After receiving a Bachelor's of Science in Geology at the University of Kansas (go Jayhawks!) he headed even further west, ending up in the San Francisco bay area. It was there that he began to develop artistically. He found some fiction sites online, and decided to try his hand at the craft again (he'd tried some years earlier, with disastrous results). This time he managed to make some stories that were actually readable. Encouraged, he wrote some more. He is now writing with a mind to actually getting published someday. Though there have been some nibbles from publications, so far there have been no actual takers. You can read the stories that he doesn't plan to actually sell online here.
While in the bay area he met somebody who would eventually become a roommate and good friend. That would be Charlie Kellner. Charlie had some ideas of how to build some costumes with features not normally seen, such as working wings. So, together they started building costumes, at first for themselves and later for others. You can see Doug's costumes here and those he made and sold to others here.
Doug currently lives near Seattle, Washington, USA. Ironically, his parents live about twelve miles away. So much for getting away from them. But he doesn't mind so much anymore, usually. He has several stories completed and in the works that he hopes to publish, and is still occassionally doing fursuits.