❓What’s your name and how old are you?
Jennifer Caslavka and I’m 47. It’s a Czech name. My dad’s Irish, and he loves my husband, but the name was a disappointment. (big laugh)
❓Ever had a cool nickname?
Everybody in my family calls me JR, for Jennifer Rebecca. I’ve gone by my last name a lot, my maiden name, Duggan. And my sister-in-law this last weekend started calling me Cookie. She said it’s because I’m cute and sweet. I don’t know if it’ll stick.
❓Married? Kids?
I am married, to Jason, for 24 years, and we have no kids.
❓Is he a member of the gym?
No, he works out at LA Fitness. He did CrossFit for a long time and jacked his shoulder up, so he wasn’t interested in joining here. He gets up at 5:30 and works out there, while I do my stuff after work. He’s come here with me a couple times on the weekend, but not a lot.
❓Where did you grow up and what’s your opinion of the place?
I grew up in Iowa, and it was a really great place to grow up, and I’m really thankful I don’t live there anymore. I would never live there again, even though there’s a lot of people there that I love.
❓What’s an Iowa thing that everyone in Iowa would understand, but nobody else would? Casseroles are the first thing that comes to mind. We love to add mayo and cream of mushroom to a dish. Also, we’re not quite Minnesota Nice, but we’re close.
❓You’ve seen the Music Man, right? They talk about Iowa Stubborn.
Mmm-hmm, yep. It’s a little hard to figure the difference between Iowa Stubborn and Irish Stubborn, they’re kind of similar.
❓What’s your all-time favorite movie?
The Princess Bride. It’s one that I can quote and watch as many times as I want and it never gets old. I love it so much.
❓What do you do for a living?
I’m a behavior analyst who works in a school district. First I was a special education teacher. I did that for a long time, then went back and got my behavior analyst degree. Basically, what I do is work with students who have interfering behavior. We work on adjusting the environment, adjusting what happens before and after the behavior, and helping the students find ways to get what they need without the interfering behavior.
❓Any cool jobs in your past?
In Iowa, I was a waitress and a bartender for a really long time. I loved being a bartender. I feel like if I could choose my hours and where I worked, I would still bartend one night a week. I loved it.
❓Who’s the most famous person you’ve ever served a drink to?
In Iowa? Nobody. I guess, the closest thing is Tom Arnold. He went to the University of Iowa.
❓Tell us about your all-time favorite pet.
Aww… Our first dog as a married couple, her name was Masie and she was an English Masstif. She was so big and so sweet. We got her literally one day after we bought our first house. We were like 24 and super-wise and thought that was a great idea. (laughs) She was the best. We had her for 12 great years and she was awesome. We loved her.
❓How long have you been a member at the gym?
I was actually thinking about that the other day, when I was reading one of these other profiles. I think it’s about a year and a half. (Editors note: what followed was literally five minutes of Charlie arguing that there’s no way it was that short, clearly Jen has been at the gym for at least five years, while Jen argued that, no, it’s two years at most, and she should know, because, you know, it’s her life, but Charlie just couldn’t accept this, so then G walks by and we have him check the gym’s database, and sure enough, it’s only been two years, so I think what we’ve learned from all this is that my long, slow decline into dementia continues apace. Feel free to tell me any crazy shit, I’ll probably believe it. Or won’t believe it. There’s no telling, really. I’m a mess. Anyway, back to the interview.) Yeah, it was COVID and I was working out at my best friend’s garage gym during that, and then I was like, ‘Okay, it’s time. I need to start paying for a gym again.’
❓The usual question here is, what class or classes do you usually attend, but you never attend classes, do you?
I don’t. I mean, there’s maybe two I’ve been to, and I loved it. Nearly puked the first time. It was one of Steph’s classes and I nearly puked, which clearly shows that I don’t work out nearly that hard when I work out by myself. I did CrossFit for a really long time, so I know all the movements, and I just like the flexibility of working out by myself, whenever.
