Bill Clinton loves movies, peanut butter-and-banana sandwiches, playing hearts and working The New York Times crossword puzzle - in ink.
Car rides, music, mystery novels, sports - these are just some of the less than cosmic preoccupations of the president-elect when he isn't attending to matters of high policy.Other Clinton favorites:
He usually reads at least three books at once, but they're not all by Nobel Prize winners. He's a sucker for page-turner mysteries and thrillers.
He loves all kinds of games - from basketball to pinochle - and everything he plays, he plays to win. Even playing Trivial Pursuit, he exhibits a cutthroat com-pet-i-tive-ness.
"You thought he was tenacious running for president," said television producer and longtime friend Linda Bloodworth-Thomason. "I mean, please."
Because he loves to stop and chat, Clinton can't keep to a schedule. He had a regular Friday morning radio show as governor, sched-uled to start at 8 a.m. But he almost never made it to the station before 8:30 a.m., said his press secretary as governor, Mike Gauldin.
"You learn to operate on Clinton standard time," Gauldin said.
About a year ago, Clinton bought a '66 Mustang convertible - painted a '60s metallic shade of blue - from his brother, Roger Clinton. The faint of heart should turn down any offer of a ride.
Clinton likes to drive fast, and he doesn't just stare at the road zoom-ing by. He tends to steer, talk, eat and search for his favorite song on the tape deck all at once - a state of affairs Gauldin calls "unnerving."
"We need him as president because it takes him off the streets. Someone is driving for him," said David Leopoulis, who's been a close friend of Clinton's since the fourth grade.
"He can't talk to anyone without eye contact. So if you sit in the back seat, that means he's going to go off the road."
It really happened - more than once, Leopoulis says.
Clinton also often reads and holds a conversation si-mul-ta-neous-ly.
"I've always said he has two brains - one for reading and one for normal life," Gauldin said.
When it comes to music, Clinton obviously loves Elvis Presley. But he's also fond of Motown and country standards. He loves jazz, too, and often listens to Wynton Mar-sal-is and Kenny G.
Gospel music has been featured at each of his previous inaugurals, and he sometimes sings in his Southern Baptist church choir.
If his house were burning down and he could save only one record, he once said, he would choose Judy Collins' "Colors of the Morning."
Like everything else, Clinton knows his song lyrics, from TV show theme songs to "The Battle of New Orleans."
He also knows movies and watches lots of them. His favorites: "High Noon" and "Casablanca."
He's allergic to milk and favors caffeine-free sodas. He takes his coffee decaf, too. Once in a blue moon, he'll have a beer or a glass of wine, but he's not what you'd call a drinking man.
He loves barbecue and Mexican food, but frankly, there are few foods he won't eat.
When he's not working, he usually wears jeans, a T-shirt, a baseball cap and running shoes. His clothes aren't fancy; he wears inexpensive brand names and a plastic digital watch.
As a sports fan, he's beyond passionate, and he's been known to start hollering at Arkansas Razorbacks games. Friends say it's embarrassing to be with him.
"That's a fault of his. He just goes berserk sometimes," said Leop-oulis.
Clinton's quick to join a pick-up basketball game. He also plays golf, swims and jogs, and often lifts weights at the local YMCA.
He likes jokes and witty repartee and enjoys swapping funny stories about friends. Sometimes, he laughs until he cries.
"When Bill laughs, it's infectious," says Bloodworth-Thom-a-son.