The psychedelic memoir content of Growing Up Psychedelic presents certain sides of my life. Beyond that, some of the more conventional aspects of my biography include thirty-odd years involved in the computer technology industry, largely in product roles, at Apple Computer, The Santa Cruz Operation, Quest Software, and other companies. I graduated from New York University as an English major and worked in the New York book publishing world for five years before the dawning personal computer industry beckoned me. Along with my friend Ron Lichty, I co-authored the book Programming the 65816, which at the time (1986) was the new sixteen-bit processor for the Apple II GS computer.
Having grown up in Connecticut (primarily in Westport), in 1986, I moved to California and came shortly to reside near and then in the city of Santa Cruz. I live in town with my wife Marije, our five children (from our respective first marriages) and two grandchildren live in various parts of California, some close by. For the past ten years or so, I have been part of the core group of the local branch of the Anthroposophical Society, helping organize and plan our events and programs. For some years I have also hosted study groups reading works of Steiner, primarily focussed on his connection with Goethean Science. As of this fall (2023) I am excited to serve as a visting instructor at the Camphilll Academy in Aptos, CA, teaching a block titled Riddles of Modernity, exploring the societal and technological changes that have occurred since Steiner’s death in 1925, such as the development of nuclear weapons, medical and biochemical advances such as organ transplantation and the discovery of DNA; the ubiquity of computer technology and networking, and, of course, psychedelics.
Growing Up Psychedelic is my first book-scale project since my retirement from tech. In my retirement, I have also been privileged to serve as a CASA (Court-Appointed Special Advocate) working with children in the foster care system; to serve as a volunteer visitor with Hospice of Santa Cruz; and work as a Zendo sitter (providing psychedelic peer support) at the past two Burning Man events.