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NONFICTION SELF-INTERVIEWS

Daniel Nester: The TNB Self-Interview

by DANIEL NESTER
ALBANY, NY
11 December 2009

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...in which he asks the same questions 'Teen Magazine' asked actor and heartthrob Zac Efron in December 2005; find the original interview here.


Age: 41

Sign: Pisces

Birthplace: Portsmouth, VA


You may know me because:

I emailed you to ask you about mooning.


My house is:

In the suburbs, but pretty big.


The first thing I do every morning is:

Look for glasses, then coffee, then the New York Times. Oh, and then my children. And wife.


About my pets:

Two cats, Lux and Nadine, inherited by marriage. They don’t like me and I don’t like them. Someday they will be dead. In the meantime, I feed them and pick up their droppings.


I exercise:

On elliptical machines that never go anywhere, and always seem to have reruns of Monk on the TV.


Lately I've been surprised by:

The career of high-profile attorney Gloria Allred.


The cereals in my cupboard are:

Grains that go with rice milk. It’s my most progressive meal of the day.


Heaven on earth is:

Toss-up:

The Spotty Dog Books & Ale in Hudson, NY

Dove and Hudson Old Books in Albany, NY

The warm lap of poet-bartender Shafer Hall


For dinner, I like to make:

A phone call to a place that delivers.


I'll eat sushi:

If it’s in New York. In Albany, not so much.


My coolest article of clothing:

It’s my glasses these days: Basic horn-rimmeds from Selima Optique or Butch Spectaculars from Fabulous Fanny’s.


My most prized possession:

A Burns Brian May Red Special replica guitar.  And a mint copy of the Sex Pistols’ Never Mind the Bollocks on 8-track.


My TV screen is:

...in need of an upgrade.


My favorite TV channel is:

The DVR playback channel, where episodes of Nash Bridges and CSI: Miami wait patiently to be viewed.


My first financial splurge:

A pimped-out stereo in my Honda Fit.  Totally unnecessary.


Wackiest fan encounter:

An actor who I had seen on the previous evening’s Law & Order who stopped me on Second Avenue to tell me he really liked the leaving New York essay (“Goodbye to All Them,” which appears here and is in How to Be Inappropriate.) I asked him to repeat his line from the episode.  He played a doorman. He paused to get back into character and said something like the following: “I dunno, officer. Last time I saw him leave the building he looked angry and had a lot of luggage.”


Before I die, I want to:

Finally convince my friend Chris Connelly that Neil Diamond has contributed more to Western Civilization than Neil Young.


Celebrity whom I'd ask for an autograph:

Cindy Sherman.


Dream car:

A red 1965 Mustang convertible.


When I fly I have to have [Original Zac Efron answer here]:

Rocket boots! Otherwise I always seem to fall....


People would be surprised that I:

Am just like you.


Book I'm reading:

Philosophical Dictionary by this French guy Voltaire.


Magazines I subscribe to:

The Believer, Dwell, Details, International Male, Poets & Writers, Harper’s, Kenyon Review, New Yorker, New York, McSweeney’s, Mojo, Pank, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue.


Favorite cartoon:

Looney Tunes.


The DVD release I was most excited about was:

Queen + Paul Rodgers Super Live in Japan.


I can't start my day without:

Coffee (see above).


If I had to spend $10 at my favorite fast-food joint, I'd order:

Burger King all the way.


TAGS: , , , , ,

Daniel Nester DANIEL NESTER’s latest book is How to Be Inappropriate, a collection of humorous nonfiction. It’s been called a “deeply funny new collection of booger-flecked nonfiction” (Time Out New York), an “enjoyable read” (Library Journal), an “an entertaining look at defying the conventions of appropriate behavior” (The Daily Beast), and “one of the year's funniest books” (Largehearted Boy).

 He is the author of God Save My Queen and God Save My Queen II, collections on his obsession with the rock band Queen, and The History of My World Tonight, is a collection of poems. His writing has appeared Poets & Writers, The Morning News, The Daily Beast, Time Out New York, The Rumpus, McSweeney's Internet Tendency, and Bookslut. A former sestinas editor for McSweeney's, he teaches writing at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, NY.


Daniel notices a lot of writers here at The Nervous Breakdown state in this space whether or not they are available to speak with book clubs to discuss their work. Daniel would like in on some of this action. If you would like to discuss How to Be Inappropriate in your book club with Daniel, contact him through his website, list three dates and times as well as a contact name and number, and arrangements can be made. He is also willing to crank call you. Follow him on Twitter, too.

 Anyone who buys How to Be Inappropriate is also eligible to get a free How to Be Inappropriate whoopee cushion and other goodies. One way to do it is to go to the book’s website and print out a whoopee cushion coupon and mail it to him. Or you could just ask.

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4 Comments»

Comment by Marni Grossman
2009-12-13 02:22:17

Something must be done about your DVR full of “Nash Bridges.” It’s time for an intervention.

Comment by Phat B
2009-12-15 16:50:49

I knew they made Nash Bridges for somebody. I’ve never met anyone else who watched that show. Cheech and Don Johnson in Miami. Jesus. I think I’ve got a child abuse case against my parents for making me watch that show.

Comment by Phat B
2009-12-15 16:55:10

Wait. San Francisco! That’s why his name was Bridges. Ha! Why must these memories keep surfacing. I’m going to need therapy after this. My god, I just remembered Cheech’s terrible Mr. Toad hats! Help!

(Comments wont nest below this level)
 
 
 
Comment by LitPark
2009-12-16 21:52:11

That was awfully fun to read!

 
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