: About Me

My name is Julie and I've been writing for personal enjoyment since I first learned to spell and put a pencil to paper. The public side of my writing began in journalism in junior high, high school and then college. As a junior and senior in high school, I served as the co-editor and editor of "Paw Prints," the school newspaper and received an award from "The Los Angeles Times" for an editorial on family planning, or really the lack of discussion about birth control in our schools. Later, the USC School of Journalism accepted me into their program and there I earned a degree in Journalism with an emphasis in Public Relations. I wrote feature articles for the school magazine, "SCene Magazine," and also studied and earned a degree in International Relations. Attending college in Los Angeles allowed me to intern at a prominent California magazine, public relations firm, and with several charitable organizations.

Upon graduation it dawned on me that I should branch out and move to the East Coast, so I completed a political journalism internship program at Georgetown University called the Fund for American Studies. Washington, D.C. was an exceptional experience and I lived there for four years. Then a fledgling Internet political publication, "The Hotline" gave me my first real taste of political races and writing. We provided news about every political race in the country in one publication on a daily basis and it was read by other media, the White House, the Hill, and many others before the Internet as we now know it was born.

I then moved back to Southern California. I worked for a political consulting firm focusing on ballot measures around the nation. This provided me with opportunities to write, work on campaigns in other states, assist in advertising writing and production, and basically anything else they asked me to do. Following that experience, I moved further south to Orange County where I began work as the Public Information Officer and then the Communications Director for the Capistrano Unified School District, one of the fastest growing and largest school districts in California with nearly 46,000 students at the time. This job provided me with a variety of writing opportunities, media relations development, management skills, public speaking, a local cable show experience on Cox Cable's Channel 3, and the opportunity to work in and around our students and parents. I served on the Cabinet and worked closely with Board Members.

After several years I then became a mother and decided it was best if I stayed at home to raise them rather than pursue my career and find day care. I was very fortunate to be able to do this. Two beautiful children later I am very glad I made the choice I did and I don't regret it for a minute. They are still quite young in age but I now feel the pull of writing again, this time in the areas of non-fiction and fiction. I am also back in the working world. There is a strong desire in me to produce a fiction piece before I die, so after entering my forties I am committed to doing so. There is no time like the present and life is short, unpredictable, often tragic, and an amazing gift. Why wait any longer?

I can't wait to start writing again, with lots of practice and a constant desire to better my skills. Writing is something I can't live without, so I plan to do so and possibly make a living at it some day. If nothing else I hope this "About Me" page demonstrates that I embrace optimism, new challenges, the world around me, and I desire to live life as fully and happily as possible-all the while hoping to show my children how to do so in their lives.

My passion is ...

expressing myself through writing and meeting new people.

I know too much about ...

the inside of my head and the many thoughts rattling around daily.

My parents always told me ...

You can do whatever you want to do in this life if you set goals.

My childhood ambition ...

was to write a book.

My favorite memory ...

is growing up around Laguna Beach where my parents owned a shell shop..

Why I write ...

It just comes naturally and I feel this need to do it every day.

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

"In Cold Blood"/"So You Think You Can Dance"/Black Keys

My first job ...

Besides college internships in public relations, I took an official job as an administrative assistant for a political consulting firm in Washington, D.C.

My best moment ...

is hard to narrow down to just one event, so the births of my two children and hopefully a moment yet to come.

My inspiration ...

The hope that there are still new things for me to discover, things I've not yet experienced, and when I find them I'll embrace them and learn from them.

Celebrations & Holidays > Birthdays Ideas for planning a great 40th birthday party

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Turning 40 commands a birthday celebration of some kind, whether an intimate getaway for two, dinner with your spouse, or an over-the-top party for hundreds. Since entering the decade of the Big 4-0, I have witnessed an array of approaches to what should justly be referred to as a rite of passage. Some of my friends host elaborate home parties with friends and family, others celebrate with a girls-only weekend at a winery or spa resort, while a few of my friends absolutely refuse to acknowledge their birthday at all. My fortieth birthday almost two years ago held special meaning for me. I ...

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