Sometimes I don’t know how old I am.

I live like many of my generation: kind of in suspended maturity. Some of my friends have kids, and some of my friends ARE kids. I still go to shows and parties as if I never grew up.

I’ve been going to shows since I was thirteen. Back then they were “all–ages” shows, held in community centres, halls, and church basements. That was pretty common in the Alberta music scene of the 80′s and 90′s. We didn’t have internet; we relied on gig posters, flyers and word–of–mouth for our events. These were usually in the aesthetic of black & white, cut & paste, photocopy jobbies. I plastered them all over the walls of my bedroom, until my mid–twenties, when I became more austere and only allowed paintings and framed things on my walls. I have reverted a bit to a more eclectic aesthetic sensibility, but you won’t find many posters on these walls.

I ‘ve always been considered a bit of a hippie, although I have felt everything from contempt to admiration for hippies, in my time. In some ways I also felt that it was too easy to categorize me a hippie, just ’cause I was talking about whole foods, herbs, or environmental stuff (before non–hippies were “allowed” to speak of such things). I haven’t dressed like a hippie since my early teens, and I tend to have a hard time relating to the granola crowd, although our paths have crossed many times in my food-security related work.

The punks in highschool used to raise an eyebrow to my choice of attire, and indeed, it was as flamboyantly freakish as I could come up with. I grew up in a small town where jocks would drive by and shout “FREAK” from their cars. (Is “jock ‘ still a social group label?) I relished it whenever it happened. To me, there was nothing more sinister than blind adherence to social hierarchies and norms. I became obsessed with non-conformity, which in itself became a bit of a bad habit.

Anyway, Nirvana became jock–rock and they all bought a pair of Dr. Martens. I moved on and out to Montreal and Vancouver, hitting up the Okanagan for work and finally settling in Toronto. My first year was very hard because I just had nothing to wear. I skateboarded, not having a bike yet, and I felt generally alienated from the pretty people on the patios, sipping their cocktails in their well-cut, tasteful fabrics. It’s been many years since then. Toronto has tamed my ridiculous fashion outbursts, most certainly, and age has tempered my critical thinking with a desire for community and concensus.

I work in a drop-in for women who have experienced oppressive social and economic situations in their lives. I generally just help run the operation, provide advocacy or counselling when requested and mediate disputes/ keep the peace. I’m also in school now. finally working on getting a degree in Environmental Science. I’m married to an amazing man who aspires to adequate positive reinforcement for years of effort in the music scene. We’re low–budget, but high hopes. and we do our best to eat VERY well, and to create the illusion of being well–dressed.

I’m a real good budget gourmet. I plan to share recipes and how-tos. I also make herbal tea blends. I’ve been trained in both Herbalism and Holistic Nutrition. So hit me up with related questions. I’ll be happy to nerd-out about it.

Thanks for reading.