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The four non-people loves of my life are philosophy, food, travel, and literature. As I'm likely to write about all of these on Suite101, I thought I'd say a bit here about my relationship with each of them.
Philosophy
I'm a philosophy professor at Northwestern State University. My main philosophical interests are logic, philosophy of mathematics, 20th century analytic philosophy, epistemology and metaphysics, and ethics.
Philosophy is so rich and broad that a short article can rarely capture the full complexities on any subject. I do not write these articles intending to tell you about The Truth of a subject, or give you the full picture. What I provide are snapshots -- or doorways, if you will. I hope to be able to explain clearly one aspect of someone's philosophy, for roughtly two groups of people: those who want a brief sketch of a theory, and those who want an introduction. I'm hoping that reading a little bit about Epicurus, for example, will not leave you feeling satisfied and knowledgeable, but rather, inspired to know more.
Travel
When I was a child, I thought I was born into the wrong society. I was born into a settled society, and I very much thought I was a nomad at heart. Since reaching adulthood, I've pulled up the stakes of my tent and moved approximately every three years or so. While I'm in a particular location, I try to see as much of the surrounding area as I can.
Thus, I've visited more than half of the 50 states of the USA, and I've spent time in Canada, Mexico, a handful of European countries, and several cities in Egypt (I lived in Egypt for a few years).
Writing about my travels feels like visiting old friends.
Literature
There was a point in my intellectual career where the paths diverged, and I chose philosophy over a degree in literature. I'm very glad I chose this way, but literature remains an important part of my life. I continue to read and write fiction, and study the classics whenever I can. I've developed a fondness for children's literature in particular, and you can often find me in the children's section of the library, even though my own kids have outgrown all of the books there. Much of the fiction I write is for children.
Food
I've always enjoyed eating, but my true love-affair with food began the day I picked up Bernard Clayton's book of bread and baked his "first loaf". After ten years of studying philosophy (and, as they say, philosophy bakes no bread...) it pleased me to no end to be able to make something that wonderful with my own hands. There is a simple joy to be had from the process of entering the kitchen, armed with nothing more than a bag of groceries, a wooden spoon, a bowl, and an oven, and leaving it with a complete meal, all of which you made yourself. Cooking is love.
This isn't a joy that can be had by idling in your car in line in a fast food drive through, or even by opening a few cans and jars of sauces and things and mixing them together. We all eat, and I love being able to understand food from the ground up. Thus, in addition to cooking, I love delving into food history, food politics, and most recently, gardening.