Vermillion, SD
Oklahoma City, OK
Las Vegas, NV
Chicago, IL
Eau Claire, WI
Oacoma, SD

No

Only once - The winter before Bill died we drove through Utah on the way back to Vegas. We basically just drove around Duchesne for about and hour then continued our trip home. He had wanted to track down Kathy Smith and Pam Schow but just had too many memories overwhelming him.

No. I do wish that I had though.

My family moved to South Dakota. Shortly afterward I moved to Oklahoma City, OK. While in OK I went to OCU, managed a day spa, and had a wild & crazy life for about 10 years. In 1989 I was pregnant and realized I needed to get my life on a new track so I moved to SD to be around family. While in SD I considered a degree in computers from USD. I figured that would propel me into a new career as well as a 'family friendly' lifestyle.

South Dakota was too slow for me and I had about as much family as I could stand. When my son was 3 years old I finally got his father out of my system by then and decided to move to Las Vegas. I don’t remember exactly what my thought process was at the time. Something about getting as far away from everyone in my life without having to actually leave the country.

By this time I also realized that while I do love computers it really was not the direction I wanted my life to go in. So I decided on a new degree and attended UNLV. At this time I also began my career with Barnes & Noble College Division. After graduation from UNLV I began traveling around for B&N. Morgan & I saw and did so many wonderful things in those years. In 2000 B&N gave me an opportunity to move to Chicago. In 2003 mom was ill and there were concerns that she could die from complications. B&N was in the process of a takeover at USD so I asked to be transferred to SD. This was the beginning of the end of my career with B&N. By the end of 2003 I moved to the tiny town of Oacoma, SD and did not look for work until the summer of 2004. For the next 4 years I worked with adjudicated teens at a residential treatment center. Mom’s health is better now. She is still on oxygen 24/7 but death is far from her doorway.

Morgan graduated from high school, moved into an apartment in Sioux Falls, and decided to take a year off before continuing his education. I am so #*@@%! about this !! Don’t get me started!!!!!

I am now back in Oklahoma and still working with youth. OU is a mile from my house and I’m just itching to go back to school again. There are still a few liberal arts degrees left for me to get.

By the way, YES, you can go home again. Other than Margarita night every Wednesday at Chilis with the girls I have not been involved in any “wild & craziness”. I did grow up somewhere in my travels. Life is good.

I currently work with a 501 (c)3 non-profit organization providing services, training, and educational partnerships for youth from ages 14-21 in the Cleveland County Oklahoma Workforce Investment Area. In August of 1998 the President signed into law the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). The goal of the legislation is “to increase the employment, retention and earnings of participants and increase occupational skill attainment by participants, and, as a result, improve the quality of the workforce, reduce welfare dependency, and enhance the productivity and competitiveness of the Nation.”

I know, it sounds pretty dull. But, I figure that I could use a break after working so hard all these years. I'm enjoying the slow pace of a government worker.

Learn more stuff. Education is my addiction.

Never getting caught

Having a pen thrown at me that stuck in the wall behind my head. I was having a whisper conversation with ? (the girl who wore a puffy coat in class all year long. She had long, messy, black hair and weird teeth. - what was her name?). Mr Rockwell got mad and threw his pen at me. He had always been one of my favorite teachers until that day.

I'm heavily in to Iconography but don't have a religious bone in my body.

My life in the past 19 years has revolved around making a wonderful life for my son. Most people will not go or do in a lifetime what has been blessed upon him. I am so proud of the culturally enriched, globe traveled, receptive, giving, well rounded person he has learned to become.

Cutting the apron strings was a devastating blow to me. I did not handle it well. Therefore, the solution to get over the fact that he is now a grown man and not mommy's baby boy, was to leave him behind in order to let him continue to grow.