August 13, 2002 - 10:25pm

Life Summary from 18 to 34.2995 years (as emailed to high-school friend Kyle)

July 1986 – October 1995: Moved to Huntington, WV and went to college on and off. Yes, for nine years.

September 1986 – Fall 1992: Was a DJ at both college radio station and local clubs. Waited tables for main income.

December 1986 – December 1989: Had spiked Robert Smith (of the Cure) hairdo, wore eyeliner, crazy earring. Drank much alcohol.

May 1987: Lost virginity to hot cocktail waitress named Shae in one-night stand.

June 1987 – December 1989: Met and dated and sometimes lived with girl named Wendy. Let the Robert Smith ‘do grow out and had just long ponytailed hair for many years to come.

September 1989: Being a business major, sat down in required Business Law class, read first few paragraphs of book, left classroom, changed major to Psychology. Which was much better suited to my then middle-of-back length hair.

January 1990 – October 1995: Met and dated and shacked up with girl named Tracey. Hair continued growing. Stopped drinking alcohol. Began smoking pot.

January 1990 – August 1993: DJ’d, booked, hung out in, and helped to remodel a great indy rock club named Gumby’s – saw many fantastic shows. Also spent a lot of time in Columbus and Cincinnati, OH and Lexington, KY seeing many more fantastic shows. Began to solidify a notion that music business would be my career.

August 1991 – September 1995: Left food service business to buy a record store with a close friend. Store was pre-existing in Huntington for 30 years, called Davidson’s Records. Began to make much less money than waiting tables, but became champion of the burgeoning music scene.

May 1992 – September 1995: Opened second Davidson’s Records across from college campus. Worked there alone 6 days a week for 3 years.

Sometime 1994: Begin to realize that record business wasn’t the way to get rich, EVER; relationship with live-in begins to stagnate, marijuana starts to become necessary in tolerating increasingly boring/poor lifestyle.

July 1995: Despite cult status as founding brother of local music scene, decide, with live-in, that change is necessary, begin to scout cool places to move to; decide on Wilmington, NC due to much larger size, free living arrangements with her best friend, proximity to small but prosperous film industry; lifelong dreams of making films begin to have greater immediacy.

September 1995: Sold 2600 of 3200 CDs, 950 of 1000 records, all furniture, appliances, and stuff collected over 9 years of living in Huntington, pack up two cars with the rest (including newly purchased Macintosh computer), tell business partner “good luck,” move to Wilmington, NC while girlfriend vacations with the best friend with whom we’ll be living.

October 1995 – July 1997: Got grunt job then later general-managed huge mom-and-pop store in Wilmington named School Kids Records. Record collection begins to grow again. By this time in my life, I know just about everything there is to know about music released between 1985 and 1995.

October 1995: Girlfriend of almost six years dumps me, begins long dark period of not dating all that much. As a reaction, begin to figure out many of the software programs that were included with Macintosh system. Design my first newsletter.

December 1995 – December 1997: Realize after several attempts that film business is very insular and difficult to break in to without having attended film school or being willing first to do shitty jobs for many years. Film aspirations get backgrounded. Start writing for, then designing pages for, then move into “office” of, then became number two in charge of small but growing sound/surf/skate fanzine in Wilmington called Juice. “Office” was two-bedroom house-on-stilts, 20 yards from the ocean. Interviewed many many bands. Wrote many many record reviews. Helped organize and execute two rather large music festivals with hundreds of bands, pro-skateboarders, surfing demos, and music industry trade show booths. Saw many many more shows. Music knowledge continues to grow unabated. Proficiency with design software, and general love of being a designer, grows at parallel rate. During this same time, I briefly date a woman with my same birthday (still one of the best ever, named Christy) and a former crack-addict with a kid (bad mistake).

June 1997 – October 1997: Publisher of Juice magazine moves to New York to be with fiancé. Deadlines for each bi-monthly issue begin to happen in NYC instead of NC requiring me to travel 14 hours for two weeks at a time. At same time, I quit record store to pursue freelance graphic design work.

October 1997: After a couple of these deadlines, and being that I have an offer of free place to stay for two months, I decide to move to NYC. I bring 50 of my favorite CDs, two weeks worth of my favorite clothes, my computer, and $300.

Mid-October 1997: Money runs out in two or three days. Free place to stay is basement of business in the Lower East Side of Manhattan (at the time, not the best neighborhood). Juice magazine publisher has me help write business plan and begins shopping it around, promising me larger salary if we sell it. Odd jobs, family grants, call to former business partner net enough cash to survive for a couple more weeks.

