[baiograficul detu: ben discoe]
warning! this iz u lang dokyument that yu me faind boring! yu hav bin warnd.
Mai perents, born deiz upart in 1942, spent ther chaildhud in Berkeley. Mai father Paul ceim frum u lo-incum famili uv politicul disidents; mai muther Ruthie frum u midul-clas neberhud nir College Ave. Both ceim frum familiz which had bin an thu west cost fer jenereshunz.
Mai father, after ricuvering frum polio in hiz erli tinz, suksided in fainding werk az u carpenter. Bai 21, hi had u waif and dater, mai haf-sister Maia. Thu merij wuz brif, and disiluzhund bai the Umericen drim hi wanderd thru thu be eria an u larj Chekoslovakian motersaicul. Mai muther also had u brif, erli merij. When it ended, shi wanderd az wel until miting mai father and living tugether for sum taim in Berkeley.
In thu mid-60's the tuk u trip tu u pleis cald thu Tassajara hat springz, in thu mauntinz ubuv Carmel. Ther the encaunterd u handful uv Zen Buddhists atempting tu bild u ritrit senter. The gretli nided mai father'z skilz az u carpenter wich led tu mai perents steing ther for thu rimeinder uv thu dekeid, studiing Zen, growing vejtubulz, and helping bild whut iz nau noan az thu Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. Mai father bilt meni uv thu strukchurz that ar ther tude, including thu zendo, kichen, and bathz. Hi wuz ordeind u Zen prist uraund 1970.
An November 16, 1970, the had u sun Benjamin Wood Discoe. Thu midul neim keim frum u greit-granfather Charles Wood. Ai wuz u larj bebi, over 10 paunz with brait red heir wich sun turnd bland.
When ai wuz u fyu munths old, the muvd tu Japan, tu the cuntrisaid autsaid Kyoto, wher the wud liv for 5 yirz. Mai father studid trudishunul Japuniz carpentri and tempul bilding; mai muther reizd mi & gardend. Japuniz wuz mai first langwij. Ai went tu Japuniz priskul, wachd Japuniz TV, and rizisted mai perent's utemps tu hav mi spik Inglish.
Thu merij fel upart uraund 1975, upan wich the riturnd sepretli tu thu YS. Mai father went tu liv at thu SF Zen Center's uther lokeshun, Green Gulch Farm nir Muir Bich in Marin Caunti. Mai muther and ai livd for u wail at thu bautum uv thu Feather River Canyun nir Paradise in northern California. Entering first greid, ai pikd up Inglish rapidli, brifli strugling with thu prununsieshun uv saunds laik 'th'. Mai muther met her third mejur laif partner, Jim Bernaert, and in 1977 wi muvd tu thu smal taon uv Honoka'a an thu Big Ailand uv Hawai`i.
Wi wer veri por, but mai "Hawai`i perents" az ai nau think uv them werkt hard tu bild u laif. Ai went intu thu locul publik skul, wich wuz u totul dizaster; az nirli thu onli haole (wait) kid in skul ai utrakted u lat uv ubyus and didn't lern much. Mai muther puld mi aut after u yir and u haf and hom-skuld mi tu the eij uv 10, at wich point mai father aserted custudi and put mi in skul in Mill Valley for thu next 5 yirz.
Ai livd thos yirz at Green Gulch with no frenz, an ivul stepmuther, totul elieneshun at skul for biing smart, lang sikening skul bus trips and jenerul, al-uraund mizeri. Ai supoz adulesents iz aful for dam nir evribudi; mai naitmer lasted til mai first yir at calej. Ai last maiself in skulwerk and lachd despretli antu cumpyuterz - haking erli mushinz such az thu IIe and C64 with gli, tiching maiself logo then basik then usembli laik most gikz at thu taim.
At 15 ai went tu u persunul groth werkshap and rialaizd that ai rili preferd living in Hawai`i. so ai movd ther for mai last 3 gredz at Parker Skul, u smal praivet skul in Waimea. Ai cuntinyud tu nat fit in with thu locul culchur - ai didn't ple sports, didn't surf, didn't get stond or drunk, didn't du enything tu fit in whutsoever. I bat maiself an Amiga 1000 and lernd it insaid aut; tat maiself first pascal then C, discuverd angsti muzik and tuk inspirashun frum thu filosofi uv Bucky Fuller and thu saicoluji uv Maslow.
Skul wuz triviul; mai SAT scorz garnerd the utenchun uv Caltech. When the intervyud mi, ai shoed them u program ai'd writen tu cunstrukt and interaktivli simyuleit u dainamik sistem uv idialaizd forsez. Ai thot uv it az u fun program with baunsi objeks tu ple with; the aksepted mi in 1987.
At Caltech ai struguld firmli, but wuz larjli unpreperd bai mai privius skuling tu cop with thu stagering demanz uv thu hardest teknicul skul in thu cuntri. After ubzorbing 1.6 yirz uv vigrusli advantst metiriul, ai faund maiself no langer peing atenchen tu thu corswerk, but insted tu thu fasineting werld uv 3D salidz, regyuler and semi-regyuler palihidra. Ai built cauntles pepur madulz and started an u 3D maduler tu madul them mor kwikli and flexibli. This wuz thu most aidielistik taim in mai laif; az u hardcor dip ecalujist, rashunulist, and vejeterien ai felt ai had the anser for evrithing. Tu this de ai stil uvoid red mit, refyuz tu on u car, and hav u nirli objektivist uproch tu al materz filosoficul.
Draping aut, ai went tu Berkeley wher ai rented u clazet, jest big enuf for maiself and mai cumpyuter, an wich ai ekspanded thu maduler and aded u rialtaim renderer. When ai went brok, ai gat u jab in San Jose werking an u multiplatform DBMS. That ped thu rent and wuz mai ferst werk ekspirients for 1.5 yirz, at wich taim, thru mai then-girlfrend Elizabeth and pipul involvd in Mondo 2000, ai gat mai prezent jab at Sense8 Corp. Ai wuz alredi fumilier with lo-paligan 3D grafiks frum mai on habi, so ai fit rait intu thu jab. The jab put mi bak in Marin Caunti wer ai'v bin for 5 yirz, prezentli in Mill Valley.
Ai hav u haf-sister Maia bai mai father'z ferst merij; u step-bruther Michael and step-sister Robin bai his secund, and u step-sister Renee frum mai muther'z therd merij. Mai muther tude iz an Iyengar yoga ticher; mai father u respected architect (no langer much u prist). Ai spik sum Japuniz and rid and rait it at ubaut u ferst-gred levul.