What did you do right after we graduated?

I went to the U of M in 1963 and graduated with a liberal arts degree

(English major; business minor). In 1991 I achieved a Certificate in

Legal Assistantship (paralegal) from the University of California, Irvine

(UCI). Later on, I also attained CEUs in environmental studies.

What has been your occupation(s) over the past 50 years? Tell us

about any highlights or cool things that you’ve been a part of.

Looking back, it seems I did a little bit of a lot of things: house painter,

executive secretary, landscape maintenance worker (mowing &

pruning people\'s yards to the uninitiated), print shop production

manager, small business (ad agency)co-owner, volunteer AAU swim

team newletter editor, legal secretary and bankruptcy paralegal (11

years), environmental impact study researcher and writer (14 years).

Oh yes, and somewhere in there, I was a stay-at-home mom for seven

years!

Where are you living?

We moved to Ft. Lauderdale FL in 1974, and then to Orange County,

California in 1976 where we have lived in the same house ever since. I

never imagined living anywhere but Ann Arbor, where my father,

grandfather, great and great-great grandparents were born, lived and

died, so the Florida move was a big shock to me. The California move

was a more welcome surprise.

Are you retired? If so, what are you doing in retirement?

I retired at the end of 2009, due to some health issues. Now, I pursue

my non-working interests, including gardening, sewing, helping at the

local elementary school, and keeping up the homefront (which slipped

a little during those last working years!)

Are you married? What’s your spouse’s name?

In 1967, I married Steve Myhra, who I met the second day of

Freshmen Orientation at the UofM. We are still together here in sunny

Southern California.

Do you have kids? Where are they & what are they up to?

We have two children, Meghan and Kris, both born in Ann Arbor and

now also living nearby in California. Meghan graduated from Cal State

Long Beach and has been an elementary school teacher these last 14

years in Tustin, CA. Kris (who was dragged kicking & screaming to

achieving his G.E.D.) is now a shipping/warehouse manager for an

educational publishing company in San Clemente, CA.

How about grandchildren? How many? How old? Where are they?

But wait! What about great grandkids?!!?

Kris and his wife, Erika, have two daughters, Kirsten (9) and Carley (7).

They are the absolute, and I do mean absolute, joys of our lives.

What’s your favorite hobby (or hobbies)?

Gardening. I grow oranges, lemons (2 varieties), blood oranges,

tangerines (4 varieties), avocados, peaches (2 varieties) and

nectarines. Those are the trees. Then there are the grapses,

blueberries, strawberries, tomatoes, peas, lettuces, peppers,

squashes, carrots and herbs in season (Yes, we do have growing

seasons here!). It\'s true, you can take the girl off the farm, but you can

\'t the farm out of the girl. Not to mention growing roses, flowering

bulbs, succulents, cacti, and ... well, you get the idea! Small wonder I

rooted in California.

Have you had any adventures you’d care to tell us about?

Every day has been an adventure, some have been great, a few not so

much, but all have been good growth experiences in their way.

What else would you like us to know about?

The last time I was in Ann Arbor was September 1996. I like to

remember Ann Arbor that way. These days I stay pretty close to home,

partly from necessity (all that produce to harvest!), and home for me

now is California -- twigs, nuts, Governor Moonbeam and all.

Out and about

with my two

granddaughters!