I grew up in the river town of Grafton, Illinois, at the confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers near St. Louis, Missouri. Grafton is a quaint tourist town with stunning backdrops at one end of the majestic Great River Road, which is now a National Scenic Byway. Those towering limestone bluffs along the River Road fired my imagination from an early age.

I hold a master’s degree in psychology and a license to practice as a counselor in Missouri. I’ve also taught psychology, held a music staff position at a megachurch, and worked a variety of positions in the St. Louis area construction industry.

I’m contemplating starting up a controversial blog. I’m the mother of a sharp pro poker player, and a spoiled rotten German shepherd dog!