Ben.

I am cooking for the on-site restaurant of a local hotel, and I am also occasionally fulfilling the role of guinea pig for (what MSU is hoping to be) America's future great doctors.

I play music around town and I am involved in releasing records and putting on/promoting shows with a local record label/collective.

I am exercising a few times a week, as my schedule allows. I have participated in an awesome adventure race called DirtyFeat for the past two years, and I look forward to giving it another go this June.

I am continuously on a quest to better communicate with others and to listen and learn from other people's experiences, in order to grow as a human and be the most inclusive person I can be.

finding the compromise.

"So, that flag on your hoodie... is that a Jewish thing?"
"No, it's the Chicago flag."
"Oh, the Illinois flag."
"...no, the Chicago flag."
"...Chicago has a flag?"
"Yep."
"Do other cities have a flag?"
"Look, just let me get my drink..."

Books: Word and logic puzzle books, (auto)biographical literature, true crime material.

Movies: Airplane!, High Fidelity, Mr. Holland's Opus, Naked Gun trilogy, documentaries

Shows: Arrested Development, the Cosby Show, the Daily Show, Dexter (perpetually a season behind), House of Cards was pretty good, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia, King of the Hill, Parks and Recreation, Star Trek franchise, SVU, Unsolved Mysteries. Lately I've been on an X-Files kick.

Music: Bruce Springsteen, Hot Water Music, Lawrence Arms, Devo, Weird Al, Peter Gabriel, Motion City Soundtrack, Fall Out Boy, punk rock, light rock, local music, NPR, the worst of modern pop music... my taste in music is getting both better and worse as I get older.

Food: I am a vegetarian/vegan friendly omnivore. You can rarely go wrong with sushi, house-made barbecue, or a giant burrito.

- Easy access to safe drinking water
- Crossword puzzles
- Mechanical pencils
- My glasses
- Guitar picks in my pockets
- Midwestern hospitality

Song ideas, budgeting, patterns, driving, vacations, exercising, new puzzle books, awful puns.

Working or at a show/playing a show.

You can make me groan with an awful pun. You want to compete in head-to-head crossword battles. You want to start a 90s cover band. You are good people.