You will get there, but you have to decide what parts of you to take with you
/My time in high school
Attended high school in the
1970s
Overall high school experience
6/10. I think everyone at that age feels like a freak and an outcast, the tragedy is that you don't know that everyone else is just as confused and insecure as you are inside, because some folks are better at looking like they have it made.
Grades in high school
A's and B's. A's and C's, depends if I liked the class
Favorite subjects
Visual Arts
Struggled with...
Don't remember!
Favorite extracurricular
dance, and riding my horse, nothing organized by the school.
Life since high school
“Life is a balance between caring for that which is outside of your self and that which is inside. It helps a lot to know your values, and those things that you can compromise on, and those that you cannot compromise on.”
Attended college / university at
I went to Foothill and De Anza and took every class that interested me. Sociology, art, swimming, yoga, physics, english, psychology, painting, the science of solar energy, auto shop, ballroom dance. I transferred to UC Santa Cruz for one 1/4 as an Art major. Then I went back to Foothill as an Illustration major. After 4 years I transferred to Syracuse University, and got a BA in surface pattern design.
Post-graduate education or training
After my first career ended, due to carpal tunnel, I went to Cañada College and got an AA in Interior Design.
Places lived in US
California, New York
Current occupations / past occupations
In order, starting after college House painter, freelance textile design, in house textile design, Macy's retail sales, freelance textile design, freelance Computer Aided textile Design, In house CAD for textiles, full time Mom, student, Interior design assistant, Interior designer.
Industries I've worked in
- Manufacturing
- Retail Trade
- Other Services (except Public Administration) (e.g. Repair, Salon, Political/Labor orgs, etc.)
Did your education prepare you for your career or occupation?
yes
Has your education or career/occupation trajectory ever changed? How?
yes, of course. see above
A little introspection...
To me, being successful means...
Being to take care of my needs and help out with the needs of those I love. To be able to be meaningful work that uses my unique brain and skills. To be loved and valued by family, friends and clients.
My definition of success has changed over time.
I was more focussed on my achievements, and my immediate family, and less on my extended web of relationships
My greatest accomplishment to date and what I’ve learned from it
Not giving up on having a career, despite raising 3 kids, having a (1st) career ending ergonomic injury, and going through my mother's final illness with her. Life is a balance between caring for that which is outside of your self and that which is inside. It helps a lot to know your values, and those things that you can compromise on, and those that you cannot compromise on.
My biggest mistake or regret so far and what I’ve learned from it
I don't spend a lot of time thinking about regrets. Shit happens, some of it is my fault, move on to the future. The only things I revisit when I am down, are times I could have been more responsible or kinder. and I bet I was fine, but we all can be so very self critical. I try not feed that voice inside myself
An unexpected event that significantly changed my life and how it impacted me
My mother's Pancreatic cancer. I lost my mother, and that source of wit, humor, creativity and unconditional love.
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My favorite spot in or around Palo Alto
my house, Matadero creek.
