About Me

I grew up in the midwest. Neither of my parents went to college. Dad worked the graveyard shift. Mom raised the kids. Somehow, I ended up as the all-American boy: straight-A's, star athlete, captain of the football team, homecoming court, cheerleaders, etc.

I was nominated to one of the military academies by every member of my congressional delegation. Despite my success there, I decided a military career was not for me--something about following orders. I transferred to one of the top engineering schools in the country, and graduated at the top of my class. I received a fellowship for graduate studies that enabled me to get my master's degree from an even more prestigious university.

I spent 13 years at a corporate behemoth, where I met my wife, received 17 patents, and designed parts that shipped in millions and millions of products worldwide. Burnt out on the corporate world, I moved to Sydney to work for a small research firm. A year later, I gave up the Dilbert life and retired. I was 38. My wife was 33. That was 2008.

We did not inherit a bunch of money. We do not have a trust fund. We live in a van. That was the plan. It is not the American dream, but it is our dream, and we are living it.

We write about our adventures here. I write about other things at sturgeonmouth. It's usually cynical, often sarcastic, and sometimes offensive...just like it's author.