The central tension in his life, he said, is between being a “reasonably friendly, good-at-a-cocktail-party guy” and walking around the world feeling like he's not quite a part of it. “I'm a very uncomfortable person,” he said. “I really like people, and I also don't always know what to do with them.… I have always had an eclectic roster of friends, but there's something about my work that speaks to a deep discomfort with being in society.”

Uh, hey, me too.