In Person - Questions for Steve Prusky
by Christi Kochifos Caceres
Born in Detroit, Steve Prusky now lives in Las Vegas. His prose and poetry have appeared in vis a tergo, Foundling Review, Apparatus Magazine and other publications. His photo exhibit, Eye on the Mojave Desert, can be seen at The Camel Saloon - http://camelsaloonmojave.blogspot.com/
How would you begin your day if you had no obligations or obstacles?
Coffee, email, then four hours of reading and four hours of writing – just like a job.
What is your drink of choice?
Well, my liver tells me…
I like Chardonnay, Beajolais, anything 3.2 and above.
Where is your ideal home?
For the next six years, here – Vegas. Then Utah, Southern Utah. There are mountains and it’s very peaceful.
Describe a perfect Sunday evening.
Not worrying about work the next day. Watching the new DiCaprio movie with my wife - glass of wine.
Do you have a favorite restaurant?
My first date with my wife was at Chili’s
What is your best time of day?
Quittin’ time. Late afternoon.
What do you wish you did not have to do?
Work.
What touches you most deeply?
A few things – Beethoven’s 9th Symphony, holding, and talking with, my wife.
Reading Billy Collins, Hemingway.
Who are a few of your favorite artists?
Bukowski, Malamud, Mary Oliver, the poet Lyn Lifshin.
Klimt – his colors and complicated patterns. Schubert, Satie, Liszt, Copland.
What books or films do you love?
Anything by Hemingway. Seven Pillars of Wisdom, by Lawrence. The Assistant, by Malamud. I like Cormac McCarthy, Lermontov’s A Hero of Our Time, Whitman’s Leaves of Grass.
Where do you find inspiration?
In everyday activities. And in my past. Things I see on a daily basis. My wife. I stay away from using the first person but most of what I write has actually happened. They’re my stories.
Who has influenced your life most profoundly?
Positively – my seventh grade teacher Mr. Silverman. He got me interested in reading and writing. Negatively – the war. My mom said I was not the same boy as before. And she was probably right.
What do you consider to be your gift?
My honor. If I could influence one person with that it would be my best accomplishment. Honor is the best a person can achieve.
How do you think your therapist would sum you up in one sentence?
Excessive/compulsive probably. Well-meaning, high-strung, hypertensive, I’ve got medications for all that stuff. Reasonably well educated, an upstanding, decent man.
What bugs you the most about other people?
Their inability to pay attention for very long. Their inability to do what I want them to do. Poor drivers!
What do you wish you could stop doing?
Losing my temper at myself.
What helps you feel balanced in your life?
Writing and reading. It’s my fix.
What will be the title of your biography?
I never thought of that one… I know what my headstone will say – Come Collect Now. My bio…He Failed, He Succeeded.
Have you met your perfect partner?
Yes. I have, after three tries. It’s been twelve very, very good years.
What question have I not asked that you would like to answer?
What are your children’s names.
And, what are they?
Julia and Joan. And I have three grandkids. They’re the apple of my eye.