This month Natural Selections interviews Margaret Breed, Occupational Health Services.
Country of Origin: US

How long have you been living in New York?
I was born downtown and spent the first couple of years in Queens, before moving out to Long Island. After living in Washington, DC and San Francisco, I moved to SoHo in 1981.

Where do you live?
SoHo.

Which is your favorite neighborhood?
Most of the neighborhoods are pretty interesting.

What do you think is the most overrated thing in the city? And underrated?
Overrated has to be the popular tourist areas, especially on weekends. Underrated is that it’s a great place to raise children.

What do you miss most when you are out of town?
Our cats, Jenny and Jump.

If you could change one thing about NYC, what would that be?
Transportation. Wider sidewalks, a light rail system, more bike lanes–anything to decrease/discourage cars. I live only three to four miles from Rockefeller University, but it’s too scary to ride my bike to work!

Describe a perfect weekend in NYC.
So many choices! When the weather is nice, it’s fun to bike up the West Side Highway, or go up to Central Park, or over to Governors Island. I also enjoy visiting the Brooklyn or Bronx Botanical Gardens, and then maybe putter in my garden. When the weather is not nice, there are a lot of museums to visit. Every weekend includes the Sunday New York Times, and maybe we’ll have dinner out.

What is the most memorable experience you have had in NYC?
The best: meeting my husband-to-be at a Christmas party. The worst: working in the Financial District on 9/11.

If you could live anywhere else, where would that be?
Well, I like living here, so maybe a second home in Scotland.

Do you think of yourself as a New Yorker? Why?
Yes, definitely. It’s home.