Hey, I'm James, an American living in England, convert to Islam, board game geek, lover of pancakes, E-teacher, and father of a little gremlin!

Hey everybody! Never bothered to introduce myself when I signed up about a week and a half ago, so I figured I'd give it a go now! This is me! I can't be bothered to hold up a sign that says Steemit because it's almost midnight and I look rather haggard, so here's a picture of myself and my lovely little lady, Maryam:

I like to think my life has been a pretty cool journey so far! I grew up in an American suburb where everybody was white and had way too much money, and generally spent most of my time playing video games and thinking about playing video games. I was a smart kid, but was rather distracted from the things in life that mattered. After a bit of an existential crisis during university, I surprised everybody, myself included, by converting to Islam and treading down the path of religion, though I'm not very good at it. Still, if you like to read about Islam or are somewhat curious what we believe, follow me, as I'm writing a series of articles about the basics of Islamic belief.

Yet, contrary to popular belief, becoming a Muslim doesn't necessarily entail becoming a jubba-wearing angry face who frowns at the sinful society he had left. I'm still me, I just don't eat pork, drink beer, accept interest-bearing loans, and I don't play half as many video games as I used to, but that's mostly because I've shifted my interests towards board games. My favorite is an epic strategy game called Eclipse (see below) but I'm also partial to Coup, The Resistance, Betrayal at the House on the Hill, and Hive. I aspire to design my own board game one day, but with one baby and another on the way, that's a lofty goal!

Oh, and I have a pretty cool job. I'm not loaded with cash like the whales here, but my commute to work is a 5 second walk from my bed to my office and I don't even have to wear a tie! I teach for a company called VIPKID, which connects qualified American and Canadian teachers with students in China and pays $20+ an hour! Sometimes, when my lessons are over, I even get to talk to my students about Minecraft and other things Chinese kids love! If you have a teaching degree and are interested in joining the team, click my link and you can apply with me as your referee!

Anyways, that's about it. Oh, and I really like pancakes, and thankfully I have a wonderful wife who knows how to make them. Follow me, comment, whatever! I'm in dire need of some social interaction and could use some help!