Read All About It!

Good morning, friends of Open Books! To start the week off right, I’m pleased to recognize a new Volunteer All-Star. Rich has been an invaluable addition to the field trip and reading buddies teams, and we’re so grateful for his service. He’s awesome with the kids, too! My favorite overheard quote from Rich to a young creative writing student at Open Books? Very gently: “You really can’t be a missionary and a gang banger at the same time. You’ll have to decide.” PERFECT!

1. How would you spend your last 24 hours if you knew the world would end in the morning?
Oh, wow, that’s a tough one. You saved the hardest for first! I’ll have to plead the fifth.
2. What was your dream job when you were 5?
Well…I was fascinated with traffic lights when I was five, and I wanted to work with those when I grew up. I was a weird kid.
3. If you could have dinner with 3 people (real or fictional), who would you invite and what would you eat?
Jesus Christ, Allen Ginsberg, and Leonard Nimoy. Given my dinnermates, we should probably go kosher.
4. What was your favorite childhood toy or game?
Uno.
5. If you had one superpower, what would it be?
The ability to acquire any knowledge on command.
6. What secret obsession do you have that no one knew about before this interview?
Scrabble.
7. What makes you laugh uncontrollably?
Marx Brothers movies, old Peanuts comic strips, Tex Avery cartoons, and NPR’s “Wait, Wait…Don’t Tell Me!”
8. What book are you reading right now?
The latest John Hodgman book, More Information Than You Require.
9. What is your favorite ice cream flavor?
A tie between green tea and hazelnut gelato.
10. What is playing on your iPod/record player these days?
Several NPR podcasts. I hate to admit it, being an old fart, but I play that new Duffy album a lot.