It takes a special sort to go on hiatus from a successful acting career to take a desk job in the Obama administration. But such was the trajectory of Kal Penn, whose rise to fame came thanks to his role in the Harold & Kumar films. In 2009, while he was starring on the television series House, he surprised many by leaving Hollywood for Washington, where he spent two years as associate director of the White House Office of Public Engagement and Intergovernmental Affairs. Now he writes about that experience, and many others, in his new memoir, You Can’t Be Serious. On this occasion, he shares his key components to the good life. —Ashley Baker
Airline: Monocle’s fake “perfect airline.” I think they called it “Nordic.” I have the framed print on my wall.
Airport: L.G.A., baby! Kidding. Changi, in Singapore.
Alibi: A dusky man with a mustache, pocket watch, and hat who conceals half his face in shadows.
App: Please, can I throw away my phone?
Appliance: Steamer.
Attitude: Hungry.
Bag: My NASA backpack.
Bedtime: 10:30 p.m.
Bike: Air bike.
Birthday: April 23, the same as Shakespeare’s.
Breakfast, weekday: Tacos.
Breakfast, weekend: Tacos.
