My passions are many and varied; here are just a few, in alphabetical order.

Art

Too big a subject to tackle here, but I will travel to another city to see a Calder or a Caillebotte exhibit, and I think some part of me lives at the Musée d’Orsay in Paris.

Etymology

Why do we say the things we say? Why is spelling so random? I have always been fascinated by linguistics in general, but especially by the endless vicissitudes of the English language. For a long time I got to work with Michael Quinion of World Wide Words on newsletters, web content and book manuscripts, but he’s now moved on to other projects. Lately I’ve been obsessed with Kevin Stroud’s labor of love, the History of English podcast.

Midcentury Modernism

I don’t think this is a hipster thing; I grew up in a midcentury house with midcentury furniture. It’s simple, elegant and relatively minimalist. Now if I could just get rid of all my clutter…

Stories

A lifelong bookworm, I’ve supplemented my reading with brilliant public radio shows like This American Life, Snap Judgment and The Moth for ages. And now they’re all available via podcasts! Is there a 12-step program for this addiction?

Succulents

Another ongoing pursuit is succulents. I am always learning more about their infinite varieties and about how to care for and propagate them. Southern California is succulent heaven—they are drought-tolerant and here there is no need to protect them from frost.

Theater & Film

My husband and I love to attend theatrical productions, both classic and contemporary. We subscribe to the Mark Taper Forum and classical theater companies A Noise Within and Antaeus, and we go to other productions on an as-needed basis.

We also love films, both mainstream and arthouse. We buy Laemmle tickets in bulk; need I say more?

Travel

There is nothing like it to expand your horizons and rock your world. I’ve been to quite a few places now—some of which I would love to see again—and I hope to visit many new places.   more

Typography

I used to do it for a living; it had everything. Words! Design! Geekiness! Once a typographer, always a typographer. I still study fonts—sometimes with admiration and sometimes with scorn—and try to keep up with developments in the field.