| What is your most memorable childhood experience? | I had the opportunity to visit Europe while growing up, including England, Germany, and Italy. While we were there, my father used to take us on long walks, during which he would tell fascinating and creative stories that explained the landscape. The Black Forrest, little bridges across streams, old buildings in the middle of an English town. I was enthralled by his stories. |
| What immediate family member do you closely identify with and why? | My family is close. One of my sisters is extremely observant and I identify with her in that aspect. Another sister is hilarious and we can talk for hours. My third sister can get to know anyone, something I developed, too. My dad is ultra-patient and my mom is never mean to anyone. |
| What character traits do you admire in an individual? | When someone is self-reflective, I know they tend to be honest and usually have good senses of humor. I admire people who work hard and who will stand against the crowd in defense of others because it is right. |
| What is the funniest thing ever to happen to you? | I tend to create my own humor, but I see the humor in a lot of life's situations. However, I would have to get to know a person before I could judge which story would be funny to them. A strange and innocuous happening was when I returned to the US from a small village in Germany, the woman cutting my hair was from that village. This was a village with maybe five hundred people...small world. |
| If time and money were not an issue, where would you travel and why? | I would go to Portugal because my dad said it is his favorite place in Europe. I would go to New Zealand because my wife wants to go. I would then go to Fiji, because it's near New Zealand. I grew up traveling and am a bit more of a homebody because of it. But going anywhere that has good cuisine sounds good to me. Currently, I'm saving for a Colorado ski trip because it's been ten years, and I love the mountains. I've gone to Ireland six times and just feel at home there. I've been to twelve European countries and three Middle Eastern countries. I may want to see Japan or the beaches of Thailand or maybe rural India, but not much in Asia appeals to me. |
| When and if you ever have children, what would you like to pass on to them? | Besides my blue eyes? I would love to teach them empathy and to provide a secure base for them to feel comfortable to go out and discover who they are and what they want. I want to give them humility and confidence. I want to give them an enduring curiosity to learn about the huge variety of the world. |
