: About Me

I usually don't like to talk about myself. I guess I don't find my life to be all that interesting.

Of course, I could tell you the boring details of my life like the fact I live in a very small town in Ohio, where there very well could be more cows than people. But I know that fact alone would not bring excitement to anyone's day.

I could tell you I have three beautiful daughters and a wonderful husband, but that would seem cliche.

My resume of various job positions from bank secretary to non-profit director over the last 20 years may be interesting to some, but to very few.

I can, however, tell you how I came to be a writer.

I always knew I loved working with the English language. During my summer vacations in elementary school when other kids were outside playing kickball, I could be found hanging upside down in a tree reading a book. And I do believe I was the only student in my seventh grade English Arts class that actually enjoyed de-constructing sentences into diagrams.

I happened on the actual art of writing by chance. After relocating to our very small town 12 years ago for my husband's job, I was desperate to find employment of my own. We had a small toddler at home, rent to pay, and mouths to feed. I needed a job. Any job. The only job that happened to be available that week that did not involve fork-lift experience or the cleaning of turkey barns, was a job as a part-time writer at the local daily newspaper. I actually didn't know if I could write anything worthwhile that anyone would want to read. Heck, I didn't even know if I could actually write. But, being in a desperate job situation, I thought I would give it a try. For some reason that small daily paper took me on as a freelance writer, even though I had never published a paragraph. To this day, I think the only reason I landed that job was because all the other people that applied that week were farmers looking for work in between seasons.

Over the next few years, I learned a little about writing, and a lot about editing.

I no longer work for the newspaper, but I still enjoy the challenge of writing.

I don't know if others enjoy what I write, but it doesn't really matter. I write for myself - for direction, calm, and focus in my life. Writing has a way of taking you out of your current environment and taking you into a different world, if even for a few minutes.

I may not know much, but what I do know is that everyone has a story. It's not always a grand story, or a rags-to-riches story, but there is a story in the day-to-day life of every person. That's what I like so much about Helium. It's almost as if I get a glimpse into other people's lives. When I read their stories, opinions, and articles, I can almost imagine what that writer is like. Writers here seem to open up and reveal just a bit about themselves.

I, however, do not really have much to reveal. Did I mention I currently live in a small town in Ohio? Where there are more cows than people? Yep, that's about it. My life revealed.

I know too much about ...

nothing. I wish I knew more of what there is to know.

My parents always told me ...

stop fighting with your sister. STOP fighting with your sister. STOP FIGHTING WITH YOUR SISTER!

My childhood ambition ...

was to be a vet, but I'm highly allergic to cats and dogs, so it did not work out well.

Why I write ...

because it's the only time I can hear myself think.

My best moment ...

were the moments when my daughters were born.

Personal Finance > Personal Finance (Other) Is the "American dream" dead

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The view of the American dream has changed over the last century. When the grandparents of today's American citizens were young, students received several years of schooling. Some graduated from high school, some did not. Many worked on the family farm, and hard work was not an option. Families grew much of their own food, canned vegetables, and sewed many of their own clothes. As a society, Americans were very frugal. Credit was not easily available, and families lived within their means. Most families saved as much of their income as they could, ensuring they would be prepared for leaner...

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