The last time I tried to write a page of this sort as part of a website, I had a couple of good folk at Ohio State tell me that the references to Christ and Christianity enclosed in the document should not be found on an academic website, and I probably ought to edit. Which entirely torched my motivation to edit, and I don't think I was entirely sure how to edit until now.
Fortunately, I'm pretty sure my current employers wouldn't mind references to Christ in a bio too much. It might help them a bit with the Georgia Baptist Convention.
So, hello there. This is the stuff that defines me, in order of importance:
I am a Christian. That title carries with it a whole lot of baggage, but it's still the most useful title to describe the core of my values. I believe that Jesus of Nazareth is who he said he was and who the Bible reported he was, and I accept all the implications of that, and live my life in gratitude for the sacrifice that Jesus' life turned out to be.
I am a husband and a father. I've now been married to Kristin for eleven years (as of 31 July 2004), and if she's stuck with me through all the crap I've put her through for the past elevenn years, I don't think I'm going to be able to run her off. Not that I want to. She provides order in my chaotic world, order I so desperately need.
Amelia is 9 years old, and Anna is 5. I will only be a father of daughters. Someone else is going to have to carry on this branch of the Pearson name.
I am an academic and a teacher. At my core, I am concerned with knowledge, passing current knowledge down to the next generation, and asking whether current knowledge describes the world well enough. My academic heritage is that of a biophysicist, which has instilled in me a passion for all of the natural sciences. I teach physics professionally, but I have taught chemistry, biology, and a small bit of atmosphere science and geology in the context of "interdisciplinary science".
Somewhere out there are abstracts for papers I've written, where I've contributed an actual tiny bit of knowledge to the well. With a well-placed search request, you might be able to read some of them.
Most importantly, though, is the practice of getting a room full of students who don't understand much about physics or about science and developing, both individually and across the classroom, the skills necessary to communicate about the world about them, both in the language of English and the language of mathematics. That's the thing most people get to see me go truly passionate about.
I am an evangelical. You can find much better definitions of evangeicalism from much more intelligent people than I, but my bottom line is that I believe the Great Commission is essential to the Christian life.
I am a Methodist. The core of my spiritual and social belief is also that held by the United Methodist Church, and so Methodism is always going to be my denominational home.
Please note that, in the order of importance, Christianity is all the way at the top, while my denomination is somewhere in the middle. This is by design. Unlike many people 'round here who think that Jesus is all there is to Christianity, I do put some stock in denominational distinction, especially because the social and ecumenical priorities of the Methodists fall very largely in line with my own. At the same time, we DO spend too much of our time wallowing in our differences instead of the One who keeps us together. So the distinction is important.
We're trying to assemble a Wesley Foundation chapter at Shorter - if you're interested in participating, get a hold of me.
I am online a lot. Obviously.
I am a soccer geek. This is not as big a deal as any of the above, but you spend too much time with me and I'd forgive you for thinking otherwise. I am a massive fan of the US national teams, the Columbus Crew, and AFC Wimbledon. I used to write a Columbus Crew fansite, which has morphed into a simply tremendous one-stop soccer news and discussion shop (mad props to Lee Smith, as always) - I've picked up a blog on that site, which is a tremendous honor to be able to do. Don't ask my wife about the amount of soccer I watch at home. (At this moment, the youth coaching thing is on the back-burner, but stay tuned.)
I am a music geek. My music collection probably should be archived here. It'll take a while to work up, though. Current faves: Taking Back Sunday (if you like current rock at all and you don't have a copy of Where You Want To Be, you don't know what you're missing), Stavesacre, Sixpence None The Richer, Yellowcard, The Promise Ring, Linkin Park, Mae, and whatever we're singing in church next Sunday. My tastes tend toward current rock, but I do have tastes that extend all over the map.
I like quiz bowl. Nothing to say about this yet, but I do.
I play Magic. But nowhere near as much as I used to - all the above occupations obsessions have taken precedence.
Hey, did I leave out anything? E-mail me if you think I did.