Chewing the Fat with Mike Huckabee

Last year BEST LIFE magazine asked me to interview a certain governor from Hope, Arkansas with a new book and a penchant for smooth talk. (It wasn’t former President Bill Clinton, alas.) That March, Republican Mike Huckabee was at the toe of the heavily-crevassed glacier he’s now crossing, a frenetic dash for his party’s nomination which threatens to swallow him whole as he blithely glides into terra incognita, dodging hard questions with jokey refrains. [Anyone surprised by his rapid ascent to national prominence should read this hard-hitting profile by Zev Chafets in the Sunday New York Times Magazine.] Still, I enjoyed my chat with the Governor, impressed with his zeal for a fitter nation and his newfound stature: the self-proclaimed ‘Ultimate Sofa Spud’ had shed 110 pounds, in part by “training religiously” for marathons (and dropping his beloved chicken-fried-steak-and-gravy combo plates). An impressive feat, sure, but a test of Presidential mettle? We’ll see about that. At any rate, should you care, here’s a rundown what Mike Huckabee eats when he’s not at the Olive Garden (PDF). At least hasn’t given up bacon. (Originally published in Best Life magazine, June, 2006)

High Plains Drifter

Who ever said New York doesn’t have everything? Now that Sherpas have moved en masse from the Himalayas to New York City, it only makes sense the Himalayas should follow suit. After all, the great range has around 100 peaks that soar above 7,000 meters; New York City has some 35 high-rise buildings that soar over 700′; ambition itself dwells here! (OK, so do giant rats, and toxic preschools). In the spirit of reaching higher, though, some very enterprising Hindu monks in Queens have been working on a remarkable basketball court-sized replica of the sacred range since 1994, nearly filling a former electronics warehouse in Woodside, scheduled to open sometime in 2008. Amid snowcapped peaks that rise to nearly 20′ are a dozen model train sets, model fire engines, and a few teal colored convertibles parked outside an ersatz American-style diner. There’s no sign of any yeti so far; supplemental oxygen won’t be necessary. Via Gothamist. Related: Sherpas on Prime Time.

Sherpas on Prime Time

A few weeks ago I got a surprising phone call from producers at ABC News who hoped to turn my recent piece on Sherpas in New York from Outside Magazine into a segment for World News Tonight. After two days of filming in SoHo and Queens, the result was broadcast last night, the closing segment of Sunday’s show. Miraculously the interview with me did not end up on the cutting room floor. Enjoy!