I usually shy away from self descriptions because I have yet to master the feeling of representing myself via Internet without feeling embarrassed or fake. But in the name of "becoming part of the Pulse", I will attempt to describe myself to my future friends and sisters of this Pulse Wire community.

Here are some basics: I am from Salem, Oregon and now I live in Portland. I am studying Public Administration and Policy at Portland State University. I have a deep love for Latin America and have been able to live in Peru and Mexico since graduating from college. I feel that I have a family and second and third home in those countries.

I have three brothers and great parents. My family, like many American families, is mixed. My grandparents are immigrants from Ireland and Italy. I have lived my life intrigued by the cultural and social difference between me, my mother, my grandmothers and great-grandmothers. It is a constant reminder to me, that although change may seem slow or at times impossible, society can progress.

Being raised in a Catholic household with three brothers in the USA I was acutely aware at a young at that certain life options are not available for women and sometimes prohibited but at the same time that there exists a hope to defy oppressive belief systems. The feeling of being "invisible" or "less-than" has caused me pain in my life. As I grow-up and mature, I like to believe that this personal wound was placed there in order to harness change and empathize with women around the world. I want to use my pain for good-- to help heal the world. I do not want any woman to ever feel that they are "less-than". I want us all to feel great and like powerful forces of love, compassion and strength.