My true name is Reid Branson. I was born in 1956 in Grangeville, Idaho, and grew up in Sacramento, California. I can't honestly recommend either place for vacation or habitation. I graduated from Northwestern University in the 80s with a BS and MA in theatre, and in 1990 with a BS in Nursing from the University of Washington.
I am a registered nurse and work in HIV care. I consider myself a Buddhist, although I think the Buddha himself would chuckle that any of us would even think of affiliating ourselves with any belief system, since it is this sort of clinging to identity he advocated against.
I have been married for 25 years (as of 2005) to Kathy, and we have a son, Mitchell, who is the one who introduced me to E2 (he is steerforth, in case you want to take a peek). Mitchell is 23, which makes me feel ancient. We three have lived in Seattle since 1984.
In a former life, I was a professional actor.
The nickname basq derives from Basquiat, the painter, whose work I admire because it is bold and uncompromising. Basquiat died far too young, as did many of my heroes, from a heroin overdose.
Why is it that biographies do such a poor job of telling people who you really are? I know, bare facts don't tell much, but I can't think of any very good way to let you know more about me, except that I am a man who has always (as far back as I can remember) sought the truth and had a thirst to know stuff. Of course, the Buddha would say that even that thirst is a source of suffering rather than enlightenment, but I guess I will just have to chew on that koan for a while, because I find great joy in the search.
My email is reid.branson@netscape.com