Once Upon A Time, 30 years Ago...

I have been invited to my 30th year high school reunion. Mill Valley, California, 1977. Along with all the memories that this brings up, the heming and hawing about whether or not I am going to go, the reconnections I am making with friends from 30 years ago, and the ever present quesion, "what am I going to wear?", I also have been asked to do, what has turned out to be, a lot of mental prep work.

So, what have you been doing for the last 30 years?

That's one of the questions I have not responded to yet. It's a bit thought provoking, and I've been mulling it over in my mind. Not the nuts and bolts of the last 30 years. Those are immutable and in place. But I've been thinking about just what my actions and decisions of the last 30 years have created, and where they have brought me. This one is still an ongoing pondering.

However, there have been plenty of other mental exercises, including the questionaire below. It was fun to do. You might think about it. If not these questions, then definitely, the question listed above. I think you'll find it interesting.

1. How many biological kids do you have? None.
2. How many times have you been married? Not.
3. How long have you been married? See question #2
4. How long have you been single? As long as I have not been married.
5. Are you a grandparent? Are you kidding me?
6. How many U.S. states have you lived in? Three: CA, HI, and NM
7. How many countries have you lived in? I haven’t.
8. What City/Country are you coming from to attend the Reunion? Albuquerque, New Mexico.
9. What unusual occupation have you had? Does firefighter/helitack count?
10. Have you played any professional sports? Always amateur, but I did recently qualify for triathlon age group nationals.
11. Traveled any exotic destinations? Nothing too exotic. Japan, Spain, Czech Republic, Mexico, Canada, Alaska, Hawaii, and various U.S. states.
12. Served in the Armed Forces? Served time, yes. Stateside civilian while my boyfriend was in Iraq during the first year of the war.
13. Worked at sea? No, but I have gone to sea for pleasure with resulting seasickness (there was a storm in the Alaskan gulf).
14. Written anything published? A poem and a tribute/in memorium—both as letters to the editor—do these count? Oh yeah—20 plus science publications in refereed journals—have almost completely forgotten about those…
15. Fly an airplane? No, but I’ve driven a dump truck, ridden a motorcycle for pleasure, and almost convinced the captain to allow me to drive the fire truck—but my feet wouldn’t reach the pedals…
16. Invent anything of significance? My life. Really. But as an aside...I was part and parcel to elucidating pesticide resistance and the mechanisms of naturally occurring toxins with specificity of action and non-damaging environmental effects. Clear? OK—So, not an invention, but elucidation of a mechanism heretofore un-elucidated.
17. Successful Actor/Actress? No, but I did spend time onstage, holding a curtain prop for the Bread and Puppet theatre in the 60’s.
18. Oldest car you own? 16 years old, 1991 Honda Civic.
19. Car that you drive everyday? Same.
20. Greatest contribution to mankind? Fixing people, mitzvahs, and being a sister.
21. Own a hybrid car? No, just a recycled one, that gets 36-38 mpg (actually, over 40 mpg if I draft off of large trucks).
22. Do you play a musical instrument professionally? No. But I did play membranophone-djembe and sabar-nightclub gigs and parties, for about two years.
23. Record or write any music professionally? No, unfortunately, and fortunately, not.
24. Career in the church? No. Dad was supposed to be a Rabbi, though.
25. Career in the Outdoors? Not a career, but I did fund my college education by working maintenance on Mt. Tam weekends and summers (built and maintained those trails, fences, signs, and ranger abodes), and seasonal work as a firefighter based out of Lassen National Forest. (Being on those trails during the David Carpenter serial killings was beyond frightening)
26. Are you considered famous in the public eye? Hmmm-you got me stumped here.
27. Since High School, how many jobs have you had? Eight?
28. Longest time with one job? 11 years research, followed in length by 8 years self-employed licensed massage therapist, concurrent.
29. Have you lived in Mill Valley all your life? No, just stopped by for an interlude, 1971 to 1977.
30. Married to a 1977 classmate? No. Refer back to the ever-popular question #2

Go ahead and grab a pencil. It makes you think back and it's fun. Share it with a partner or a friend. You might learn something new. If not, you can at least share a laugh.

SO....
WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING FOR THE LAST 30 YEARS?