I was born a mile from Disneyland and grew up in Orange County, CA, behind the "Orange Curtain." But I much preferred L.A. and danced away many high school Friday nights at alternative rock clubs. I was a shy nerdkid, and it was calculus and piano during the week. I went to exactly one party in high school, and it was only because I had the car. I studied Art History at UCLA and was the Art & Music Editor and a writer for the Daily Bruin for my last three years. Music and writing were my life, and I became an arts journalist for the LA Weekly, OC Weekly, and magazines as a freelancer. After getting a grad degree at UNC Chapel Hill in Library and Information Science, I decided I didn't want to pursue a PhD in Art History, because I didn't want a career that I could only pursue in places like L.A., Manhattan, or Berkeley. I'd had enough of 10-lane freeways, smog, and having to go grocery shopping at 2 a.m. (in my jammies, no less) to avoid traffic. In 2004, my parents, oldest brother, and I moved to Bainbridge Island, WA, over a weekend -- for my brother and me, it was sight unseen. I've been in Washington ever since, but moved from Seattle to Port Townsend only in 2023. This unique town of 9,000 eccentric creatives, hikers, and hippies is my favorite place I've ever lived. If I ever leave here, it will likely be to move to "Green Spain" (the north). Today, I live at the edge of a small forest, a mile from beachside State Park Fort Worden, and about 45 minutes from the Olympic National Forest.