A Little About Greg

Whenever I contemplate writing, well, anything but especially an introduction about myself, I always struggle with brevity or verbosity. Considering the focus of this website is about my writing and thoughts about the creative process with the occasional meandering into the obscure, I suspect a broad approach may be in order. I will lean towards you, the reader, to constructively assess if I am on target.

So, where to begin? I was conceived on…really? Did you think I was going to start THAT far back? This is not intended to be the beginning of James A. Michener novel! I know some of you out there may not get the reference but, hey, that is okay.

I was born in January 1967, the youngest of five children; one sister and three brothers. My father was an auto mechanic for well over 50 years until his departure from this world in 2012 at the age of 84. My biological mother departed one year after I was born due to cancer. My father remarried shortly thereafter and I cannot think of anyone better suited to take on the responsibility of raising us four boys than the mother I have now. My sister was already on her own when my father remarried, so she did not have the “luxury” of putting up with our misdeeds.

The first phase of my life took place in the thriving metropolis of Salem, Oregon. In reality, Salem is far from being a metropolis but I like to occasionally throw in a dash of sarcasm to keep things interesting.

As I matured, my general outlook on life ventured in to the bleak and dissatisfying world of false realities. I always wore blacks, grays and browns further mystifying my mother’s mind as to why I did not like anything but those colors. When asked by those around me why I did, I would simply say they reminded me of the colors of death, while in the same breath utter a fake laugh to deter them from thinking I was serious. I was not a Goth kid by any means, which is not meant to sound like a negative statement towards those who have the fortitude to display who they really are on the outside for everyone to see. I looked like your typical kid down the street. In truth, I was hiding behind a mask designed to keep me safe, which only served to hurt me later in life.

At an early age, I demonstrated an affinity for story telling and creative writing. When Star Wars burst on to the scene when I was only 10 years old, the seed to become a creative writer was planted. Science Fiction and Fantasy quickly became my genre of choice, serving to get me through some very challenging times in my life.

After graduating from high school in 1985, I entered my second phase of life by joining the Air Force as a Security Specialist in September until my honorable discharge in 1994. I had the opportunity to serve in Nebraska, Germany, and Montana while volunteering to be deployed in support of the first Desert Storm conflict. I could go on at length about how my experiences in the military shaped my realities but suffice to say it was both a positive and negative experience; the extent of which will be explored in this blog. In the meantime, let’s put this introduction on the fast track.

My third and current phase of life is where I have experienced my most significant period of growth on a mindfulness and humanistic level.  When I began working in the government sector for the state of Oregon in the year 2000, the universe put some of the best mentor’s I could ask for on my path towards self-discovery – the only requirement was I had to let go of everything I perceived to be true. Embracing such a philosophy required shedding a facade so expertly crafted that to this day, I sit back and smile in amazement at where I am now.  I would be grossly understating this was a difficult path to take but it is one I would gladly walk over again.

I would be remiss in closing this introduction if I did not mention my greatest source of inspiration; one who keeps me grounded and holds me accountable. Who is this saint willing enough to put up with my idiosyncrasies and smack me around when I act like an ass? It would be my husband of 23 years, Jared. I would not be here writing this if it were not for him.

There you have it. What I have written above are merely small tidbits of who I am. It is my hope a gleam of commonality in these words will encourage you to explore this website further.

Rest assured, the interesting parts are yet to come.