Introducing Ourselves - Part 2

Hello!
My name is David Ciley and I've been a deadhead since i was 11 years old. I had a neighbor take notice that I was into CSNY especially Crosby and his tunes so he gave me the greatest gift next to my wife and son and that was he stole my face. I was terribly upset to find out that Jerry had passed a few years before I could see him. They actually played their last show on my 8th birthday. I will be 25 this year so I am definitely a younger head, however I've been going to shows since 2000. My dad caved in and bought us tickets to go and see Bob Dylan open up for Phil and Friends and that sort of just cemented me into the scene. My son has been hearing their tunes since before his birth and frequently gets upset when his one and only dead shirt is in the wash so he can't wear it*he's four, five in april*.
I went to as many Phil and Ratdog shows as I could after the first and was elated when they toured as "The Dead" with Warren. Furthur is icing on the cake for me as I'm sure it is to many of you. I've been trolling on the site for years and years and decided I needed to just join. So here is my official Hello and thanks for having me on deck!

I'm not much of a huge forum type of guy, but since I made it over "Hello". The name's Chris Larson. Will try to hang out now and again and get to know some of you. Especially the local Oregonians!

i'm a 52 year old, fairly new convert to The Grateful Dead. Spent most of my life listening to jazz and punk and old C & W.
Saw them a couple of times in the 70's (went with a girlfriend) saw them a couple of times in the 90's.
Never had a real connection with the music until last year.

i've seen Further twice now (with my 12 year old daughter), the most recent time was last night at The Hard Rock in Las Vegas.

i play ukulele, ride bicycles and take pictures with pinhole cameras.

and feel free to post in Deadhead of the Middle East!

sorry so long, in not getting into the group and discussion,
I am a universality deadhead, became a Muslim in the states about 1996, after Jerry death, when in 96 i had an accident and was at Brown university hospital and was told by the Doc. if i did not quit drinking, i would be "locked up or covered up" this is what i did in my search for Serenity exploring many of man kinds sciences and paths i choose Islam as the religion that appealed to my intellect, (in a philosophical tree climbing way) to channel the good freethinking vibes, to constructive use after years of tour and travel of the globe I took bible study coursed from various sources , went to the oldest synagogue in america, studied, and studied more , on tour I have been to Naroopa, boulder, an ashram out side goose creek Colorado, Lindisfarne, Green Gulch Farm Zen Center, in Marin, lived in Italy considered a heretic,(Masonic) i was not catholic but i took advantage of being near RoME, and studied art history, while there also, reading on the real history of the church, as depicted in paintings.

I was raised an American in Naples Italy, (origin of the Funiculì, Funiculà) lived there three different times, total of 13 years, between our trips around the globe, (father was Navy) we lived in mare island Vallejo, California, my great great grandfather is buried in Mount Tamalpais cemetery. so i was more local to the area I was about 1982. then stopped a few other places in the USA, between 1980 to 1984, my family did many road trips across the Usa, what i always could remembering all the cool folks on the roadways of America.
various tours;
been to the 25 reunion of woodstock in Bethel, New York 94, stayed two weeks and got in on the clean up of that site , the freedom fest and camp arrow head. 94 world unity fest in south rim of grand canyon, black mountain in Arizona, subsequent rainbow gatherings, from 92-96.
I was in palm springs, California area may to July 95 I greyhounded to Rhode island from California, stopped in Oklahoma city, two weeks before Jerry un timely death, I was in Newport, Rhode island, and was considering a road trip to NY for the annual gathering at woodstock, then catching the Newport folk fest, that years folk fest was; whew...

I married a wonder full Kuwaiti Woman MD, married on 03/03/03 whom, i met when she was visiting for seminars at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, in 2001, we met through one of her Kuwaiti relatives I knew from the local mosque in fairfax, Virginia. We now have 4 little boys and they demand Jerry in the morning, while driving I have raised them on the dead and may of the few "streams" to get them to listen with me. i wear tie dyes on a regular basis, (you cannot show up at a mosque in a tie-dye) I been to the hajj in mecca in 2002. I have taken my other wise conservative Muslim wife to the haight ashbury street fair in 2007, every place between Vallejo and Monterrey, i let my children see as much as they can since I did not have the benefit in the 70's in Italy all my parents had were LP and memories, of 72 Europe, dad took leave and i was about 1.5 years old. dont know if my folks want to give up the old photos..
On 9/11, of which I was TWO KM as the crow flies from the pentagon, after all the interrogations from the secret service, I had a yacht repair business on the Potomac river, servicing the marinas, people threw all the work contracts out the window , because i did not keep it a secret that i was a Muslim long before 9/11, at my core i am an american, well I moved to Kuwait, and started supporting the US Army as a mechanic, body shop, As well as working my own angles with the boating and yachting industry in Kuwait.

this is a very conservative society so the only way i introduce musicians here about the dead i let them listen to Garcia/Grisman "Arabia" for some reason the song stirs the Arabian soul ; i try to bring out some musical awareness, so most Arabs think we (deadheads) are christian a cult of the dead in america, this is from from a religious point of view, and first impressions, then if you know names of popular Arabian musician, then they get the idea, the deal is to learn the language, and the society in which you live, they are all different in the gulf region, what goes for one does not for the other.
thanks for letting me introduce my self