I was heavily into Advanced Dungeons & Dragons from when I was thirteen until I was about seventeen. I started out playing with my buddies. We had some good gaming sessions and some mediocre ones. When it was good, it was really good: Twelve-hour-long storylines, planted and shaped by all of us, culminating in victories and treasure for all.

Read the full post

My friend Grant was joking with me tonight that he thought my high school senior photo looks a little gay. (This comment grew out of a conversation about how I’ve been propositioned three times, via e-mail, by gay men.) Now, I don’t consider myself a homophobe; I’ve had a close friendship with at least one guy I knew was gay. But my friend’s comment has prompted me to consider my own sexual identity. How do I know how “straight” I am?

Read the full post

Lately I have come to the conclusion that finding a passion in life, and for life, is something like being in a relationship. The spark of first love, they say, will inevitably die out; after that, you have to make a decision: Is the relationship (hobby, career, passion) strong enough and compelling enough to make it worth it to continue, or not? I’ve explored many different avenues, and only a handful have taken hold. My interests come and go — interests ranging from jazz guitar to the stock market. The story of my Stanford curriculum is that I take classes which start out very interesting, but most of the time I lose interest about halfway through, and so I have to drag myself across the finish line. Love affairs that fizzled.

Read the full post