This post is part of a multi-part installment exploring the career and life of Dr. Mark Rupp, outgoing Chief of Infectious Disease at UNMC. If you missed our first post introducing Dr. Rupp and this series or part 2 exploring Dr. Rupp’s career, see the linked posts to catch up. Otherwise, read on to learn more about Dr. Rupp’s life, interests, and hobbies.
What are your favorite pastimes/hobbies?
Up until fairly recently (pandemic casualty) I played indoor soccer with an “old timers” club. With the arrival of grandchildren, I enjoy spending time with them and watching them grow up so very quickly. Gardening is a favorite pastime, as is spending evenings on the backyard deck with friends and neighbors. The high point of my year is an annual backpacking trip with my adult children in a remote wilderness area – truly off the grid.
What are your favorite genres of book/movie/music?
I’ve always thought that life is a bit better when you are reading a good book and I usually have a book or two that I am engaged with. I favor American history, but also enjoy science, current events, economics, politics, etc. Once in a while, my wife will steer me to great fiction. For example, I just finished Eric Larson‘s “The Demon of Unrest’ about the days just before the Lincoln inauguration and the initiation of the Civil War (some interesting parallels to the modern day) and I’ve started Hampton Sides’ “The Wide Wide Sea” about Captain James Cook’s 3rd and final voyage. I definitely recommend Abraham Verghese and the Covenant of Water. A few other recent worthy reads include Wasteland – by Oliver Franklin Wallis, Caste – by Isabel Wilkerson, and The Deadly Rise of Anti-Science – by Peter Hotez.
Where have you lived? Which was your favorite?
My father was a geologist who worked for an oil company, and we moved around the western US oil fields as I was growing up – born in Kansas, lived in Oklahoma, Colorado, and moved to Houston, Texas, in high school. I went to UT Austin and Baylor College of Medicine and then went out to Virginia for 7 years of post-doctoral training. UNMC was my first “real job” – my dad kidded me about finishing 27th grade as I joined faculty at UNMC. I’ve lived in Nebraska longer than any other place. I truly believe that “you should bloom where you are planted” and every place I’ve lived has been full of wonderful people, places, and opportunities.
-Dr. Mark E. Rupp