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Who is DurLlwyd? pronounced (Dur' loo
id)
Personality:
Rational
I am rational to the point that I have sometimes been called cold.
Although in my own defense, I must say that I do not feel that is an
accurate assessment. Striving to be calmly analytical is most often
something done to keep my own emotions in check so that I may deal with
issues of importance without clouding them. Of course, this rarely works
out quite as well as hoped.
Intelligent
I am generally considered to be very intelligent. This is of course
difficult to say without seeming immodest, but I think this is an
important enough part of who I am to warrant risking immodesty. By any
standard measure I am well within the top 1 percent. I have a great love
of learning and am curious almost to a fault. I have been lucky enough in
my life to have had some truly outstanding mentors. I do however, have a
particular weakness with the written word so please forgive all the
dyslexic typo's.
Passionate
I have a great love of life and experience. I believe that life is best
lived dynamically. I know what it is to love and be loved - I have been
taught that by some of the truest friends in the world. I have tried to
live my life by the following rule. "Our destinations must be chosen by
our heart, but the path must be chosen by our mind." I believe that
passion is in both the laugher and the tears that we experience in our
lives. The times of peace allow us to learn from both. I would not trade
the disquiet in my life for a life filled with only peace and harmony. It
is the full measure of life that I hope to experience, and yes. typing
those words does scare the hell out of me.
Loyal
I pride myself on being fiercely loyal. I hold myself to relatively few
moral tenets, but I have great commitment to "honor personal trust". For
me this is a double-edged sword. I expect a lot of the people I call
friend, but I am willing to give a lot as well. This one trait probably
brings the most pain and the most joy to my life. The closer someone is to
me the more I am willing to give, and the more I expect - very often I
find that I expect too much. To me promises are sacred. Through human
frailty I may have failed to live up to a few in my life, but I will not
knowingly break one. Needless to say, I don't make many promises.
Adaptive
Neither experience nor intelligence is of any use if we do not go to the
effort of employing them. I have made many mistakes in my life both great
ones and small ones. While I failed to recognize many of the small ones I
have always held an intense commitment to learn from the great ones. I
have more recently come to learn that one of my greatest mistakes has been
to failing to learn from the smallest of them. The great ones we pay a
high price for, the small ones are a chance to learn before we must bear
true cost.
My Experiences:
My life has been dynamic and has encompassed a range of experiences. I
have been fortunate that I have been granted so much. Rather then try to
explain my life I will offer a few highlights roughly in chronological
order.
Taken a 500 mile walk along the North East of the USA in order to spend
some time reflecting
Planned and led a 1 year long expedition into the North woods
(The expedition failed and as a result, I learned more about myself then I
ever expected I would.)
Sat with friends while listening to the loons and the wolves and watching
the moon all the way from rise to set over a lake in the middle of Canada.
That was one of the most glorious nights of my life.
Served as a sniper in the US Military
Developed a style of Martial Arts called Godo Ryu and taught both military
and civilian students
Spent a Christmas alone
Watched the moon sparkle off a snowfall in the desert
Lived in a Chinese grad student community and learned a healthy fear of
Chinese medicine
Worked for a while as a writer. I wrote on partisan warfare tactics and
published a book on the subject
Slept holding hands with a friend
I took up gymnastics somewhere around the age of 28. I became fairly
proficient at floor, although I ran into some problems with landings. This
was followed shortly by successful spinal surgery to repair a damaged
spine.
Shared a fine Cognac with a friend while sitting on a Alaskan mountain
I have had the privilege to spend 6 months as the training partner for a
nationally ranked bodybuilder. I am not nearly his equal in strength or
appearance but it was an amazing learning experience
I have spoken at conferences on the state of technology in the financial
industry
I have spent lazy evenings doing nothing but napping
I have loved more deeply than I believed I could
Things I yet hope to do:
Climb Mount Kilimanjaro with someone close to me (hope to do soon)
Spend some time walking the Great Wall of China
Share all time that I may with those who I love most dearly
Personal Tenets:
Relish every experience and live it fully
Treat trivialities as trivialities
Honor Personal trust
Embrace what is
Accept death
Be dynamic
Be happy
Pursue the path of the warrior
Religious Beliefs:
Agnostic - with tendencies toward certain Celtic philosophies: This is a
bit of an oversimplification but it will have to do for now.
Other Interests:
Talking about everything: especially, sociology, philosophy, and
technology
Medieval Re-enacting & Renaissance Faires
Martial Arts
Coffee shops
Weight Lifting
Eating out
Movies - both at home or at the theater
Role playing games
Science fiction & Fantasy
Target Shooting
Sailing - as in sailboats
Hiking / long walks
Anything related to human performance
Travel
Sleeping - naps are good
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