10 things I am sure that you dont know about me...

1- I am a total Indiaphile. Which means that I have an unquenchable interest in Indian culture, religion, art and cinema. And yes, Bollywood stuff too. My obsession with India began many years ago and I have some pretty cool Indian stuff that I have managed to collect. India is the ultimate dichotomy...incredibly beautiful but also terribly ugly. I like to think of India as representative of the human condition. I have a keen interest in Shaktism...you can google it.

2- Back in the '80's, when I was a wild youngster (as opposed to a wild oldster) I was the Lead Vocalist/Lyricist for Bent, an old-school Goth band. My stage name was Dave Grave. We did fairly well. We broke up due to all the typical band drama that kills off way too many bands, at which point I became Lead Vocalist for a metal band w/a nice Goth vibe called the Web. And yes, after too much band drama we also broke up (translation: I shacked up w/the Lead Guitarists ex...and promptly got engaged!). The cool thing was that I got to travel and play all around the southwest. I got to hang out w/Jello Biafra from the Dead Kennedy's and still have a letter he wrote to me on "Alternative Tentacles" stationary. He wanted to sign Bent to his label.

3- Many years ago I began customizing motorcycles. I put together a great radical '70's style chopper that I dubbed Elvira. Nowadays I have 2 custom bikes...a BMW R90/6 "bobber" that I ride occasionally and an awesome 1700cc Roadstar that I have dubbed Elvira 2. I freaking live to ride! Any idea yet how I feel about winter in the midwest?

4- My interest in Roller Derby actually started with Banked Track. I was a total "Banked-track Snob" and ignored all the Flat-track leagues that were popping up all over the country. I had the attitude that Banked-track was so much faster and more exciting than Flat-track could ever be. And there was that connection to the old school Derby that couldnt be ignored. However, when Indy got their own Flat-track team I figured, "Ahhh...what the hell. May as well check it out". The rest, as they are keen to say, is history. Do I even need to say how crazy I got over Flat-track derby?? Naaaahhh...didnt think so.

5- I lived in Albuquerque, Mew Mexico for about 6 years. There was an incredible underground music scene that totally thrived in the '80's. My band, Bent, played live on KUNM radio. Everyone knew everyone else in the scene and we all, for the most part, supported each other. I miss the Land of Entrapment...aaaahhh Albucrackee. I had a cool apartment in the Sandia foothills for a while and when I looked out the lil window from my shower I could see the majestic Sandia Mountains. We used to hike up in the mountains, dodging rattlesnakes and picking up pinon nuts off the ground which we greedily ate. It was beautiful baby.

6- I have an old pukey Pug dog named Winston. He smells like a dead body and wretches constantly. He gets to gagging and choking and its just a matter of time until he blows. Its really nasty. I have had him since he was 8 weeks old. He is now almost 12. Ummmm...how long do Pugs live??

7- I absolutely LOVE old European cars. I have had 2 Saabs, 2 VW's, an Audi and a BMW. I currently drive a great old Saab 900 Turbo convertible. One of the best cars I've ever owned. I gave my other Saab 900 to my son, which he STILL drives back and forth to Indiana State University. Saab makes awesome cars (until GM came along...doh!). I have my eyes open for a great deal on an old Volvo 240 in good shape. They are freaking bulletproof!!

8- I am a "Commercial Sales Rep" for Lowes. Which is a fancy way of saying that I sell huge piles of building materials and obscure hardware to Contractors, Custom home bulders, Drywallers, Painters, Framers, etc ad nauseum. Lowes has insisted on promoting me and I will soon be what they like to call a Millwork Specialist. Yeah...dont ask. I live 2 miles from work, and that my friends is KEY. I love being able to go home for lunch. Its kinda like being in High School. Hey...I said KINDA.

9- I attended IUPUI with aspirations of becoming an Architect. Had I known that becoming an Architect consisted of taking classes like "Stress Physics" I would have never considered it! I eventually dropped out when life got in the way and I was tired of being broke all the time. Ramen noodles suck.

10- I have an incredible collection of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" memorabilia. I will say flat out that Buffy TVS is my all-time favorite TV show ever and nothing, I mean nothing, comes close to Buffy in my opinion. That show had it all: drama, comedy, horror and sci-fi. I also have quite a few "Angel" items too. I have all of the dvd box sets to "Buffy" and "Angel". My obsession with all things Vanpyr has never subsided and to this day I am a pushover for practically any half-decent vampire movie or TV show. So yes...that means that I am one of around 12 people that actually watched and enjoyed such TV shows as "Blood Ties" and "Moonlight". I loved the "Blade" and "Underworld" movie series of course. I am such a Goth sometimes...