LIFE, LIVING FREE, AND MY TRAVELS
The blog of a stoic minimalist who wants to live free, enjoy life, and help people.
A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF MY LIFE & TRAVELS
Updated May 2024 -
I was born in the USA although I renounced my citizenship in 2023 and now hold passports from Argentina and St. Kitts. My parents were from Wyoming. My father was a Civil Engineer and worked extensively on the foreign aid-driven infrastructure push for the developing world during the 60's and 70's. Both parents were severe although functional alcoholics. But I turned out ok. 😊
I have lived 80% of my life outside of the U.S. and will probably never go back. I’m an introvert by nature, and a minimalist and stoic in outlook. I believe in being kind, although I do have a dominant streak in my personality. A look at my book list will explain that 😊. I’m not terribly fond of competitiveness either. I believe cooperation is the best mindset.
I loathe and despise bullies and extremism in any form.
I was educated eclectically (home study, correspondence courses, etc.) until the age of 13, then I was sent to a Jesuit boarding school in England (while my parents were in West Africa and the Philippines) until I finished my ‘O’-Levels. I then got my bachelor’s degrees from a small liberal arts university in Utah (my parents were worried about me adapting to American culture 😊 ... and they were right).
After a brief, though intense, university experience, I entered the military for about 10 years and got married to my best friend during that time. However, various life changes, including an [amicable] divorce, led me to follow in my father's footsteps by working overseas. I started in Istanbul, Turkey, then migrated east over the years; Saudi Arabia, then Asia. And Asia (Thailand, Philippines, Hong Kong, Japan, and other places) is where I have remained, although since 2017 I spent a lot of time in South America (Argentina / Colombia).
I ended up stuck in the U.S. for 15 months after evacuating from Argentina during COVID. As soon as I got the vaccine I escaped but wandered the world in exile until March of 2022 when the Philippines finally allowed foreigners back in. My ‘dream’ was to spend my life traveling the world with about 3 - 4 months of each year spent in 3 - 4 countries. That has faded under the stress of constant travel. Now I just want to live in Thailand most of the time. I am considering spending some time in Spain to get a Spanish passport.
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Argentina
St. Kitts & Nevis
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American (kind of)
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England / America / Home Study / Online
10 ‘O’- Levels
B.Sci. - Mathematics/ Computer Science - Physics
MBA [International Management]
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Pakistan / Indian Sub-continent
Africa (Sierra Leone & Ethiopia)
Middle-East (Kuwait)
South-East Asia (Vietnam + Philippines)
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Buenos Aires
Medellín
Istanbul
Manila
Bangkok
Hong Kong
Toronto
Salt Lake City
Angeles City
Pattaya
Dallas
London
Dhahran
Las Vegas
Varna
Sofia
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Turkey
Saudi Arabia
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Japan
Malaysia
Indonesia
Numerous others [Europe, Canada, Asia]
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Military - SO
Communications
Engineering, Other stuff
IT - Networks + Systems - Design & Build
Software Development
Project Management
Database Development
Hotel / Condo construction, development & operations
Previous Lives:
Fast Food
Road Construction
Parking Lot Security
Mainframe Operator
Retail Store Manager
Bouncer
Bartender
Harley Mechanic 😊
Pork Smuggler
(I only considered myself good at the last two on the list.)
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The Story of O - Pauline Réage
Tactics of Mistake - Gordon R. Dickson
The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins
Essentialism - McKeown
Inferno - Max Hastings - Everyone should read
Louis L’Amour - Anything
Marcus Aurelius - Meditations
Tolkien - Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit
Steig Larssen - Millenium Trilog
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Italian
Indian
Thai
I'm single, although I have one son, 4 grand-children, and I still count my ex-wife as one of my best friends 😊.
I love studying languages …
The map above are my flights since 2001. I’m working on adding my flights since 1961 but it is taking some time to reconstruct that. Working 1990 - 2000 now.