I’m an award-winning radio producer, editor and features writer — with a special emphasis on food, culture and subculture — based in Chicago. My writing has appeared in and on The Atlantic, National Geographic’s “The Plate,” Eater, VICE, Slate, Salon, The Bitter Southerner and Chicago Magazine, while my audio work has appeared on NPR’s All Things Considered and Here & Now, as well as APM’s Marketplace. Currently, I’m the food editor at Salon.com.I’ve produced two award-winning audio documentaries (about, respectively, museums and bourbon) and have two more on the way. One is about monks, the other about punks. I’ve also published three poems, only two of which were about skeletons. Stories I’ve written have had second lives as “Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell Me” riddle answers, the punchline for a Stephen Colbert bit, and required reading for six or seven college courses. In my mind, most good work is guided by curiosity, craft and the belief that there are worthwhile, culturally-significant stories to be found in ordinary people’s lives, and that we are more thoughtful and empathetic neighbors when connected to those stories. For me, I prefer if that work also happens to have a bit of an edge and even more dark humor (this is Chicago, after all). Actually, to see what I mean, take a listen to the first five or so episodes of Supraphonic Studio’s newest radio program, THIS IS CHICAGO. They’re only seven minutes each, so I’ll wait. You’ll hear from a real-life masked vigilante, a hardscrabble Southside priest, a kink leather curator, a thrill-seeker facing death and an artist keeping secrets from grandma. These are the stories I want to help tell because these — more so than any political brief or press conference write-up — are the stories that make us human. Journalism can make you cynical, which I think is one of the reasons that I’ve found myself drawn to beats like food and culture because they speak to the most human parts of ourselves. I thrive on the challenge of finding unique ways to explore national trends or social movements, as evidenced by stories like my report on how churches are incorporating “the Gospel of Lizzo” into their sermons or my cultural analysis of the artistic allure of Waffle House, America’s most surprising culinary museBasically, I want to create work — and help others create work — that inspires people to turn on the radio, make some pasta, and gather around the table. Next time we’re there, ask me about how I amateur-sleuthed my way into recovering a stolen, vintage motorcycle.