About this site
Welcome!
Here you'll find entertaining and sometimes funny content about 1). all things creative - creative processes, creative work, creative lifestyles - 2). single urban living and dwellers, 3). travel (I lived all over the world) and just for an odd mix, 4). some spirituality. If I can, I hope I can help you with all four of these things, but if not, I hope it'll be at least entertaining and sometimes funny.
On the creative front, I - James the Mime - was, you guessed it, a professional mime. Mime was a blast. I worked on cruise ships, off-Broadway shows, and with symphonies and operas. As a playwright, I've been featured at HERE, The Abingdon, The Actor's Studio, The Great Plains Theatre Conference, The Last Frontier Theatre Conference, The NY Fringe, The John Houseman Theater among many others. My writing has been published all over the web including at HGMLQ, fictionontheweb.com, The Story Shack, and I was awarded a prestigious Hawthronden Fellowship in Playwriting. I was one of six playwrights, out of three hundred, accepted into BMI's Musical Theatre Program when I was in my twenties.
I starred in several sketch comedies in underground places in NYC (I lived there sixteen years) and looking back on my life, probably could have "made it" that way, but I had higher ambitions as an artist with a capital "A." I was also fortunate enough to be on scholarship with renowned acting teacher, Stephen Strimpell. Stephen was one of the few geniuses I've met.
However, except for mime, creatively I was unable to make a living. I had an opportunity with a Broadway/film director in 2003 (he directed my play at The Abingdon), but it was too much for me to do so many compromises. So I turned down his offer to make my play into a film. I've come now to realize the goal of life is to die with your soul intact, not to give in to ego maniacs.
Spiritually, I've always been a seeker, and consider myself a Celtic Christian. I'm a certified Boot Camp intuitive, have my Masters in Education from California State University. I'm also a 200 hour certified Tantra Yoga instructor, where I spent thirty days in an ashram in Nepal.
As far as travel goes, I got my M.A. in Education for Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages in 2011 and there I met a second genius Dr. Lynne Diaz-Rico. I've lived and taught in Saudi Arabia, UAE, China, Thailand and Nepal. And I've always lived as a single dweller, so I have learned several things over the years on how to save money with travel and urban living. Many teachers spent their money when they taught overseas and have nothing to show for their efforts, other than good memories. I managed to save enough to retire.
Currently, I'm writing novels. I'm working with a home-spun group of Englishmen, at Ars Notoria. I've completed three full novels so far and am really enjoying the process. About Ars Notoria: we were all English teachers abroad and now we're making and publishing art.
I DO miss performing in sketch comedy, but am not interested in Hollywood (although I may take some improv classes here in SoCal). So, I'm trying to find a place where I can live and do comedy (I lived in Chicago a year and didn't really like it although I wouldn't mind going back).