I am Ken (also known as Ken Takara). Or, to be even more dull, I am a normal, somewhat boring, American male in his middle years, working as a professional software engineer. in the Silicon Valley. I am also a composer and an artist. How dull!
Although I work with computers, I am not a computer freak. Yes, it is true that I am tied to my keyboard, and yes, I do program them. But I only program when I must, and I try not to enjoy it too much. I enjoy philosophy, talking incessantly, sushi, and pro football. I compose orchestral music in the Classical/Romantic strain, I'm an artist (in a traditional, pictorial/illustrative style), and a writer of stuff that nobody wants to publish.
My favorite artists are the great, Old Masters (dead, European males) such as J. W. Waterhouse, N. C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle... um, hmm...
Oops. N. C. Wyeth and Howard Pyle were American (Waterhouse was European). And I think the term, "Old Master" refers to guys who painted about four hundred years ago and ended up in museums. My favorites all died in the 20th century. Of course, they are all dead (which is kind of like "old"), and they are (were) all white (which is kind of like "European"). And they are (were) all male (which is kind of like, um... "male")...
Okay, so I admit that my favorite artists are all illustrators, or people who paint in an illustrative style. I suppose I should include other, modern, living favorites, like Michael Parkes, Darrel K. Sweet, Michael Whelan, or the Brothers Hildebrandt. They're all not Old Masters, dead, or European.
Oh yes, I also don't mind being a bit foolish. And for what it's worth, I'm not European or of European descent (I'm Asian/American). Heck, I've never been to Europe, and I may not make it to Europe for a while (I don't like to travel). I'm not dead, I'm not great, and I'm not an Old Master. Oh, gosh, that makes me nearly nothing!
Cool! Hi! My name is Ken. I'm nothing!
I also happen to like Scott Adams, who is not dead, and Douglass Adams who is now (darn).
Ken Takara, La Honda, CA Friday, December 07, 2001