November 1997 – December 1999: Answer ad for job as Art Director for the Knitting Factory – a NYC club that for many years has featured avant-garde jazz and rock music, and which has 2 record labels, does 3-5 festivals per year and is world-reknowned as THE place to see new music. A place that has launched many music careers, has seen historic moments, and was on my short list of places I dreamed of working with in NYC. I get the job and plow into a highly intense, exhausting, rewarding, but ultimately frustrating two years as, eventually, Creative Director for the company. Meet many musicians I had idolized, including Lou Reed, David Byrne, David Bowie, Iggy Pop. Become friends with a few others. During this time, I briefly date my design assistant and realize what a bad idea THAT is (even though she was awesome). Discovered that in NYC, you can get pot delivered to your door in under an hour...

November 1997: Juice publisher jealous that I got a job (had too!!), begins to shut me out of shopping around the business plan that I wrote. Knitting Factory looking good so I tell her to insert business plan and 2-bit magazine in anus. At nearly same time, begin working with Mary-Noelle Dana, a French woman from Paris, who becomes my best friend, confidant, cheerleader, and sister-by-proxy.

April 1999: At 31, hair begins to thin in front, decide to cut off the waist-length curly red locks that have become a trademark of sorts.

December 1999: Having worked a good 75 hours a week for two years for substandard pay in a city that doesn’t really allow for substandard pay, and being that many artists with whom I’d worked were asking me to do freelance projects, I leave the Knitting Factory and go freelance-from-home.

December 1999 – present: Now I’m a freelance graphic designer in NYC, working almost exclusively in the music business. I’ve come to learn that being freelance alone is quite a feat and managing to work in my preferred area is almost impossible. First freelance client is former co-worker who starts record label called ropeadope. There is no money for a while, but I receive 3% ownership of company as pay. Record label takes off and signs distribution deal with Atlantic records, where the offices are to this day. Second big client is Beggars Banquet records who over the past 15 years or so have released many of my favorite records under their label 4AD. Third main client is King Biscuit Flower Hour records for whom I’ve designed covers for Steve Miller Band, Ringo Starr, Todd Rundgren, The Monkees and others. Have also designed many websites, program guides for a couple huge NYC rock festivals, directed a music video for some close friends (actually, my other two best friends) who are musicians, and have seen many more hundreds of concerts, mostly for free.

As of today: Hair continues to thin, but is alright for a 34-year-old. Body is way out of shape, but could be worse. Mind is still searching the horizon for the next thing to do and sharp as ever. Somewhat of a work-a-holic. Intuition about people and music is at near-psychic levels. (Mostly) quit smoking pot after abusing for several years. Started drinking a lot more and quickly have realized that I’m not in my twenties any more with regard to the drinking thing. STILL want to make a film. Even started writing a screenplay. Thinking about quitting the freelance thing to start a record label of my own. To this day, have never been paid what I’m really worth because I’ve always chosen to do good work for those who can’t pay as much and chosen to do things that I honestly enjoy. Which means integrity and happiness way, way up; checking account balance way, way down – and NO savings. Childless, never married, still living with a roommate, haven’t owned a car in 5 years.

And now that I’ve had to put the last, what, 17 or so years of my life in perspective, I really only have a few regrets:

I was a BETA TESTER for Yahoo!. One of 4000 people from around the country who tested their first graphical www site before it went live. A FUCKING BETA TESTER, I knew without any doubt that they had latched on to a huge idea and that they were going to be a big company eventually - and I never bought stock when they went public. I had a friend who did, and sold much of it at the peak of the bubble, and he is rich.
I haven’t had enough sex.
I never saw the Pixies live in a club, even though I had a couple of chances.

And there are a few personality quirks that have developed over the years that aren’t all that cool:

I’m totally a workaholic. Work has come before everything in my life, most notably the thing that I mention in number 2 above.
I get really really mean and diamond-sharp frustrated when someone I work with is stupid, inept, clueless, or otherwise shitty at their job, especially if they are the type that refuse to accept that that is a possiblity. My experience has been that stupidity, ineptness, cluelessness and general shitty-ness has always increased proportionally with the amount of POWER said person has to balance the scale with. The level of rage I have with this knowledge, especially when I must subordinate myself to this person, has prevented me from taking high-paying jobs or advancing past a certain point in my careers.
I think so much of myself at times that it’s hard to accept compliments, and way too little of the complimenter.
I think so little of myself at times that it’s hard to accept compliments, and way too much of the complimenter.
As hard as I try, I just can’t keep up with doing all the things I say I’m going to do.