I was raised in Texas in a conservative middle class home. I prepared myself for life as a minister in my youth, but I couldn't constrict my imagination to the tenets of organized religion. In college I studied philosophy, literature, and history, eventually losing interest in any kind of life within the system. I set out instead to be an adventurer and writer.

Several years later I became interested in permaculture when I read the book Final Empire (William Kotke) and then later read the Ringing Cedars Series (V. Megre). Visions of a happier world inspired me to move to Oregon and get plugged into a community project.

I now work on a permaculture project in Southern Oregon, part of a larger localization initiative. Gateway Gardens is 80 hillside acres where we grow and preserve food, host gatherings and events, and dream up ways to help nurture positive images in culture.