15 Things You Need to Know This Morning

Title: Founder/CEO, Delta Associates.
Company: Founded in 1980, 20-employee firm advises on 150 significant development projects annually and sells eight annual research reports. 
Job focus: 50% spent advising clients on development projects and the rest on staff supervision, quality control, and rainmaking. Travels 2-3 times per month and plans content for annual TrendLines event (going on 18 years) that makes market predictions 2-5 years out. 
Memorable project: Hired in early 80s while at Gladstone to advise Alexandria on vacant torpedo factory along waterfront. Advised against putting in Garfinckel’s and recommended art studios. No huge revenue generator but would anchor far end of King Street and create traffic for retailers. 
Grew up: Silver Spring – best memory was sledding down Boston Avenue when it snowed 8 inches and schools were closed for a week.
Current home: Alexandria.
Why return to DC: Job at Gladstone Associates in 1970 after living in Wilmette, Ill.
School: University of Wisconsin.
First job: Cleaning rail boxcars for luggage manufacturer in Baltimore. 
Job in another life: Wildlife photographer for National Geographic (hobby is photography, passion is adventure travel).
Person (living or dead) to meet: Albert Einstein – would love to ask, “how can we humans be so smart and so stupid all at the same time?”
Greatest fear: Snakes.
Daily habit: Starbucks on the way to work to get a plain coffee.
Favorite music group and song: Pink Floyd – Money.
Favorite book: River of Doubt by Candice Millard.
Favorite movie: When Harry Met Sally (1989).
Favorite vacation: Trekked six hours with group to observe gorillas in Rwanda in 2010. Observed family of 18 gorillas 10 feet away. 
Favorite restaurant: Arcuri (Glover Park).
Bucket list: Travel to Madagascar to see the lemurs.
Family facts: Married to Nancy 46 years and two adult sons.
Startling fact: Got an artificial knee at age 17 from playing tennis on grass while living in Perth, Australia. (Dad was designing interstate highway system.) Tripped on net stake and it went through knee.