Tonight was the first night of ENG 519, and I think this is going to be a fun class. One of our assignments is to introduce ourselves in our blog, so here it goes.
My name is John Martin. Note: Whenever you follow any of the links in this blog entry, use the “Back” button on your browser to return here to my blog.
I went to 7 different schools the first 7 years of school. The gory details are here.
I like to stay busy. Click here to see a typical month for me, in fact it’s this month’s calendar from my Palm Pilot. My friends are always saying, “Can you do x on y?” I respond, “Check my calendar.” (You can see my ski trip planned during Spring Break in the month of March’s calendar. 🙂)
I’ve had the opportunity to travel to some wonderful places in my lifetime. This is the advantage of being old. 🙂 Click here to see a chronological listing — 2004 is at the bottom.
I have many interests, which is why my calendar is always so full. I love to two-step and line dance. All of the dances I know so far are, you guessed it, listed here.
I see very few mainstream movies, mostly because they usually don’t engage me. These are the movies I have seen — 2004 to present.
I do not own a television, and haven’t since March of 2002. Instead, I see plays, and attend theater. Several years ago, I worked just outside NYC for about 6 months, and I saw a ton of Broadway plays. You can see a list of them (surprise, surprise), along with lectures, operas, and concerts I’ve attended, here.
In 2003, I went on the ride of a lifetime. I rode my bicycle 350 miles from Raleigh to Washington, DC. It’s all documented. Hmmm. It starts here. I haven’t completed all of the days yet, some 1.5 years later, but you can actually hear some funny recordings on one of the pages. During some of the ride, I carried a digital recorder with me, and recorded pit stops, and sometimes even while riding. You can listen to a couple of them on this page.
As you might have guessed by now, I like having things organized and documented. My cremation plan is fully paid for, and my my last wishes are documented, including my memorial service plans and my obituary.
As if all that wasn’t enough to “get to know me,” you can see pictures of me growing up by clicking here.
If you’ve lasted this long, you surely are a trooper! Thank you for your interest and attention. I look forward to learning about each of you in your blogs.