❓I’ve told you this before, but you do know there are people here who refer to you as ‘the woman with the whiteboard?’
Yes! (laughs) Maybe that should be my nickname. The Woman With the Whiteboard. Somebody, I don’t know who it was, but I walked in here the other day and they were like ‘Oh, did you get a new white board?’ and I was like ‘I did! Thank you for noticing!’ (laughs)
❓Pancakes, waffles, or french toast?
Pancakes, hands down.
❓Toast, bagels, or english muffins?
Ooo… (long pause) I’m gonna say Dos Hermanos english muffins. Dos Hermanos in particular.
❓Were you an athlete growing up, and if so, what sports did you play and were you any good?
I was an athlete, up until college. I played basketball and ran track. I was pretty good for the teams I was on. I was a starter in basketball and the relay team I was on in track was pretty good. But you know, it was a small pond.
❓Where in Portland has the best burger?
Burger Stevens is what I like. It’s a cart and they do smashburgers. I just started eating red meat maybe a year and a half ago. First time since I was maybe 23. Started eating chicken maybe like 10 years ago. I was a vegetarian for a really long time. But anyway, just started eating red meat, and I don’t really like a lot of burgers that are, like, burger forward? That’s how I refer to them if they’re too thick. So I like smashburgers. (pause) You know, I also really like Lardo’s. Lardo’s has an awesome burger. If you haven’t tried it, you should really go. It says barbecue, but that’s a misnomer. I hate barbecue, but this is so good. But still, I think Burger Stevens is first. Maybe it’s a tie. They’re both good.
❓What’s your favorite workout/movement?
Power cleans, hands down.
What’s your least favorite workout/movement?
Obviously, thrusters. And anyone who doesn’t say thrusters is lying. (laughs)
❓What are some things you do in your free time?
Depends. In the summer, I don’t work, which is a treat, so I spend a lot of time in fresh water – lakes and rivers – swimming. I like to read. I like spending time with my friends and husband and dog. We eat out a ton.
❓Have you gone swimming when the gym does River Day?
Oh, in the Willamette? Nope. I’m pretty scared of a giant river like that, because I can’t see what’s underneath me. I like a small river. The Washougal River. The Clackamas River. I don’t like not being able to see what’s going on below me.
❓If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
Flight.
❓Even though people could see you?
Yes. I definitely don’t want to be invisible. I feel like people who want that are up to some shady shit. (editor’s note: Charlie wants invisibility. He’s up to some shady shit.) With flight… I just want to go for joyrides. Like flying a drone, you know. But also, I’m afraid of heights, so it gets a little tricky. But if flight means I can’t fall, maybe I wouldn’t be afraid. Though I do sometimes get vertigo. Clearly, I need to rethink this. (laughs) But for the purposes of this interview, I’m gonna say flight.
❓What’s the weirdest food you’ve ever eaten?
I’ve seen this question when you’ve asked it, so I’ve thought about it. It’s not an Iowa casserole, though I’m sure everyone else would think that’s weird. (pause) I’m sure it was something in Indonesia. Something like fish eyes. That was weird. Also, for weirdest preparation, we were in this little village in Africa. They were the most generous people, even though they didn’t have much, and they made us a meal in a tire. Still to this day, like 20 years later, my husband and I say they were the best beans we’ve ever had. They weren’t weird beans, they were standard beans, but they were cooked in a tire, like the rim of a tire. So innovative. It was what they had and they used it and it was great. But, yeah, fish eyes, probably the weirdest food I’ve eaten.
❓What’s your current gym goal?
Well, for a non-measurable goal, I just want to have better form on my back squat. For a measurable goal, I’d like to get back up to 300 on my deadlift.
❓What’s your advice for new members of the gym?
Ask questions. I feel like I see a lot of people coming in and not asking questions, just thinking they can jump in and work out RX. You should be fine with modifying, but you have to ask questions to even know you need to modify.
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