Meet the New Guy

Well hello, Portfolio readers. As a long-time fan of Market Movers it's a little disorienting to be moving to this side of the blogging software, but exciting to be writing for such a savvy audience. I will do my best to hold myself to Felix's high standards. Please don't hesitate to contact me with your thoughts, suggestions, or recommendations for topics to cover.

As many of you have never heard of me, it may be best to begin with a bit of an introduction. I am coming to Portfolio.com from The Economist, where I was the principle contributor to the economics blog Free Exchange. Like Felix, I have devoted most of the past two years to following, understanding, and writing about the ongoing economic and financial crisis, a pursuit I'll continue here. I'm also leaving behind a personal blog, The Bellows, which focused on urban development, climate change, trains (really, an obsession of mine), as well as politics, media, and any other old thing that grabbed my attention. With your indulgence, I'll be covering all of that, too.

How did I get here? I'd say the path was unconventional, only I'm not sure what would constitute a conventional career trajectory for a blogger. I started my working life as an industry analyst at the Bureau of Labor Statistics before pursuing a master's in economic history at the London School of Economics. Upon returning to Washington, I joined an economic consulting firm and a very sincere but ill-starred indie rock band. From the consulting firm I learned a great deal about spreadsheets and corporate litigation. From the ashes of the band rose my first blogging gig -- writing about local music for the Washington blog DCist.

After blogging at DCist for just over a year I began my personal, and more policy oriented blog The Bellows. It was initially conceived as half ranting space, half place to develop some of the economic ideas I'd had in graduate school (concerning the role of the city in economic development), but as the global economic picture darkened I found myself engaging in the ongoing public policy discussion. My work at The Bellows eventually led to my involvement at The Economist, and after about nine months of contributing to Free Exchange I left economic consulting behind for the life of a full-time blogger. And here I am.

More about me -- I'm a native North Carolinian, 30 years old, and I've spent (most of) the last 8 years in Washington. I have a lovely wife and two dogs, and a lingering urge to form another band at some point. I'm also very grateful to Portfolio for this opportunity, and to you, readers, for your time and attention. I look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas in comments.