Where are you from? I spent the first 10 years of my life near West Point, NY. Then my family moved to West MI where they say “if you ain’t Dutch, you ain’t much.” I’m not Dutch…
How long have you lived in the area and why did you move here? A year and a half. My wife, Sara, is one of the many (though in my book, the most extraordinary) UNC Medical School students at Pub Run. We moved here for med school.
What are three words your friends would use to describe you? Committed, Critical, and Considerate (alliteration for the win).
Why do you run? To get rid of my nervous energy and to delay heart disease.
Why did you decide to join the Station Pub Run? Can you say “beer?!”
What is your favorite thing about the Station Pub Run? Having other people to run with! It’s SO much better running with other people than by yourself.
Describe the most recent (appropriate 🙂 ) photo you took with your phone: A puzzle my wife and I completed last week. It has lots of birds on it. I like birds.
What is the best piece of advice you ever received, and who gave it to you? Søren Kierkegaard advocated for the teleological suspension of the ethical. Ask me about it sometime if you’re interested in having a good philosophical conversation. If not, that’s okay too.
Favorite book? How about a book you think everyone must read? (They can be different.) Either “The Brothers Karamazov” by Fyodor Dostoevsky or “East of Eden” by John Steinbeck.
What is your most primary mode of transportation currently? (I like to think all the Pub Runners are smart commuters.) Every morning I bike a mile to the bus stop and take the bus to work.
If you could have any talent or skill in the entire world, without needing to practice and money was no limitation, what would it be? To be a really talented jazz musician.
If you could eat only one meal (not just a single food) for the rest of your life, what would it be? I really love breakfast food, so it would probably be big breakfast feast!: eggs, potatoes, bacon, sourdough toast, good coffee, etc.
What is the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten? Brain. It was gross.
Do you collect anything? No. My hate of clutter precludes collecting things.
Tell us something about yourself that not many people know: I often wish I was a dog. It seems like it would be altogether better than being a human, somehow. Someone brings you food, takes you for walks, and scratches your head. What more could a person-become-dog want?
What is something you have done recently, or are about to do, that you are proud of? I am (hopefully!) about to publish a research paper in bacterial genetics. It will be my first peer-reviewed publication and is the culmination of over a year’s worth of lab work!
Please share your favorite quote or slogan: Most recently it’s “Stand for something or fall for anything” attributed to Malcolm X.
