Tell us a little bit about yourself! Where were you before Second Laird?
Before Laird I was “across the river”. Prior to that I wrote radio commercials for two small market radio stations.
It’s early days still, but what do you enjoy most about working in the English department so far?
First of all, the Laird English department rocks! I enjoy the daily contact with faculty, staff, and students. I’ve not worked in an academic department before. It’s very exciting and lively!
How do you like to spend your free time?
Chasing after my puppy takes time and energy. Also I have a pack of grandkids that keep me very busy.
Do you have a favorite writer, and why are they your favorite?
As a child I received a concussion from reading. Impossible, you say? It actually did happen! When I was around 9 year old, I was sitting high up in the crook of a tree reading a book. It was a beautiful sunny summer day on the farm. At the time I was so engrossed in my book, that I leaned back in my “chair” and hit the ground, landing on my head. My world of reading opened up on another summer afternoon in a downtown Northfield bookstore. I picked up Maya Angelou’s Why the Caged Bird Sings and was drawn into the depths of that book unlike anything I’d ever read before. That is the book that taught me to explore authors. For me the best book is the one that I hate to see end. And when it ends, I never want to read another book again because I want that one to last forever.
Any words of advice for the book-beleaguered English major?
Volunteer to read out loud to children, either at a local school or pre-school. Be the one to spark their imagination and love of reading.