He made numerous professional conference presentations around the United States and continued to travel, visiting Canada, Mexico, and Western Europe. Travel continues to be an important part of his life, including a summer tour to the Chicago Blues Festival, Yellowstone National Park, British Columbia, and San Francisco. Being the father of an early teen, he is in touch with current pop artists like Brittany Spears and Eminem. He plays blues, pop, and folk music on electric guitar, including a set as a street musician at Mardi Gras 2000. His interest in national affairs continues, and he is active in the movement for sensible gun regulation.
Intellectual activity remains important, too.
He is enjoying his eighteenth year as a full-time community college instructor and still loves being in the classroom, getting high on history. In November 2000 he made a professional presentation on teaching and learning methods at the National Social Science Association conference in New Orleans. Publisher M.E. Sharpe issued an anthology on Franklin D. Roosevelt in 2001 which includes a chapter written by Matt. Looking around his world, Matt is often reminded of the thoughts of Voltaire. The great French philosophe noted that for a feeling person life is a tragedy, whereas for a thinking person life is a comedy.