I'm a newcomer, so by definition an obscurista. Offer 10 odds & ends as introduction.

1. My first ancestor in N. American (New France) arrived in 1643. Probably not voluntarily.

2.   Based on genealogical research, I have just an incredible amount of inbreeding in my family history. It's a wonder I can drool.

3. Graduated in the fifth quintile of my high school class. See 2.

4. Worked 10 blue-collar years before going to college - truck driver,
construction laborer, short-order cook, roofer, gas attendant (remember those?), drill press operator, carpenter,..

5.   Played keyboards for a while in top-40, disco and reggae bands. Recovered.

6.   BS in Latin American Political Economy; MS in Urban & Regional Planning

7.   Stabbed by "entrepreneur" in Quito, Ecuador; lost spleen, some lung damage, massive internal bleeding, stayed alive until surgery by choosing to live

8. While I eating peanut butter and banana sandwich on a factory lunch break in rural North Carolina, co-worker Bobby Joe said "What you got there, Meerit?" I described. He responded that "Why, I'd just as soon eat cat shit. What you need to get you is a peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwich. Now that's eatin'." He was right, of course. Geography of culture. Matters of taste cannot be disputed.

9.   Found my singing voice at the age of 48.

10. Believe that alternatives to corporate globalization are not only
necessary, but possible.

- Merritt