Just who the hell am I? Am I an itinerant pervert? A post-modern anti-hero? A random demographic sampling? It's often easier to say what I'm not, but let's have a go at the affirmative.

Everyone was a lot younger in the '80s. Especially me.

More than just a collection of dates, the 1980s were a time of discovery, innovation, tragedy and creativity. It saw the end of the Cold War and the start of MTV, a rise in unemployment and the fall of the Berlin Wall; G.I. Joe and Reaganomics, political correctness, the Walkman, the Tiananmen Square massacre and 'Live Aid'. There were turned up collars, poofed up hair and a band of breakdancers - then later skateboarders - in every neighborhood. Neon was all the rage and Coca Cola came in 2 different flavors.

In this decade a young Bripe Klmun began his assention to power. Born in the early 1970s, a few hours after midnight on a cold winter's evening under a waning moon, I grew up a child of pop culture - just barely remembering Vietnam, singing along to Travolta in the disco craze, changing jets into robots on Christmas morning, and swinging a plastic light-up sword at hoards of invisible Stormtroopers. Little has changed since that time.

Anyway, I'm in my mid-thirties as of this writing, I'm above average in height, weigh somewhere around 195 pounds, wear glasses, keep my head shaved and sport a goatee most of the year, I have six tattoos and several scars... a couple of which I gave purposely to myself (oh, but the dumb shit we do as kids, huh?).

The name "Bripe Klmun" is from one of those Star Wars name generators. It's the perfect moniker for me, as it incorporates my first and last names, as well as my mom's maiden name and the town where I was born. It's more a real name than my birth name, if you think about it.

Now, have I done business under other names, have I operated under other names at different parts of my life? Hell yeah. Does that have anything to do with who I am? No. Is it anybody else's business? Not in the slightest. I do what I have to do, and as a grown ass man, I don't brook any questioning of it.

More about me
I don't take myself too seriously... honestly I don't. I enjoy obscure humor, and on the right day I can laugh at almost anything... it takes a lot to offend or disgust me, however it takes nearly no time whatsoever for me to offend others. I try to be as compassionate and open-minded as possible without losing my identity.

When I was a young child I had the usual ideas of growing up to be an astronaut or paleontologist. In grade school I seldom gave the future much thought, and spent much more time reading comic books and pretending to be Ponch from "CHiPs" than anything else. By the time I was a teenager, the comic books had remained, but I still didn't give much thought to a career, other than occasional thoughts about going into the Air Force and flying jets (although I would have much preferred to be a rock star). Then I got it in my head that I wanted to join the Marine Corps, which I almost did... until a short series of strange and rather unrelated events later landed me on the path that brought me here.

I've been living overseas since retiring from the Army (well, retiring meaning until they decide to use me again) after 12 years of total military service - getting out at the rank of Sergeant First Class. This means that I occasionally work as a military consultant for print and web media (and one wedding). I was married for 8 years, producing 2 children (a girl and a boy) from that relationship. That part of my life was a terrifying existence of great joy and horrible depression, sometimes in the space of the very same day.

While I was married to my ex-wife, I forced myself into a weird indentured servitude to her. That was probably not a great idea. I took everything personal and lost weeks of sleep worrying that I was not doing enough to "deserve her". The big warning light was the absolute lack of any support whatsoever when my mother died. In any case, that life is over (thank your higher-power about that). I remarried in June of 2001 after a pretty nice courtship, if I may use an old-fashioned term. My wife is my best friend - if she has put up with my high-maintenance ass as long as she has, it's all good.

I am a giant science fiction and comic book fan. Lots of people tune out and turn off when I say that, but it's true. I have a house full of action figures and toys, many of which are things I owned as a child and have foolishly let disappear. I feel that letting go of the things that brought me enjoyment as a kid would be like turning away from who I am. As long as no one gets hurt, so what?

I've been lucky enough to end up working as a comic writer, webdesigner and tabletop wargaming designer. Some of my professional comic works which I have co-authored have sold over 500,000 copies. That's half-a-million, don'tcha know.

My profession by trade is a teacher - I teach everything from Mathematics to English (with a whole lot in between) to kids from 1st to 9th grade. It's the most rewarding, meaningful job that I've ever had in my life. The feeling I get when I make a breakthrough with a student is one of the best things in life.

Pay close attention: I do not add bands. Please do not ask me to add yours. That's one of the many, many reasons that I left MySpace. Nor do I want to be friends with anyone who has a "company" on Virb... so not send me a friend request, or it will be denied with extreme prejudice. I am absolutely not interested in giving out free advertising here.

Oh yeah - and friends don't let friends use glittery pics or other crap in comment areas. Please, don't try and leave me a comment with some lame-assed picture of a puppy that says, "Thank you for being my friend". I'll delete it. And don't invite me to any groups. Just because you think I might be interested does not mean that I will be. In fact, I probably won't be.

