name: Chel (pronounced "Shell")

age: 30-something (born in 1974)

current location: SW Florida, USA

born and raised: Long Island, NY

education: Emory University, Atlanta GA (BA in Art History, MA in Film Studies)
high school: The Stony Brook School in NY

profession: jewelry designer; student (going back to school for Art History/Visual Art/Art Education); volunteer/advocate for a local cat rescue organization

family: only child and very close to my mom & dad
married to Tom (November 6th, 2004)
fun fact: my husband changed his last name to mine :)

children: daughter, Grace.
Born October, 2005 in Danang, Vietnam.
Adopted in summer, 2006.
Incredibly cute, funny, smart, and sassy.

obsessions: cats (especially my faily's cats: Delilah, Chester, Ginger, and Knuckles), tea, museums, good books, craft/art supplies, swimming (I swim two miles every day and have been doing so for the past 18 years. I rarely skip a day and bitterly complain when I am forced to).

favorite time of the day: whenever the house is quiet and still

hobbies: being creative (currently lots of drawing, painting, and paper-related crafts), reading, making beads & jewelry, going to museums/gardens, going to Disney, volunteering.

things I collect & covet: different flavors of tea, craft supplies, snowglobes, drawing pens, art books

magazines on my coffee table: Oprah, Body & Soul, Real Simple, EW, Smithsonian, Vegetarian Times

health: born with a mild case of Spina Bifida and struggle with both physical and emotional balance as a result, more recently- a wicked case of anemia that exhausts me

issues: I have no tolerance for animal cruelty and think those who are guilty of hurting an animal should be punished to the full extent of the law, if not beyond. This is the one thing that I get blood-boiling angry about. However, I'm not a fan of PETA and similar organizations, though- I think if they spent half the money they waste on ridiculous publicity stunts and used it instead to send legal teams into parts of the country (and the world) to challenge the current VERY LAX laws on animal cruelty, they would be much more successful. I'd rather spend my energy and money on no-kill shelters and rescue organizations.

I have been a vegetarian for almost 20 years. I do believe that all animals have souls and personalities, and cannot bear the thought of eating them. I do realize this is a personal decision and don't think it's perfect for everyone.

religion/beliefs: (more about that here)

art: John Singer Sargent, Dale Chihuly, Maxfield Parrish, Georgia O'Keeffe, Gustave Caillebotte, John William Waterhouse, Alphonse Mucha, American and French Impressionism

authors/poets: Elizabeth Berg, Alexander McCall Smith, Muriel Rukeyser, Mary Oliver, T.S. Eliot, Anne Tyler, Rainer Maria Rilke, Maeve Binchy, Barbara Kingsolver, Sue Monk Kidd, Anne Lamott

favorite CDs of all time: (in no particular order)

Rio - Duran Duran
King - Belly
The Magazine- Rickie Lee Jones
Primitive Man - Icehouse
Real Ramona - Throwing Muses
Birds of my Neighborhood - Innocence Mission
Our Time in Eden - 10,000 Maniacs
When the Pawn... - Fiona Apple
WhiteChocolateSpaceEgg - Liz Phair
Fox Confessor Brings the Flood - Neko Case
Kiss Me, Kiss me, Kiss Me - The Cure
Lost Songs - David Gray
Ghost of a Dog - Edie Brickell and New Bohemians
Listen without Predjudice - George Michael
Blue- Joni Mitchell

Things I adore: Jim Gaffigan, animals, international adoption, candy, reading before bed, the color blue, cool days in Florida, needlepoint, snails, mobiles & windchimes, aquariums,  open windows with a breeze, shopping at craft stores, TiVo, NY bagels, watercolor paints, backyard swings, Greek & Indian food, stray cats, Apple computers, The Amazing Race, black & white cookies

Things I despise: cold/dirty pools, ignorance, Britney Spears and her ilk, scratchy pens, lightning, "no talent ass clown", crowds, lack of sleep, temper tantrums, bad hygiene, itchy skin, talking on the phone, aving no energy, people who talk at the movies, cruelty, bad drivers, late mail, things piling up.

really old photos: (click to make larger)

 

 

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