Angus and I on the beach in Florence

Greetings and salutations, I am Fiona and I’m 33 years old. I am originally from Scotland but moved to Oregon in 2010 after marrying a native. I already have a bachelors in Biological Sciences from the University of Edinburgh and for the past 6 years have been working for a small biotech company here in Eugene as both the head of biology and general computer related body. I rebuilt the company website last year and do all the design, advertising and social media aspects.

I have recently however burnt out on the science side and have gone part time to pursue my interest in media arts and web design as this is the aspect of my job I enjoy the most. Ideally I would like to either move entirely into multimedia at my current job or work as a web designer.

Outside of work and school I split my time between craft and animal based pursuits. I have two dogs: one who is old, grumpy, and my canine partner in crime who is a 2 year old border collie/husky named Angus. Angus and I are a certified therapy dog team and we are currently doing visits on the UO campus and part of the program through the Eugene library where kids can read to dogs. Angus and I also do agility and are working on trick dog titles, hopefully this year we will add flyball to our repertoire.

In addition to dog sports I also ride horses, I started riding when I was 10 but took a break of probably 15 years, getting back in the saddle on my 29th birthday. I ride English and for the past few months I have been competing in dressage competitions online via video entries, with varying degrees of success.

On the craft side I knit, quilt and do other sewing including making bandanas for dogs that I sell via Etsy. I also like to bake but have to keep that to a minimum for waistline reasons.

By: Fiona Harlan