Vita

My story begins in Carlsbad, a coastal town in San Diego's North County. I came of age when urethane wheels revolutionized skateboarding and people queued outside theaters to see The Godfather and Jaws.

During high school I bussed tables at a seafood restaurant, stacked pallets at a tomato packing plant, and scooped up golf balls on the driving range at La Costa.

I spent my 18th birthday in basic training. The Air Force sent me to spy school and then to bases in Italy and England where we intercepted Soviet communications. I was overseas when our embassy in Tehran was taken, the Soviets invaded Afghanistan, and John Lennon was murdered.

After my military service I worked at a marina on Hilton Head Island for a year. The University of South Carolina came next for undergraduate and graduate school.

I have since taught social studies at high schools in South Carolina, coached soccer, and worked for ten years as a district technology coordinator.