At a Glance
Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson.
Education. It’s not a charity per se, although some teachers might beg to differ with the salaries they make [he laughs].
My wife and I and our kids have traveled a lot, but I would like to go to Italy.
There’s a whole bunch of ravens that have been hanging around my office recently, and ravens are really cool. I don’t know that I would want to cage a bird, but I am intrigued by them.
At a Glance
Red Mars by Kim Stanley Robinson.
Education. It’s not a charity per se, although some teachers might beg to differ with the salaries they make [he laughs].
My wife and I and our kids have traveled a lot, but I would like to go to Italy.
There’s a whole bunch of ravens that have been hanging around my office recently, and ravens are really cool. I don’t know that I would want to cage a bird, but I am intrigued by them.
Off the Cuff
im Campbell is the CEO of PND Engineers—and a firm believer that anyone living in Alaska should visit Hawai’i at least two or three times a year.
Campbell has been building bridges and cultivating relationships in Alaska for twenty-five years—something he credits largely to the listening skills he has learned from his perfect wife, Eileen. At the end of the day, his favorite part of the job is working with people.
Jim Campbell: Who has free time [he laughs]? Well, I do like to ski, ride bikes, travel, and hike. Anchorage is great for cross-country—it’s fantastic.
AB: Is there a skill you’re currently developing or have always wanted to learn?
Campbell: I think that probably working on my golf game sometime here in the next couple decades might be on the list. I’ve never been a golfer, but it is amusing.
AB: What’s the most daring thing you’ve ever done?
Campbell: Not too long after my wife and I got married, she was seven months pregnant and we were remodeling the house and I tore the floor out of our one bathroom. I was remodeling it and had to tear up the entire subfloor because it was all rotten. She was seven months pregnant and the bathroom had no floor in it and you just had to balance on the floor joists as you went to the tub or the toilet or the sink. She kept a good humor about it.
AB: What is your favorite local restaurant?
Campbell: I really love Middle Way Café. I love Snow City. I love Campobello and the Hearth. Anchorage has a lot of good places.
AB: Other than your current career, if you were a kid today, what would your dream job be?
Campbell: I think every job has tradeoffs; they all have good parts and they have downsides. That’s a tough question. I think being a teacher could be really satisfying but having to deal with administrators and irate parents could be frustrating. I think that my natural inclination is to be a builder. And of course, who wouldn’t want to be ski patrol?
Campbell: Recently I’ve been listening to a bunch of Amy Winehouse—she’s fantastic. She probably would be really fun to see. But honestly, I shouldn’t single out anyone… there would be a hundred others on the list.
AB: What’s your greatest extravagance?
Campbell: These days if you have to go to the doctor for anything, it sure feels like an extravagance when you get the bill [he laughs]. But I guess if I’m at the grocery store, I don’t pay attention to the prices—if I want a good steak: I don’t even look. I just buy it.
AB: What’s your best attribute and worst attribute?
Campbell: I always want to joke—I don’t know if you watch The Office with Steve Carell—but there’s that joke “I care too much.” And we always joke in my household that I care too much.
But I guess one good thing, and I wasn’t always this way, but over thirty-plus years of being married to my wife, she really has taught me to listen better and not to interrupt. 
