At home in the great outdoors and inside of a book; suffers from culinary addiction, dependent on foreign oil (olive), has an intense exterior that belies finding just about everything hysterical; passionate about his crazy job; friendly, neighborhood curmudgeon; values good friends more than anything; understands that semi-colons are only for indepedent clauses; too lazy to do anything about it; farmers markets, bikes to work, never takes himself seriously, the mma gym, regular caffeine infusions, hot sauce, forgets to get a haircut, good writing, terrible movies.

I'm a rabbi. Seriously.

Asking ridiculous questions, laughing at inappropriate jokes (especially in serious situations), singing in the shower (a la From Rome with Love), talking ideas to death, giving good, strong bear hugs, getting to an ocean to surf or dive whenever possible, being about as subtle as a brick wall.

is that I have a mass of curly hair. I used to get made fun of constantly for it when I was a kid, but now all those guys are balding and I have absolutely no compunction about rubbing it in.

Angle of Repose/Crossing to Safety - Wallace Stegner
The Razor's Edge and any of W. Sommerset Maugham's short stories
Joan Didion
Byron's Don Juan
Phillip Larkin
Neil Stephenson
Anything by Terry Pratchett
Jamey Johnson
The Low Anthem
Cowboy Junkies
Band of Horses
Joni Mitchell
MGMT
Snow Patrol
Yonatan Raazel
The Beastie Boys
The Mountain Goats
Etti Ankri

1. Books
2. My surfboard (which I am, yes, without. It's a dating profile. Whatever.)
3. Raucous other people
4. Quiet time
5. Beautiful natural surroundings
6. Shabbat

Waves. I think about waves a lot. I'm a west coast boy, and I itch when I'm away from the water for too long.

I don't want this to sound trite, but I also spend a lot of time thinking about questions. They're my favorite playthings, good questions: about life, about books, about Torah and religion, about people and phenomenology.

having Shabbat, eating too much and too well with good friends, singing, laughing.

You are:
1. able to inject inappropriate humor into any situation;
2. not freaked out by my job; think that loving Judaism might be (or is) an option for you
3. interesting and thoughtful, as opposed to dangerously unbalanced;
4. have a dog, or desperately pine for one.
5. love to eat well.