Like most language lovers, I'm an insatiable reader: poetry, novels, essays, letters. I let my tastes range widely, and I tend not to think of literature in terms of nationalities. I'll read a Russian or French novel in translation, or a poem from Syria or Argentina just as readily as anything written in English. In fact, one of my translations of the work of an early 20th century Peruvian poet appears in The Kenyon Review.
I like to think of myself primarily as a poet. But while my poems have appeared in many literary journals—including The Paris Review, Antioch Review, Denver Quarterly, and The Beloit Poetry Journal—much of what I write is prose: essays on poets and poetry for The Los Angeles Review of Books, or reviews of contemporary classical music for La Tempestad, an arts and culture magazine published in Mexico City. I’ve been awarded the Ohio Art’s Council’s Individual Excellence Award in Criticism three times for my essays.
I have previously served as the head of Ohio Dominican's English department and as Director of the Master of Arts in Liberal Studies Program. I teach a wide variety of classes both to undergraduate students and in our M.A. in English program: courses in poetry (both classic and contemporary), creative writing, Shakespeare, Chaucer, the Romantics, and much more.
But teaching is only a part of what I do. I dabble in sketching. I love to travel. I've taken students abroad, to Italy, Greece, and Egypt. I’ve spent a lot of time in Mexico City. I’m a runner and I love the outdoors. In the summer, I go kayaking and camping; I've climbed Mt. Washington and gone absailing in New Zealand. And I love looking at the stars and planets; I use a six-inch Orion AstroView reflector telescope to view the moons of Jupiter, the rings of Saturn, and other celestial objects worthy of poetry.
Take one of my literature courses and you'll be surprised how much you like it, and how much it changes you.