On the weekends, you can find Angela Commito scouring estate sales and antique shops for good finds – she especially likes rugs, textiles and ceramics.

She also enjoys visiting museums and historic sites, or hiking or doing something else outdoors in the Capital Region, Adirondacks or Berkshires with her family.

“I’ve always been fascinated by plants, especially ferns and mosses, and by water,” said Commito, a senior lecturer in classical archaeology who joined Union in 2015. “What I think links my interests in archaeology and nature is that feeling of discovery -- you never know what you’re going to find when you step outside or step into the past.”

This love of being outdoors is one thing that led Commito to become an archeologist. She also relishes the physical labor of the profession, as well as working with artifacts and collaborating with colleagues and students around the world.

Through these collaborations, and in her research and teaching, Commito examines the ancient Mediterranean past through various kinds of physical remains.

“I am especially interested in relationships between ancient Greco-Roman cities and their surrounding landscapes, with a particular focus on water-related technologies and a growing interest in human-plant interactions,” she said.

She has done archaeological fieldwork in Italy, the Republic of Georgia, and most extensively in Turkey, where she currently works on a project at an ancient Greco-Roman harbor town on the Aegean Sea called Notion. Hiking in the Caucasus Mountains in Georgia and camping in a hillside sanctuary of Zeus in Turkey have been two of her favorite fieldwork experiences so far.

Commito grew up in Maryland but also lived in Norway, New Zealand and Italy for short periods, and she spent every summer in Maine because her father did research on the clams, mussels and other organisms living in the intertidal zone.

“Today, I live in an old townhouse in an historic neighborhood in Albany with my husband and soon-to-be 5-year-old son,” she said. “We love being able to walk to restaurants, parks, music venues, theaters, libraries, museums and event spaces right outside our door. But, whenever possible I like to escape into nature, too.”

FIRST APP YOU LOOK AT IN THE MORNING:

I wait for as long as possible before looking at any electronic device. But when the inevitable time comes, it’s to check email.

WHAT'S THE LAST GREAT BOOK YOU READ:

Two favorite books that I think about regularly are "Independent People" by Halldór Laxness, and "A Maine Hamlet" by Lura Beam. Laxness’ work is a novel about the struggles of a sheep farmer and his family in Iceland, with a bit of magical realism. Beam writes a sort of sociological study of a tiny hamlet in rural Maine at the very beginning of the 20th century. I’m fascinated by seasonal rhythms and pre-modern agricultural lifestyles. She happens to be writing about a place in Maine I love and have visited every summer since I was born, and still visit with my own family. Both books allow me to peek into the rural past in a way that feels very real. They make the past come alive.

BEST ADVICE YOU EVER RECEIVED:

I’ll take any and all advice I can get, so I have a few answers. These are not creative but they have worked for me. The first is “Feel the fear and do it anyway” – which is attributed to the psychologist and self-help author Susan Jeffers, but I received it from my mother, so I like to give her credit. Thanks, Mom! I started embracing this advice my junior year of college, when I began spending more time out of the country doing archaeological work. Another one that also pops into my head often is “Don’t sweat the small stuff” (from Richard Carlson… but thanks, Mom and Dad!). I’ve only really been able to follow that advice in the past few years, ever since becoming a parent and experiencing the Covid-19 pandemic, which reconfigured my sense of what really matters. Another family classic: “Everybody’s beautiful… in their own way” (thanks, Grandma Rita!).

WHAT ARE YOU WATCHING RIGHT NOW:

Nothing! Can you believe it? I have a love/hate relationship with screens, and right now, we’re in a hate phase. In the evenings, I spend time outside with my family in our neighborhood in Albany, especially Empire Plaza or Washington Park, and then read or just let my mind wander. It sounds like a waste of time but it’s a calming and surprisingly productive sort of meditation.

ONE SKILL YOU WISH YOU HAD:

I used to wish I could read other people’s minds but now I realize how little that would actually help in establishing meaningful connections. Instead, I wish I could communicate with everyone in every language and social situation. I am in awe of people who can speak multiple languages truly fluently or who are good at breaking the ice in new social situations.

THREE DINNER PARTY GUESTS (living or deceased):

Any two of my ancestors, including one going back a couple thousand years. Not because I’m into genealogy or obsessed with my own family, but because I seek a sense of connection with the past, and making that connection in a personal way would, I think, open up new ways of approaching this challenge. I’m sure they’d turn out to be a shepherdess from the highlands of central Italy and a farmer from what is now the Czech Republic. I’d especially want to hear about the lives of the women and children in my family’s history. The third guest would be someone – anyone – from the future, so I could find out whether I can stop worrying.

FIRST CONCERT:

It wasn’t my first, but I do remember loving a concert in the Circus Maximus in Rome – I think it was the “We Are the Future” charity event – not for the music but for the sheer number and variety of people. It was incredible to see this ancient public structure filled with people partying.

LITTLE KNOWN FACT ABOUT YOU:

A few summers ago, a botfly shot its parasitic larvae into my eye. I had to get them plucked out with tweezers before they could embed themselves.

FAVORITE UNION MEMORY/EXPERIENCE:

There are at least three espresso machines on the third floor of Lamont House, and there is nothing better than when they’re all blasting away at once, providing caffeine to those seeking good company and conversation.

ONE THING YOU CAN'T LIVE WITHOUT:

If we’re talking about things and not people, I’d choose what my Grandma Agnes used to call a “delicious breeze.” It’s the kind of soothing, yet invigorating breeze, that arrives just at the right time and makes you feel connected to nature. Does that sound crazy?