Current Position/Field of Work:
I owned two businesses in West Hartford for more than 20 years, but recently sold them and began my second chapter as a writer and consultant.

What is the most interesting part of your job?
The limitless creativity that a blank page represents is the most interesting and terrifying part of my new job. I traded the pressure of management for the pressure of staring at a blinking cursor without always knowing what word is coming next. So there’s a lot of getting up and walking in the woods or lying on the floor waiting for inspiration.

           

Can you describe your most recent travel experience?
My first travel experience with the World Affairs Council was a fantastic trip to Nepal and Bhutan last September. It was an amazing adventure, providing our small group with the rare opportunity to see the Himalayas at dawn, hear from the Acting US Ambassador to Nepal, and meet with a matriarchal entrepreneurial family in Thimphu, Bhutan. Another highlight was hiking up to the Tiger’s Nest Monastery to learn about Buddhism, and we then hoisted prayer flags over a 10,000+ foot mountain pass. It was a magical experience.

Where would you like to travel next?
My bucket list is happily getting shorter, but Antarctica is still speaking to me. I think it’s the penguins.

Global issue you find fascinating right now:
As a political science major in college and a political junkie ever since, it’s all pretty fascinating these days. The Chinese curse of “may you live in interesting times,” seems especially relevant in 2019. What I am most fascinated by right now is the impact our increasing isolationism is having on the world, in terms of trade, politics and watching who is filling the vacuum we are leaving. If China becomes the world’s greatest superpower in my lifetime, it will be in part because of how we began looking the other way during this torturous administration.

 

 

 

 

Proudest accomplishment?
It will be completing my first novel before 2038, but until then, I think it is starting a business in my early 20s with a $3,000 loan, and running it successfully for the next 20+ years. Being responsible for the livelihoods of so many people is stressful, but ultimately rewarding when you can do it every two weeks like clockwork.

Why you support the Council:
The WAC is a fantastic organization designed to show and remind its members that we Americans are not alone on the planet. In fact, 96% of the world’s population lives somewhere else, and most don’t speak English. It’s not all about us.