After a youth spent or misspent as an anarchist poet, I returned to school and stayed there long enough to earn a BA in Computer Science from UCSC, an MS in Medical Information Science from UCSF, and an MA in Creative Writing/English from SF State. Degreed enough to obtain work in the Bay Area's exploding high-tech world, I did, and was able to retire at a blessedly early age from my job as an Internet Architect at Sun Microsystems. Post retirement I devoted myself to environmental activism and bird watching. My activism soon became focused on my various roles with Sierra Club California, where I served as co-chair of the Bay Area Water Committee, the State Water Committee, and then a member of the State Executive Board and Chair of the California Conservation Committee. Titles in the world of Sierra Club volunteers are cheap and plentiful. During this time my beloved husband died, so I was able to move from Fremont, a place he clung to like a cat clinging to the furniture to keep from being stuffed into its carrier, to Grass Valley, in the Sierra foothills. My Sierra Club water activism got me involved with the campaign to stop a major dam being built in Nevada County, which in turn led to my role as Treasurer for two candidates for the Nevada Irrigation District. Both candidates won, and the dam proposal was killed.

I'd been dreaming of a move to the Pacific Northwest for a long time. While I was dreaming, what family I had (sister, nephew, brother-in-law), made the move to Seattle where my nephew's wife got busy having children and building an extended family network. I finally bought a house in Bellingham and drove myself and my two cats north through an atmospheric river to join them at the beginning of 2023. Bellingham is my favorite by far of all the places I've lived, and my cats have never been happier. I spend my time birding, running, going to yoga classes, attending family birthday parties, serving the cats, and gardening. One of my local friends who volunteers with the Chuckanut Center told me I had to get a plot in its garden, so I did, and was quickly welcomed by and drawn into the uniquely wonderful community of the Chuckanut Center. My plan is to use whatever skills and resources I've acquired to keep the Center flourishing.