I have always lived my life out there. Whether it is hiking, skiing alone off-piste, or flying to an offshore rig to do geophysical data acquisition, staying in a safe place has never interested me. I have been the Science Officer on an oceanographic ship, laid sea bottom seismic cables, and worked cattle on horseback in Brazil. My education has enabled this lifestyle. An Electrical Engineering degree followed by a Masters in Geophysics opened the door to jobs that required a local presence. It took me out there. Science fiction and sailing ship adventures have always been an important part of my life since a child. Like most kids, I have dreamed of being a spacer, going to faraway places, having adventure and romance. Since so few actually get to go out even in humanity's current limited way, I have shaped my life to get out into our world. I always like to think that locked up in an instrumentation shed in the middle of nowhere is a little like being in space. My work is not for skim reading. I will not be writing about making coffee a dozen times just to get the page count up. I live with my long-time wife. We currently split our time between Texas and SW Brazil. But who knows what tomorrow will bring.
