During my last year of high school and the following year in Las Vegas, I discovered the counter culture there, which was made up of all the musicians, dancers, actors and stage people who worked in the major hotels. Almost any weekend one to witness spendid performaces of string quartets in the library, great theater in the community theatre, or great jazz performances like the free concerts at in my high schools Little Theater.I also hiked many miles around the mountains to the west of the city. This is the time when I began writing poetry, mainly for personal therapy and enjoyment. Later, friends and my daughter began encouraging me publish a collection. Many of my poems are about humanity's place in the natural world, how we function in it, and perceive it. Other poems are about human interactions, in love, and war and difficult social situations. I have spent nearly as much time on the water as in the classroom, so many of these use the sea as a back drop and metaphore. How we perceive the universe is a question I am continually asking.