This page is mostly about me...

Who is David Schor?

I am glad that you asked.

If you don't know me already, this is my opportunity to convince you that I am a wonderful and admirable person. If you do know me already, it's too late for such puffery. Call me and we can have a chat over a beer or coffee instead.

My interests in law, philosophy, music, snowboarding and technology are what bring me here. I've been interested in music from a very young age, and have been playing bass for nearly twenty years.

I've been interested in law and philosophy since elementary school, and have been a voracious reader throughout my life. I also have been a bit of a rebel; in middle school, I initiated a write-in campaign for student body president on a platform of anarchy, and later on I sported a technicolor ponytail in high school, as well as starting "Satanic Bible Study" at Crescent Valley High School as an affirmation of first amendment rights.

At the University of Oregon, I studied classical bass performance and philosophy, and took my core curriculum through the Honors College. I ended up having to drop the performance part of the music degree due to tendonitis, and a house fire prevented my thesis for the Honors College from proceeding, but in the Spring of 2003, my enrollment at the University ended with a walk at the front of the graduation line. Later, two diplomas were delivered.

After completing my undergraduate studies, I went on to teach SAT and LSAT students through Kaplan, enjoyed musical creativity and wild abandon with Nero, and worked some odd jobs in Corvallis before relocating to Portland, Oregon to work at a small food ingredient distributor.

At the same time that I was arranging to move to Portland, I was taking up the habit of snowboarding, which has become a major part of my recreation and my work. While I worked 9 to 5, I spent my weekends driving all over the northwest to snowboard. I became engaged in the Portland ski club scene through my riding, which eventually helped lead to volunteering for a regional nonprofit (NWSCC), and ultimately working for a resort on Mt Hood (Meadows!).

I also enjoy performing with some of the great musicians who live in Portland; currently I am playing with Walkfast, a band that has been gigging regularly in Portland. We released a CD of our music in March 2010.

At the moment, I am attending law school at Lewis and Clark, and enjoying beautiful Portland, Oregon.

The Website

For starters, I'm the author of the page(s) you see before you. I have been creating an evolving web presence for myself since 1995 or thereabouts. My first project was "My Spandex Heaven" on the original geocities. Unfortunately, that seminal episode in web design was devoured by Yahoo!s. Unable to resurrect the deleted site, I created a new page upon enrolling at the University of Oregon in the fall of 1997.

From 1997 until 2003, the web site changed little. The website in its current form was entirely inspired by a close friend of mine who brought my awareness to the power of CSS and (X)HTML. The site has remained rather spartan and simply written, partly because I code by hand, and mostly because I believe that the internet needs less flash, and more substance.

I think a lot of the bandwidth of our public infrastructure is being wasted broadcasting advertisements, slowing traffic for more important uses of the network. Content is more important, in my opinion, than fancy graphics and high bandwidth splash screens. But, I am a musician and philosopher according to my records, and also particularly docile. So I just go my own way.

After moving to Portland, I registered davidschor.net and began the site you see before you. I started reading up on web standards, and adopted PHP, XHTML and CSS as the basis for my site. I continue to monitor developments in web technology, while also volunteering as a webmaster and blogger.

Most web sites today use hacks and various tricks to maintain compatibility with the numerous web browsers on the market. I think this is a foolish way to go. Adherence to web standards is the key to making the internet as usable and functional as possible. If you have questions about what this means, I encourage you to look into the ongoing worldwide effort to make the web more consistent.

Music Man

My musical studies have ranged from playing the recorder to being a recording artist. The bulk of my musical output has been on bass, split fairly evenly between my early years in string and symphony orchestras, and my time in jazz bands, pit orchestras and rock outfits. These days I play mostly electric bass, and have only recently revived my upright chops. You can find more details on my music page.

Bad, Religion

I also am a minister, so if you would like to consider me the "Reverend David Schor", then so be it. My studies have been varied, though rarely of excessive depth. Consider me a lay minister. I was ordained in the Universal Life Church via postcard, like many millions before and since.

Ramblin' Man

I have lived in Oregon for my entire life, but I have done some traveling. Over the years I have made numerous trips to various states of the United States, and I have had the good fortune to be able to visit Hong Kong and the People's Republic of China, as well as Canada. My most extensive travels have been in the last ten years, when I have gone on increasingly lengthy roadtrips, culminating in the epic 45 day trip across the country that I took during my last summer at school.

I drove from Oregon through (in this order) Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, (Colorado), Arizona, Utah, Nevada, and finally California, before returning home.

Although I did miss a few states, now the list of states I have *not* visited is the shorter one. Not a small feat. So which states are yet to be graced with my presence? Hawaii I visited during the summer of 2006, but I have yet to set foot in Alaska (although I did fly over..), North Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee, West Virginia, and Delaware. I have visited Washington D.C., but since it is not a state... that leaves me twelve states to visit (and Puerto Rico, Guam, etc). I have had the fortune to explore parts of western and central Canada, but not the 'frenchier' parts to the east.

Snow Reporting

Snow reporting has become my favorite occupation, after a stint as a snow reporter during the 2009-2010 season. It was the only logical way to progress my snowboarding.

Reality Distortion

Is David real? Well, let's look at it logically. This page is real, this page is about David; therefore David is real.

Styrofoam is real. Tuna is real. Therefore, Styrofoam Tuna is real.