I was born in Jacksonville, Florida in 1955. My parents, younger brother and younger sister moved several times before, at age 5, settling in San Mateo, California. In many ways, I was a classic “good kid who did the usual good things” when I was an adolescent. In many ways, I was a classic “good kid who did the usual good things” when I was an adolescent.

In other ways, I tended to defy convention. My mother was eccentric; she was a balloon and an airplane pilot, for example. She encouraged her kids to be unconventional and I appreciated her encouragement.

I spent two summers doing trail crew in the Puget Sound area with the Student Conversation Association.

My brother and I attended a British boarding school during my freshman year in high school. My father was a consultant sent to Dusseldorf for a year, and he placed us in the Oratory School. I still have a cricket bat for reasons that are unclear.