Unspun: D.C. Council Member Mary M. Cheh

(Bill O'Leary)

Your guilty food indulgence?

Chocolate cupcakes. Milky Ways. Marvelous Market. It's pricey but they have the best cinnamon apple pound cake, which I confess I could eat entirely myself in one sitting.

Where do you go to dine out?

A lot of times I just go simply with the choice of the person I'm with. I like Italian food.

Tell us about your biggest goof.

I wasn't always sufficiently aware of what the [D.C.] Council did before I got involved with it. On the night of my election victory . . . I met some other people, and I wasn't entirely aware that they were Council members. Then someone pointed it out for me, and I went back and said, "Oh, we're going to be colleagues."

How do you relax?

By exercising. . . . I've been a runner for many years. I've recently had a knee operation, so I ride my bike a lot now. And I work out at the gym. As I get older, I've had to do different things. At the gym, I've taken up boxing. I used to do touch football in the congressional league, but I had to hang up my spikes on that one.

The best part of living in your neighborhood?

I live in an area called Forest Hills. It's very close to [Rock Creek Park]. Probably the best thing is that the neighborhood feels like an extension of the park. For example, I know a lot of people are worried about pests and animals. But I like the deer, I like the raccoons. I even have tree frogs and possums. It has sort of a country feel to it.

If you weren't in politics, what would you most like to be doing?

I'm a law professor at GW law school, so I have two great jobs.