My good friend Larry Smith has always encouraged me to own this story. There is an essay in his collection The Moment where I talk about the moment, at 3:00 a.m., that Hunter S. Thompson called me and invited me out for a “trial” to be his assistant.
POV magazine was a formative part of my career, both personally and professionally. I was the research editor in charge of the fact-checking department, but I also copyedited the magazine (which led to my sustained career as a copy chief, freelancer, and copyediting instructor). We were also encouraged to write. This essay, “Hunter College,” appeared in POV in 1997 and was subsequently reposted to the Smith Magazine website years later.