My neighbor, fellow Free-Stater and friend, Randy Clemons posted on Facebook that he joined Steemit, so here I am. I first learned about the Free State Project in that same essay in 2001 and thought it was an interesting idea but that few would heed the call. A few years later I saw that the project was still afloat so I signed up as a Friend with no particular intention or obligation to schelp up to New Hampshire from Brooklyn, NY.
While living in the Big Apple, I joined and became active in Judson Memorial Church in Greenwich Village, completed a masters degree in business communication and started a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies. While keeping busy, I became aware that NYC was simply too expensive for a retiree living on Social Security. The hunt for a new home began. The only affordable place in New York is Albany and who wants to live in that God-forsaken place? I have friends in Portland, OR so I had a fantasy of moving cross-country but housing was just as pricey there and the cost of moving was horrendous. Thinking cap went back on the top of my head. I had fitful sleep for several weeks in December 2015 when a light bulb went off in my brain! "I wonder if that crazy guy, Jason was still doing his project in New Hampshire?" Turns out he was indeed and a couple thousand folks had joined him. Hmm, now what was that thing called? Free something-or-other. Yep, I found the Free State Project just in time to register for Liberty Forum, to be held in February 2016. Not know a soul in Manchester, NH I found a couch space with a Free Stater and went. Met some really incredible people, including my future roommate. While at Liberty Forum I got my very first bitcoin wallet and started buying things I needed and wanted with bitcoin. I know very little about the blockchain and related things but am dedicated to learning.
I am signer number 19, 557. My motto is, "better late than never!" I will celebrate my 70th birthday in September 2016 as a resident of Manchester, NH dedicated to creating liberty in my lifetime.