: About Me

I'm a professional web copywriter; I specialize in writing about mortgage lending including foreclosure and loss mitigation, managing debt, and other topics intended to assist people in navigating and solving financial problems.. I've published several hundred pieces online including articles and columns on home improvement, and lawn and garden care along with financial and mortgage content..I also enjoy writing about pets and nature, and have several "research assistants" including a basset hound, two Scottish terriers, and a flock of canaries and finches, whose numbers vary according to their reproductive inclinations.

After working in mortgage banking for about fifteen years, I left Fannie Mae to continue my education. I eared BA and MA degrees in English from the University of Nevada, Reno.

Although I've lived in Northern Nevada for several years, I'm planning to return to California. Creative projects include projects involving the surf culture and beach scene of the 60's, and a collection of poetry about white birds.

My passion is ...

birds and words

I know too much about ...

credit card debt and being a broke student

My parents always told me ...

You won't succeed without an education!

My childhood ambition ...

to be a visual artist

My favorite memory ...

Days spent on the beach in southern CA

Why I write ...

It's a creative outlet, and I dislike working in offices.

What I am reading/watching/listening to ...

reading: Water for Elephants, watching MSNBC, listening to NPR and classic rock

My first job ...

working in an insurance office (Yikes!)

My best moment ...

earing my master's degree after a long corporate career

My inspiration ...

nature, birds, the sea, the Beatles and Walt Whitman

Pets & Animals > Birds How birds can down a jet airplane

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The recent "miracle on the Hudson" highlights how quickly bird strikes can destroy an airliner's ability to fly. Although images of David and Goliath may come to mind, birds pose a serious threat to aircraft. In its June 2008 report, the USDA's Airport Wildlife Hazards Program (AWHP) determined that between 1990 and 2007, there were 82,057 wildlife strikes against aircraft. Of these, 79,973 were caused by birds. In addition to birds' ability to fly, behavioral factors and increasing bird populations contribute to avian species' ability to bring down a jet airliner. Power in Numbers: Flocks...

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Writing:

• Marketplace Approved Writer
• Helium Charter Member