Love in Dark Settings

In answer to the courteous "Which pronoun do you prefer?" question, my answer is: None. Just my name is fine. If you find it necessary to use a pronoun, and you don't wish to use some gender-neutral pronoun ("they," etc.), then feel free to pick whichever pronoun you like. Whatever your choice, I won't be offended. The only thing that really disconcerts me is when people abruptly change pronouns in reference to me, once they learn what my biological sex is. I find that very confusing.

If you wish to address me formally, my only suggestion is that you take a cue from Dr. Seuss and add an honorary Dr. to my last name. (I hasten to add that I have not earned an actual doctorate - but neither had Dr. Seuss when he coined that pen name.)

I don't have any strong sense of gender identity. Because of that, I prefer not to think about whether I belong in the pink or blue categories. People I meet online who try to guess whether I'm male or female tend to guess both ways, so I sometimes describe myself as androgynous, though the label non-gendered is more accurate. I'm still in the same body I was born with, and I don't have any reason to change.

I live in the New Deal planned community of Greenbelt, Maryland, just outside Washington, D.C., in the split-level house I've lived in since age eleven. I share the top half of the house with my apprentice; the bottom half of the house is the dwelling place of Doug, a family member with whom I co-own the house, as well as our tenants.

Since December 2007 (after five years of considering taking this path), I've been endeavoring to living a life centered on simplicity. My primary model is the lives of Christian hermits, monks, and nuns (particularly the Desert Fathers and Mothers), but I also take inspiration from other people who have lived in simplicity.