What's your biggest fear?

Yikes! I can't list the series of macabre injuries I'm afraid of here!

I do find time-travel terrifying. Imagine, waking up one morning to discover that you're stuck in a time from the past. The Victorian era sounds especially frightening to me. Back then I would be labeled a criminal and locked away for the personal liberties and lifestyle choices I make today. From prison I picture a downward spiral. The combination of serving a prison sentence, living with a criminal identity upon my release date, added to the knowledge of a previous life from a different time... who would I be able to relate to and confide in? I fear I would go mad or morose, and heart breakingly lonely. Good thing it will never happen.

What is your most embarrassing moment?

I have no idea how one chooses most embarrassing. Was it the time I was pants'd in practice while the wrestlers ran by? When I called a lecturer mom? Or while waiting in a movie-line with my dad reached for his hand to hold and the hand didn't belong to my dad, instead it belonged to a strange older man. You could put up there on the list any of my bike spills, save the time I was hit by a lady in an Escalade because then was just livid. Some of the truly embarrassing moments I try to block out.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be? Why?

Germany! They are a fascinating country right now. It's the third largest host of immigrants and given their history they have some politically charged citizens. They are not only reforming their laws for equality, but overhauling their education system to democratize learning. I would be ecstatic if I could spend time in Berlin, where the film arts movement is flourishing right now, I saw so many good German flicks at SIFF (Seattle International Film Festival) this year! German film continuously takes up many of the subjects I enjoy studying, minority issues, queer theory, disabilities studies, post colonial theory, and Germans have a historically prolific relationship to film. I would love to get my hands on production or restoration over there.

What is the craziest moment you've seen during Upward Bound this year?

I think the silliest moment has actually happened at least twice by now. The past few days Jalen and Emil have been taking the elevator to I the third floor for Jessica's quiz section. Only they stand around for so long, they really should just walk the two flights of stairs with their young able bodies. I can't be that difficult, right?!

What sea animal would you want to be?

A male narwhal. Narwhal because they look like Beluga whales, which I loved to visit at the zoo near my childhood home and they are a super sociable bunch. So why not a Beluga then? If I was a Narwhal, and specifically a male one, I could also get the long forward-pointing spirally twisted tusk on top of their head...did you know it develops from one of their teeth!? Also, they're an arctic whale and I prefer cold climates.