Tell us a little bit about your research and what excites you most about it right now.
I’m currently involved in two projects. The first is an interdisciplinary project exploring the narratives of former slaves, which I’m working on with 4 wonderful URCA students. I really enjoy collaborating with students. It’s great to hear prospective from students and scholars in other disciplines. It gives me a whole new lens to view the same data and allows me to find things I would not have previous thought to look for.
I’m also engaged in an interview-based project looking at the lives of bariatric (weight loss) surgery patients. I’m looking forward to connecting with my former research participants this summer and seeing how their lives have changed in the years since their surgery.
You’re an Ohioan Native. One of the state cuisines’ is Cincinnati Chili (chili over pasta with cinnamon/cocoa). Do you miss it? Or have you replaced it with a local cuisine from St. Louis – like fried ravioli, frozen, custard, Imo’s pizza, or gooey butter cake?
Actually, my husband makes a mean, vegetarian version of Cincinnati style chili – so we’ve brought that Ohio tradition with us. We’ve really enjoyed trying all the cuisine St. Louis has to offer. My husband and I really like heading out the city and trying new things. I don’t think I will ever understand provel cheese though… I think you had to grow up here to enjoy that.
Rumor has it that you have 4 cats, and that you just got a dog. There is lots of social pressure to be either a dog or a cat person. For some people, there truly can be no middle ground. What’s your thought on that debate?
I actually have 5 cats and a new puppy – Goose. I love all my fur babies and I’m certainly an animal lover in general. I don’t think you have to pick – dogs and cats are both great. But if you pressed me, I’d have to say I’m more of a cat person than a dog person. It’s been great watching my little rescue puppy grow up. He’s smart, funny and he is learning lots of great tricks. But, for a busy new professor it’s a lot easier to care for 5 cats than one dog. That being said, Goose gets me up and moving more than the cats do. So, he is probably better for my long-term health than my cats -- who are totally happy to curl up and sleep in on Saturday.