Campus profiles

I've met many interesting students and alumni at UC Irvine. Here are a few favorites:

•  No stopping her: On the skating rink, she's the fierce roller derby player B-Train. In the business arena, she's Bethany Semeiks, with a 'Wicked' apparel company and a newly minted M.B.A. from UCI. Don't get in her way. Photo by Steve Zylius/University Communications. 
• Killer instinct: Neuroscientist James Fallon went searching for the biological hallmarks of a murderer — but the trail led a little too close to home.
• Youngest in his class: For Brandon Gross, 14, being the youngest student at UCI is no big deal.
  
• Meeting the walrus: For rock journalist David Goggin '69, meeting John Lennon was among the highlights of his UCI days.
• Changing the world, one cartoon at a time: Michael Ramirez ’84 collects a second Pulitzer for political cartoons that make people laugh – and think.

Billion-dollar kitty

Writing press releases for Hello Kitty, star of gifts and stationery giant Sanrio Inc., allows my inner kid to come out and play. Special thanks to Orsi Public Relations for these fun assignments.
A favorite example:

Hello Kitty: Livin' the Lifestyle

She’s not a movie star, politician or supermodel, yet millions of people would know her adorable face anywhere. She’s Hello Kitty, the feline phenomenon who’s evolved into a pop culture icon and a true lifestyle brand. Introduced in 1974 by SANRIO, Hello Kitty continues to enhance her popularity with a new generation of fans and is achieving the kind of fame and following reserved for true celebrities. Continued >>

Winning Hemingway entry

In 2002, I won the International Imitation Hemingway Contest with my entry, "The Old Man and the Flea."

Reprinted in a 2007 textbook called The Writer's Eye: Composition in the Multimedia Age, it begins:

He had been bad. He knew that. He had been bad and peed on her bed and in the end there was nothing anybody could do about it. She had yelled at him that time, screaming terrible things in that way women do when you have broken their trust and trampled on their hearts and urinated on their pillow. Bad dog, she’d said. He remembered it now. And he was a bad dog. A bad, old dog with a cranky disposition and a weak bladder.
Continued >>

The prize was a trip to Italy, and when I went to Harry's Bar in Venice I toasted Hemingway -- and my cranky old Scottish terrier.

Scientists & engineers

Working at a major research university gives me a chance to interview some pretty smart people doing amazing things:

• 'WALL-E' and the professor: Biologist James Hicks plays a behind-the-scenes role in Disney/Pixar's popular animated movie.
• How things work: With his power tools, physics & chemistry professor Wilson Ho (shown) sheds light on molecules and atoms in action. Photo by Daniel A. Anderson/University Communications.
  
• Bridge doctor: Engineering professor Maria Feng works to make structures safe and avoid disasters like the Minneapolis bridge collapse.
• Wise scientist: Renowned molecular biologist Masayasu Nomura has devoted his life to probing the mysteries of ribosomes and cell growth.

Healthcare articles

Healing people is much more than a career -- it's a calling for these special people I've profiled at UC Irvine:

• Healing paws: Marianne Lovejoy's basset hounds raise spirits, lower blood pressure at UC Irvine Medical Center. Photo by Daniel A. Anderson/University Communications.
• Fighting for their lives: Dr. Leonard Sender has launched grassroots efforts to address the needs of young adult cancer patients.
• Doctor for the destitute: Dr. Emily Dow heals the poorest patients on both sides of the border.
• Life, interrupted: Dr. Devin K. Binder conducts advanced surgery to free epilepsy patients from debilitating seizures.