"That mountain you’ve been carrying, you were only supposed to climb." – Najwa Zebian

Businesses

From my first job in sales to owning a bar to my first technology company where, in 1985 I won Georgia's FastTec 50 award, I've always been fascinated by the challenges of business. My two current projects, TapToReport and GetToKnowMe both feed my two greatest passions, keeping people safe and helping people find healthy romantic relationships. You can learn more about each project below.

  • TapToReport

  • Imagine an app that gives teachers a one button call for help or can send an alert to place a school on lockdown. When minutes matter, getting notifications out as fast as humanly possible saves lives.
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  • GetToKnowMe

  • Years ago I consulted with several of the big dating app companies and I thought there had to be something between the dating app and the constant cycling through coffee dates and ghosting and everything else.
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Books

I never thought I'd own a bar, never thought I'd be a single dad, never thought I'd write a single line of code, so imagine my surprise when I found myself compiling notes for a book, talking with friends about those notes, having friends criticize the concept but moving forward anyway to produce The Man Puzzle. Now, life has again thrown a few twists my way and the result will be two new books, Letters From Prison and The Violin. Both stories are near and dear to my heart and writing them has been incredibly cathartic and has made me question many of my life’s choices along with teaching me a few lessons.

  • The Man Puzzle

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  • For years I have been "that guy." You know the one, the guy women always turn to with their "why did my man do ___" questions, and the one who patiently...
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  • Letters From Prison

  • What happens when you discover a son or daughter you never knew you had? How would you proceed forward with the relationship? How would you feel if that relationship were cut short before you ever had a chance to meet?
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  • The Violin

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  • Know that old expression: "Be careful what you wish for?" What happens when what you wish for is right in the palm of your hands and then, suddenly and without warning
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My Short Stories

Occasionally I write a short story and post it here. Often times these are random memories from my past, sometimes it's a fragment of a book that doesn't serve the story but is still worth telling... or really just an itch I need to get out of my brain. Other times, these are just random observations or a piece of poetry. Here are the most recent stories:

I Got Fired

angry boss pointing finger
It was Sunday, shortly before noon, when my phone rang. I answered and heard the familiar voice of my teenage son, and after a few pleasantries, he asked, "Dad, can I come live with you?" "Certainly," I replied. "But why do you want to?" "If I stay here, my life will not end…

The Confession

image of a confessional booth
I knew it was getting close to my daughter's two-week summer vacation with me, and I knew there’d be questions about what to pack, where we'd be going, etc., but when I answered this call, I wasn’t expecting to hear a crying and panicked daughter. I asked, "What’s wrong?" "Mom…

The Old/Young Game

How The Game Began: My daughter Katie and I have always loved our road trips. We played games, talked, invented stories, and just enjoyed our car time together. On one particular trip, Katie had just finished 8th grade and was about to turn 14, and we were driving from my place…

The Watcher

This story begins at the Knoxville Museum of Art, where I volunteered at the front desk on Friday afternoons. It’s a great gig because you get to be the welcoming, smiling face that people need, and sometimes you get to meet some amazingly wonderful people. If you’re facing the…

What? Poetry?

Okay, I'll be the first to admit that I'm no Wadsworth or Longfellow but every once in a while the words come out. Here are the most recent poems my friends have enjoyed:

Going Home

An old blackberry
The drive down is longIt seems to get longer each yearIt was late when I pulled into the drivewayI let out an audible…

Who Is She?

She’s every ray of sunshine that has ever warmed the earth She’s every drop of rain that’s ever given life She’s every…

Missing Soul

Man longing for another soul
I was born a million years ago and my heart has sought but one soul In the mornings I feel her hair flow softly across…

May Your Love

Candle of Hope
On Monday 12/18/2023, I received a letter from my sister-in-law Jamie. She'd been sorting through "the box" of family…

returned coordinates: 39.03947,-77.49181

testing to see if it's already in the DB