Growing up in the middle of no where Oregon, surrounded by loggers and farmers with their crops and pets, any other way of living was not viable nor did I know possible. Eventually the tractors were exchanged for fishing boats and the standard chainsaws replaced by 6ft Morgan Iron Works. Finally, remote island life in “the tropics” of Alaska took the place of farm life. Both provided peace and magic for the young mind. Living in such proximity to the wilds, a valuable teacher; nature. Here I learned about the ocean life that swam and crawled below our sturdy floating house. One summer there were so many toads, one could hardly step on land, and just like that they were gone again. There are luminous jellyfish the likes of tiny moons, perfectly round with pulsating bioluminescence and feather like arms all working in unison towards no destination. I became so familiar with the curiosities of each season that I could wield my very own magic: Identifying a plant by smell, while it stayed firmly in the ground or my uncanny ability to know which rock would house sea eels, or knowing birds by their songs instead of names. The list goes on in this way; orcas and their calves breaching and swimming below our modest boat, popping the contents of prawn pots every other night, sea slugs regurgitating their stomachs to eat, sounds devoid of human noise, bears and their cubs climbing with such speed up the hemlocks that make up the Tonga National Forests… dare I go on? I could.

The magic of youth was eventually replaced by the beast we all know: teen angst. It took a while to finally arrive, here, but when I was ready I dove in and found a new kind of phosphorus to delight my interests. I decided to become the only one in my family to pursue a formal education and I could not be happier with the decision. Also, I am a mom to a goshwow kid!

I am getting an associates in multimedia design, a certificate in web design and the ultimate goal is UX design. I would like to work on a team who’s focus is to do right by people and the natural world. And, I kind of low-key want to produce a podcast.