer Games.
20 Cocteau Twins, Dead Can Dance and Cyberpunk(I was more cyber than punk at the time).
22 The Internet. Ultimate heartbreak.
24 Too scabbed to be affected by icebergs. Faddish (Elektra Assassin, Moebius, Manga, existentialist movies, Kundera, fencing, drunkenness...). Gene Wolfe.
28 Army.
30 Third language. Too sensible for love. French Cinema. Cooking!

Little else. Virtual relationships and lots of travelling the following decade. Work. Hardened. Become a cyborg overlord.

quote:

10 Playboy, October 1968 issue. Self-made explosives.

Yeah. Had that effect on me, too.

More or less diachronic:

The Basil Brush Show
S is for Space
Rosencrantz and Guildernstern Are Dead
The Clean Tapes
Shock the Monkey
From Fringe to Flying Circus
the Alan Coren edited Punch
The Books of Blood
Nevermind
Cyberpunk, the movie
The Chomsky Reader
Washington Babylon
Rant in E Minor

Take a deep breath, we're going back a ways here.
1947 I am born. Harry Truman is prez. WWII has been over less than 2 years.

1952-57 See Forbidden Planet, War of the Worlds when they were new. See Rebel Without a Cause. In 57 Sputnik is launched.

1959 1st day of 7th grade, Kalamazoo, MI. I go to the school library looking for something to read. See a book called "Space Cadet" by a guy named Heinlein (have no idea how to pronounce it.) Read it that night. 2nd day of school, check out everything else by him, then move on, alphabetically, to Norton. I'm hooked.

1962 Read On the Road. Warped for life.

1963 Highschool in Richardson, TX. I meet and date Anne Rice's sister, Tamara. Anne and her husband, Stan Rice, also Richardson High grads, are living in Berkeley as beatniks. I never meet them.

1967-70 The Army. Vietnam in 70.

1973 Married in Albuquerque, NM. We go to live in Scotland where I write my first book.

1975 Sell my first book to Doubleday.

1976 Go to first SF convention, Worldcon in Kansas City. Heinlein is GOH. Haldeman wins Hugo for Forever War. I sit behind Frank Herbert at the Hugos and hear Poul Anderson read from his translation of Hrolf Kraki's Saga. Heaven must be like this. Last day wander into a display for upcoming movie, "Star Wars." Meet Mark Hamill and tell him this flick might just do pretty good.

1977 First book is published.

1977 to Present. More of same.