I was born in Queens, NYC way back in 1956, on the day Elvis Presley recorded "Hound Dog." I developed a 'curious interest' in Buddhism while in High School, after my sister died when I was 16. But it wasn't until my first marriage began to unravel that I finally began to practice yoga and got my butt to a zendo. I had been scrounging along the bottom shelf of an old bookstore and Suzuki Roshi's "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind" fell off a top shelf and hit me on the head.Still, after three years, I dropped practice and lived in the Lower East Side, writing about the punk music and film movement. Had a band called Bozo Jesus, and wrote a film "Her Name Is Lisa" that got me to the Berlin Film Festival in 1987 where I experienced my 15 minutes of fame.In 1989, after another relationship hit the dust, I got back into practice and discovered Thich Nhat Hanh. In 1995 I took precepts with him, and in 1997 I was ordained into the Order of Interbeing. In 2000, I also started Dharma Student practice with the Korean Zen Master, Samu Sunim. He found me fit enough to ordain me as a Dharma Teacher (Poep Sa) on July 4th, 2007.I currently live in Tucson, Arizona with my wife and two cats. I teach at Tucson Yoga and throughout the world. I'd love to hear from you!