Email
PrintTom Van Cleef
AGE: 51 • NEIGHBORHOOD: Worthington
Founder, Shine On Solar Solutions
WHAT IS MOST IMPORTANT TO ME:
My dogs. I have four. They’ve had a profound effect on me.
WHAT I HOPE TO BE DOING IN FIVE YEARS:
Installing large-scale solar on warehouse roofs, landfills and brownfields in Ohio. And installing subsistence solar electricity for the quarter of the world without power. I would also like to build a K-9 training center for search and rescue dogs and have certified search dogs with FEMA so we can deploy overseas.
FAVORITE THINGS TO READ:
I love to read about international history, technology and political history.
FAVORITE MOVIE:
Dead Again. I was so completely floored by the end. I respected how well they duped me.
FAVORITE TV SHOW:
“Frontline.” It takes a hard, relatively objective look at timely subjects.
FAVORITE VACATION:
I’ve been to 32 countries, so I could give you plenty of examples. The one I enjoyed the most was probably Perth, Australia.
QUALITIES I’M LOOKING FOR IN A PARTNER:
Independent and deeply obsessed with something. I want them to be curious about everything. That’s the only way you live, and the only way you live a long time especially.
MOST UNIQUE WAY I’VE MET SOMEONE:
Phnom Penh during monsoon season, getting my visa to return to Thailand. I was returning from government offices in a cab and it started to rain. I saw a woman in a business suit just getting pounded, so I stopped the cab, jumped out and told her to get into the cab. I drop Rachel off at her hotel, who is stunning soaking wet, ask her how long she will be in Cambodia. I tell her I am going to Bangkok tomorrow for a month and she says she lives there. We had a blast and got stuck in monsoonal rain twice more together.
WOULD I RELOCATE FOR LOVE?
If you are truly in love, you are not moving, but going where you belong.
MY THOUGHTS ON REGRETS:
The one regret I have is not having children. There were multiple women who I certainly could have had lifelong relationships with, but I was traveling and inaccessible maybe. I’d always hoped to be a father, but hopefully I’m a good uncle.
BEST RELATIONSHIP ADVICE I’VE RECEIVED:
When you meet someone you love, go for it.
WORST RELATIONSHIP ADVICE I’VE RECEIVED:
I think the worst advice is there’s more coming. I was never a frivolous dater. I just know that the idea of tossing women aside always pissed me off. It especially pissed me off when I knew them and they were smart and intelligent. You have to work to be an asshole. It’s not a requirement.
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