Finally, the editorials and opinions expressed on this site by me are my own, and do not necessarily reflect those of my employers, friends, or family. It's all me, folks. Deal with it.

My wife, WWII history, Ancient Roman history, Dinosaurs, Transformers, Writing, Papo, Comics, RPGs, Music, Film, Mathematics, Physics, Coffee, Science, Blogging, Computers, Robots, Pop culture, News, Skepticism, Conspiracy theories, Cats, Degus, Wolves, Ferrets, Atheism, The internet, Animal Rights, Hard science fiction, Teaching, DVDs, Zombies, Star Wars, Horror, Console gaming, Digital photography, Tattoos, Current events, The military, Linux, Exploration, Shaving my head, Sacrificing virgins to the goat, and giving false hopes to the elderly in nursing homes

Rammstein, Metallica, Mötley Crüe, Poison, Iron Maiden, Nephew, Johnny Deluxe, Run D.M.C., LL Cool J, Katie Melua, Napalm Death, Johnny Cash, The Eagles, Led Zeppelin, Chicago, The Rolling Stones, Nine Inch Nails, Shakira, The Ramones, Shania Twain, Pantera, Megadeath, Beethoven, The Misfits, Tori Amos, Journey, Black Flag, Robbie Williams, The Police, George Thorogood and the Destroyers, Ministry, Boston, Journey, Styx, Guns and Roses, Velvet Revolver, Queen, Primus, Samhain, Rollins Band, Jewel, The Cranberries, Tom Jones, The Offspring, Rage Against The Machine, Anthrax, Pink Floyd, AC/DC, The Donnas, Morbid Angel, Abba, Slayer, Anthrax, Danzig, Helloween, Thin Lizzy, Foreigner

300, Star Wars (all), Indiana Jones (all), The Lord of The Rings (all), A Midnight Clear, Aliens (all), Predator (all), A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, The Matrix (all), Night of The Living Dead, Dawn of The Dead, Day of The Dead, The Godfather (all), Scarface, Princess Bride, 28 Days Later, Sean of The Dead, Planet of The Apes (all), Full Metal Jacket, Throw Momma From The Train, Planes Trains and Automobiles, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Bueller's Day Off, Pulp Fiction, Clash of The Titans, Dances With Wolves, Drugstore Cowboy, Platoon, Superman, Batman, X-Men (all), Spider-Man (all), Evil Dead, Hot Shots (all), The Naked Gun (all), Bram Stoker's Dracula, Reservoir Dogs, Sin City, Gladiator, Dirty Dancing, Top Gun, The Dark Crystal, An American Werewolf in London, Kill Bill (all), From Dusk Till Dawn, Monty Python's The Life of Brian, Monty Python & The Holy Grail, Goodfellas, The Last Samurai, Hellraiser, A Nightmare on Elm St. (all), Braveheart, Leon (aka The Professional to the uninitiated), Pirates of the Caribbean (all), Godzilla (all), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, The Abyss, 12 Monkeys, Conan The Barbarian, Beauty and The Beast, Aladdin, The Lion King, V for Vendetta, Resident Evil (all)

Stargate SG-1, Battlestar Galactica, Prison Break, 24, Lost, King of The Hill, Alias, Gilmore Girls, Seinfeld, Firefly, Friends, The Simpsons, Desperate Housewives, CSI, CSI Miami, CSI New York, Family Guy, Rome, The Daily Show, 7th Heaven, Scrubs, M*A*S*H, Cheers, Mythbusters, Frasier, Little House on the Prairie, Futurama, The Greatest American Hero, Three's Company, The Dukes of Hazzard, The A-Team, Knight Rider, Bring 'Em Back Alive, The Incredible Hulk, The Cosby Show, Manimal, Roseanne, Automan, Street Hawk, Everybody Loves Raymond, King of Queens, Friends, Tales of the Gold Monkey, MacGyver, E.R., So You Think You Can Dance, Sex and The City

The Dark Tower I: The Gunslinger, The Dark Tower II: The Drawing of the Three, The Dark Tower III: The Waste Lands, The Dark Tower IV: Wizard and Glass, The Dark Tower V: Wolves of the Calla, The Dark Tower VI: Song of Susannah, The Dark Tower VII: The Dark Tower, Emperor: The Gates of Rome, Emperor: The Death of Kings, Emperor: The Field of Swords, Emperor: The Gods of War, The Naked and The Dead, Heir to the Empire, Dark Force Rising, The Last Command, Dragons of Autumn Twilight, Dragons of Winter Night, Dragons of Spring Dawning, Digital Fortress, Angels and Demons, Deception Point, The Da Vinci Code, The Zombie Survival Guide, Wolf of The Plains, The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy