Being raised in a small Maine village where everyone knew every other person in town, my only thought when I reached the age of eighteen was to escape to college in the “big city.”   My fondest dream up to that point was to be an elementary school teacher, so I enrolled in USM, took up residence in the dormitory and settled into the college routine. 

I loved Portland.  Only holidays and special occasions could lure me back to my sleepy hometown. The activities and excitement of a university town kept me on the go, and I attended every event I could.  Many nights saw me burning the midnight oil to stay abreast of my studies, and soon I began to slow down.  I found myself nodding off in class.  The calendar I had carefully created with all the events jammed into the squares began to fall by the wayside.  In most cases I had overcommitted my time and had volunteered for more activities than I could do.  Reluctantly, I systematically began delegating these duties whenever possible until I kept only the ones most important to my career choice.  My energy began to rise and my alertness increased dramatically. 

One weekend when I visited my hometown, I realized that my desire to escape had been so great, that I had failed to enjoy what I had in my comfortable town.  I made a greater effort to return home on the weekends. 

A professor at the university challenged my desire to be an elementary school teacher by encouraging me to aspire to the high school level.  My passion for writing made the choice of direction clear, so I focused my energies on English and writing.

My teaching career never materialized.  When my mother became sick I stayed out a semester to help out at home, and when I returned, the fastest path to graduating was to finish up in English.  Over time, I have written technical documentation for software, sales and marketing copy, and legal documents.  I have also freelanced extensively, writing on some of my favorite subjects such as fashion and crafts and topics such as scrap-booking.  Many of my projects have included ghost writing eBooks on a wide range of topics.

I now live just outside Portland, Maine in a quiet area where my family and I enjoy sailing whenever possible and going to the coast in all sorts of weather.  We love the waves pounding up on the beach, or just spending a scorching summer day relaxing.