Kevin Peterson has been an Aggie since 2007, when he transferred to UCD as an English major. After graduating in 2010, Kevin attended the University of Colorado at Boulder where he earned a Master’s in English Literature. He then returned to UC Davis to pursue a PhD in English Literature. After leaving UCD, Kevin entered the retail world with a series of supervisory roles at Walmart. He returned to UCD in 2021, first working as a Staffing Coordinator with Student Housing and Dining Services before working as an Academic Personnel Analyst in the College of Letters & Sciences and an HR Analyst in the Distributed Shared Services Center (DiSSC). Kevin joined the SSO as HR Supervisor for the Staff Employment team in February 2024.
In lieu of a traditional interview, Kevin completed a “Proust Questionnaire,” a series of questions first made famous by French novelist Marcel Proust and later adapted and popularized by others.
Which living person do you most admire?
I try not to admire the living too much—no gods, no kings, that sort of thing.
When and where were you happiest?
In school. I love being a student. That’s probably why I continued being a student well into my late 20s. Or at the beach with my family—not one of those warm tropical beaches. A cold, windy, Pacific beach, listening to the drone of the waves.
Which talent would you most like to have?
I wish I had a talent for visual art—painting, drawing, etc. I got really good at drawing Godzilla in 4th grade and never really progressed from there.
If you could choose what to come back as, what would it be?
A whale. Too big to have any real predators. Floating around, unbothered. Dodging boats when necessary.
What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?
When you wake up and think it’s the weekend but it’s actually a work/school day. Devastating.
Who are your favorite writers?
So many. Too many. I have a Samuel Beckett tattoo, so he’s definitely in the top 3. Virginia Woolf, Kurt Vonnegut, Cormac McCarthy.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Carving out a family, given the state of the world.
What is your motto?
“So it goes,” from Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse-Five. It might sound like resignation to some, but I think there is a kind of beauty in acknowledging things that are outside of our control.
Which historical figure do you most identify with?
I admire poets like Wallace Stevens and William Carlos Williams, mostly because they had completely unrelated day jobs (Stevens was an insurance executive and Williams was a physician) and were poets by night. I like the idea of working in a kind of traditional administrative career and being an artist on the side.
What is your favorite occupation?
I like to imagine a way of living that doesn’t involve people selling their time. HR is neat though!
What is your greatest extravagance?
I take a lot of heat for this, but I still buy physical media (Blu-rays, CDs). One day when the streaming services collapse, I will laugh from atop my throne of plastic jewel cases.
What do you consider the most overrated virtue?
I’ve always thought prudence was overrated. I wouldn’t say I am a super spontaneous person, but sometimes you have to throw caution to the wind. Use those nice stickers! Burn your good candles! Tomorrow is not guaranteed!
What is your idea of perfect happiness?
When both of my kids are laughing uncontrollably. It would also be great if it’s raining outside, and a cheese pizza has just been delivered.
What is your greatest fear?
To quote the character Garland Briggs from Twin Peaks: “The possibility that love is not enough.”
Which living person do you most despise?
I try not to despise anyone and approach every person with kindness and compassion. That said, I despise [REDACTED].
What is your current state of mind?
Unbalanced. Serene. Clear-eyed with a healthy dash of dread.
Where would you like to live?
Somewhere cold, with lots of rain. I grew up in snow and don’t do well in heat, so Davis is a funny place to live.
How would you like to die?
[Editor’s note: Kevin was struck by a falling piece of space junk while typing his answer to this question]