The 510 Readings in Baltimore Magazine

There's a really nice article in January's Baltimore Magazine about The 510 Readings, which I host with the wonderful Jen Michalski. Thank you, Jason Tinney. Thank you, Peggy and Minas.

#34 Minas Konsolas: Bohemian on the Run

Minas Konsolas was born in 1953 in a tiny, isolated, mountain village way up in the clouds called Olympos (the second “o” makes it different). In 1973, he was conscripted into the Greek army. In 1976, he got out of the Greek army and left Greece too. He went west to visit his sisters in Baltimore and stayed because it was cool. His perception of the world had changed and he preferred being an immigrant in the US rather than a foreigner in his own country. He is a bohemian on the run and believes that we are always searching for our home within ourselves. One of the ways that Minas search for himself is through painting, which he has done since he was 21 years old; it is a way to be with himself, to create something, and to record the tensions in his life. He never played the lyra when he was growing up on Olympos, but he does now, as a way to stay connected to Greece. Coming from a family of merchants, it is fitting that Minas now runs a boutique with his wonderful wife, Peggy Hoffman. In fact, it is because of this seemingly inherited trait that they met. One day, Minas had stepped out of his shop for a bit of fresh air, saw Peggy walking down the street, and thought that she was the freshest thing that he had ever seen. The fact that Peggy and Minas are from two different cultures means that they are still discovering new things about each other, which has kept their marriage fresh as well.

#33 Peggy Hoffman: Not Yet a Witch

Peggy Hoffman was born in Atlanta, but moved to Baltimore, which is where she mostly grew up, with her family when her father bought a bookbindery there. Unfortunately, this move led to her parents’ divorce, the discussions about which Peggy listened to through vents in the family house. If a divorce could be a good divorce, then this was one. It also helped that Peggy went to a high school where all the cool kids had divorced parents. Peggy’s adult life has also been split, though in another sense. Peggy used to work in the non-profit sector—everything from building homes for people to education and literacy; she was proud of her work, but miserable. Now she works in the for-profit sector, a boutique that she co-runs with her wonderful husband, Minas Konsolas. Peggy loves her life with Minas and the fact that they can run the boutique while also supporting the community of artists, writers, and performers who frequent the store’s upstairs gallery. If she has one regret, it is that she didn’t buy a headstone for her mother’s grave, though the reason for that regret is unresolved. Peggy has a beautiful voice, is skilled at palmistry and Tarot, and may yet become a witch.