I am a writer.
I am also a mother, lover, daughter, sister and friend. I live with my slightly unconventional family in Portland,...

I am a writer.
I am also a mother, lover, daughter, sister and friend. I live with my slightly unconventional family in Portland, Oregon and work as a software developer. I would prefer to make my living writing something other than code.
I graduated from Washington University in St. Louis, then worked for a year in the wine business. When I could no longer tolerate the hangovers, I moved to Chicago to pursue a career in advertising. I never did land that coveted Assistant Account Executive position, but I ended up handling the finances of a small ad agency, so I guess I got my money's worth out of that business degree.
In 1997 I traveled to Guatemala and Costa Rica to do volunteer work. Upon returning to Chicago, I found my calling as a database developer, and a year later I moved to Portland. I author two blogs, have completed two screenplays and one novel, "Soft Landing," and am working on my second novel.
My daughter was born several days before Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans. I was astonished by the quality of the media coverage. It was real; too real it turned out. Realizing that such a travesty could happen in this country made me question bringing a child into this world far more seriously than I had before, and I began avoiding news. Now I realize that burying my head in the sand is not the way to make the world a better place for her. I still don't know how to go about it, but I'm working on it. I thought I'd start here.