I had a nontraditional childhood that directly informs my adult life. I grew up a homeschooled pastor’s kid, with all the corniness you would expect from such an upbringing. To me, being a kid meant flashlight tag and playing with the dog in the backyard, but it also meant visiting older people in nursing homes and frequent field trips to whatever spots my parents found historically important. A few values were instilled upon my sisters and I: to care for the needy, to always be searching for knowledge, and above all else, that “life is a great adventure”.

We didn’t have much, but growing up with these values was enough. I entertained myself by reading and creating art (and playing a lot of video games). A lack of skill was never a barrier to me - if I wanted to do something, I’d figure out how to do it. In the words of my mother, “She just goes up into her room, and the next time she comes down she knows how to knit”. And the joy of it all was not just in the creation, but also in the research.

I’ve lived in quite a few cool places, including most boroughs of New York City, and the magical city of San Francisco. I’ve traveled all over the country, from Utah’s jagged rocks to the salty sands of the Carolinas. There are few things that have been as impactful as being part of these landscapes.

Today I live in up in the woods of Pennsylvania with my husband Ryan, a Web Developer. I still teach myself new things every day. I’m a voracious reader and consumer of culture, and am always looking for new opportunities to experience the world around me.