I was born and raised in upstate New York on the campus of Rochester Institute of Technology. I have lived most of my adult life up and down the west coast, including many years in Seattle, San Francisco, Portland and Bend, Oregon. Working as a designer and creative director since the early 90's, I have traveled the world helping brands and organizations deliver better products and customer experiences. In my "free" time I tend to follow a very natural curiosity and passion for exploration, and for relating very human moments and stories through words and pictures. I usually have an odd old camera in my hand.
The last couple years have been especially interesting. In November 2010, I left a good job, sold my house and ended a long relationship. Doing so was difficult, but the next step came naturally. My dog, Wesley, and I took off on a six month long road trip around North America.
Two months into the trip, I took an unexpected detour to Egypt to see about a revolution, with a stopover in Hungary to get my citizenship. Hitting the road again over the next few months, I was soon stalking icebergs off the coast of Newfoundland and looking for a place to park. When I drove back to Seattle in the summer of 2011, I was out of work and wrestling with the meaning of my life. So, in April 2012, still thinking, I moved to Lausanne, Switzerland for 3 months to do a product launch with an event technology company.
I am currently hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, from Mexico to Canada, and expect to be complete by early October.
It's a family affair.
My father, also named Andy, heads the Photographic Imaging and Technology program at RIT, where he's been since the mid-sixties. My mother, Lucille, was a great hostess and sun worshipper who lived her life out peacefully in Florida, where there was always plenty of it. My sister, Jennifer, lives in the Bay Area with her family, and I have a brother, Cameron, kicking it in Brooklyn. My dad and Sue are spending their golden years sailing and sipping Manhattans.
Growing up, my sister and I had a university as a playground, which brought some interesting people and experiences into our lives. Some of my fondest memories growing up in the Northeast included the many canoe trips dad would take us on—down the Moose River to James Bay, Ontario and over Skinners Falls on the Delaware, and of course, Algonquin Park. There were even a couple cross country drives in an earnest, green Pinto wagon. No doubt, I got the bug a long time ago and have been perfecting the art of the epic road trip adventure ever since.
Though originally from Hungary, my paternal grandparents lived in Seattle when I was young. We would visit there most summers. Captain Andy was a naval architect and would often take us sailing aboard the beloved Adria. It was my grandmother, Gabriella, and teaching pro, aunt Minka, that taught and encouraged me to play tennis. I took my game very seriously back then and still try to remain competitive as the years accumluate. On my mom's side, it was Homer and June who brought a family full of warmth and dysfunction together around a pale yellow cottage with a screened-in patio on Lake Ontario. I was a master fisherman of minnows.
In spite of myself.
Admittedly, I was a below-average student with an above-average ability to wing it. I'm oddly proud of that. Sports came relatively easy and it was on those courts and pitches that I felt most at home—be it tennis, skiing, hockey, and of course, soccer—the beautiful game. College didn't hold my interest beyond a semester or two. I've learned by doing ever since, with some decent hits and misses along the way.
In 1994, after giving rock guitarist an LA try, toiling as a carpenter and draftsman, designing and building stage sets for local theatres for a pittance, and falling in love with a woman who wanted more than my meager living could provide, I figured it was time to get a real job. So I did. And for much of the 18 years since, I have been fortunate enough to travel all over the world solving interesting problems for some good companies, while working alongside some tremendously talented people.
I'll be editing and adding more to this story over the next month...