Way Long Bio

This bio is really long. And Rambling. You have been warned…

Once upon a time, I was born. I was a planned C-section: the doctor told my parents to pick a day within a certain range for them to deliver me. They choose April 27th. Dad is certain they took me out too early and that I have never forgiven them for that. Maybe I was am a tad argumentative as a teenager still.

I grew up in Great Falls, Montana. Before you get romanticized pictures of Montana rolling through your mind – the towering mountains, wide open prairies, and crashing waterfalls – let me set you straight. Great Falls is not that Montana. It is just you average run-of-the-mill small city. Sure, there is a river running through town, but it is muddy and all the waterfalls have been dammed. It doesn’t sound like much, but it is home and I love it.

Great Falls, Montana

My childhood was spent playing make-believe and frolicking on the railroad bridge (um…this should probably be where I put the disclaimer that this isn’t the best way to spend your days–for reals, guys: pay attention to all those railroad safety messages they try to pound into your head in grade school).

I spent summer days at my Gramma Ida’s house, a block away from the muddy river. The backyard was home to the best bit of creativity support ever–the climbing tree. This tree is huge. I would get together with my older sister and the neighborhood kids and we would play in that tree for hours. We would each claim a limb as our “room” and play multi-day soap operas (we were pretty melodramatic). Some of my best early memories are from that tree (including the one time I got stuck at the top of a limb in the pouring rain–my parents were in New Orleans and poor Gramma Ida had to stand there in the rain waiting for me to get up the courage to climb back down).

The back yard was also home to the Lawn Mower Fire Incident, but we don’t talk about that.

Another great thing about Gramma Ida’s house was Aunt Amy, Gramma’s sister. She was probably the single biggest encourager of my creativity. She would patiently listen to all my stories and watch all my skits. And when I was obsessed with the roadrunner, she would tell me that–like the roadrunner–I left puffs of dust in my wake as I ran down the hall (okay, so I know now that she was lying, but I sure appreciate the lie). Also, she had a never-ending supply of sugar-free candy to munch on.

Eventually I graduated from telling my stories vocally to writing them down. I wrote my first book when I was seven. It was a thrilling horror tale inspired by The Blob (yeah, the parentals didn’t monitor our movie choices so well, but I’m not complaining). I filled every page in my spiral notebook–front and back–with my neatest seven-year-old scrawl. I took that notebook everywhere with me. I remember walking around the yard as my sister and all the neighbor kids played, reading my words and stopping occasionally to write more. I was completely consumed and so proud of my little book. Thinking back on it now, I realize it was pretty much just unoriginal fan-fiction (my only foray), but cut me some slack guys – I was seven!

As a kid, I played about every sport under the sun. That might be a slight exaggeration, but I played a lot. I was on a t-ball team one season (confession: I hit the ball and was so excited that I ran to third base instead of first–I am still a little embarrassed). I played basketball, and volleyball, and soccer, and indoor soccer. And I raced BMX. I loved it! My first season, there was a racer in my bracket from Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada named Stephanie. Every time we raced, Stephanie beat me. Which really isn’t a huge deal, except I was usually in first and I hated when Stephanie came along and took that away from me. Then, the Montana state championship race came along. Stephanie and her family drove down from Lethbridge for the race. I had never been so nervous. And then – miracle of miracles – I WON! I beat Stephanie for the very first time to take the state championship. Stephanie quit racing after that season (though we became friends later).

Bike racing eventually took over my entire life. We raced every week, often times twice a week, and trained more than that. I held onto my state champion title for the next six years and secured the number one slot in the state for the last three. Then, I quit. It was a tough decision, but ultimately the best one. It has been years and I still miss it. The husband unit and I do have BMX bikes though, so we occasionally pop over to the track to ride a couple laps.

I moved on to high school and decided (quite by accident) to go a different route in athletics. Much to my dad’s surprise/shock/horror/chagrin I joined the drill team. The dancing, high-kicking, baton-twirling, splits-doing drill team. It was not something I had ever imagined doing (a friend begged me to come to tryouts–I figured I would go to the workshops to appease her and then be done with it), but I loved it. Yeah, I still have my baton. I don’t still have my splits.

Aside from kicking and twirling, high school was a jumble of athletic training, basketball team managing, way too many AP classes, and fun, fun, FUN times with friends.

After graduating high school, I left Great Falls. I spent some time in Rexburg, ID and Honolulu, HI attending college to study biological oceanography. Yes, I realize that Idaho is landlocked and probably not the best place to study the ocean, but work with me here. It wasn’t where I had planned on going–it was just what felt right at the time.

Near Bozeman-how Hollywood sees Montana

Following college, I spent some time in North Carolina, where I had dreamed of living since I was twelve (I still try to convince my husband–with no success–to move back to NC occasionally).

Eventually, I made my way back to Montana. I went to Bozeman to study massage therapy at HealthWorks Institute (which worked out wonderfully until I had to have a shoulder reconstruction right before graduation). Bozeman was a one-year layover for school and then I was headed back south. That was five years ago. What can I say? Sometimes the Lord has plans for you that you don’t have for yourself. Month after month, I got more frustrated about still being in Bozeman (despite LOVING it here). And then, everything fell together–I got married. I definitely would not have my amazing husband if I had left when I planned to. So I am still in Bozeman, working as a film buyer (I adore this job and will be sad to leave it when the time comes) and living my life.

 

And that takes us to now. I would write more, but despite my best efforts, I have yet to see into the future.

The one constant in my very random life has been writing. Wherever life takes me, I can always open a journal or a notebook, put a pen in my hand, and feel at home.

{ Bio as told by my friend Jonathon }