Becca,
I'm an aspiring romance writer! I'm an active member of the New England RWA chapter. Our local conference is coming up soon, in April, am looking forward to that. I am hoping to finish my first book soon.

Pam

I work Canadian Blood Services in BC&Yukon. I work in distribution. Sickle cell exchanges are my specialty! Small world

I own a small business online selling wedding and party invitations.

Very cool thread - we get to know other sides of eachother!

I'm the Office Manager at a swimming pool service & supply company in East Hartford, CT. I also teach Certified Pool Operator classes to commercial pool attendents. I've worked here for 10 years. I'm also on the Board of Directors for the Connecticut Pool & Spa Association.

Not using my BS or MS at all.

Just a hubby (14 years), no kids, proud Auntie to a nephew.

That's awesome!

My parents are both Bosnian. I was born in the US, but spent a couple summers there with family. Both times were pre-war, and I haven't had the heart to go back and see what happened to my grandmother's beautiful home. My parents and siblings have been back and said it's really sad to see what happened to her house.

I'm a graphic designer, and will be celebrating my 20th anniversary with the same company this May.

It really is a beautiful country. It was hard to see the widespread destruction of so many lives and homes. What part of Bosnia did your parents come from and your grandparents live?

I was there from '93 through '97, and should have referred to 'Croatia and Bosnia' as the United Nations mission area encompassed both. I originally worked from the UNPROFOR HQ in Zagreb, Croatia, then accepted a position in a regional field office in Knin for about a year. I had shorter term assignments in Sarajevo and Vukovar, filling in during staff shortages and vacations, etc. During '96-97, I was part of OSCE's international elections team, living in Jablanica which is between Mostar and Sarajevo. Also later returned to Vukovar for quite a few months during my assignment as part of the UN international elections team for the '96 elections in Eastern Slavonia. I also visited Dubrovnik, Split and other parts of the Dalmation Coast while I was there.

I do lots of things. I'm mostly a SAHM, but I will take jobs that interest me and are within school hours. I want to always be able to put my children on the bus and be home when they get off the bus. Currently, I am filling in for the IP coach in my town. She will be out for 2 months on maternity leave. I also am a substitute teacher for our school system. I also paint (hence my name, lol) and sell paintings infrequently. They are hung in various businesses in town and I get a phone call about 2 times a month to come pick up $ and bring another painting. The hardest thing I do doesn't provide monetary compensation. I'm a mom and a wife and that's quite important to me.

I am an HR Business Partner at a Fortune 150 company.

BTw, Wuv I love SteinMart!!

Wow, you went to a lot of places while you were there!

My mom is from Vlasenica, which is located between Tuzla and Sarajevo, and that is the house my grandparents lived in. We had to bring my grandparents, 2 aunts and 1 cousin here to the states during the war. We were fortunate that we could get them out when we did. Their town was under seige and tragically most of the men were massacared in Srebrenica.

My dad was from Gracanica, which is close to Dubrovnik.

It's certainly fortunate that you were able to get everyone out when you did. I heard a lot of horror stories and saw a few things I will never forget. I remember very well when the massacre in Srebrenica happened - I was working for a few months in Tuzla at the time, filling in due to a staff shortage there. Depending on the route taken, I probably passed through Vlasenica enroute from Sarajevo to Tuzla. I also saw a lot of villages near Dubrovnik, so while I don't recognize that name, it's quite possible I passed through it.

I did see a lot of different areas while I was there. That's because I was a more mature (ie older) than most of my colleaques, with considerable and varied administrative background. I also am a pretty level-headed and adaptable person ... as they found out. LOL. Quite often I'd be asked if I'd accept a position on a short-term basis when somebody was on vacation, or until they successfully recruited for the position. I didn't mind, as it certainly kept things far from being boring, and I saw a lot of The Former Republic of Yugoslavia.

Pam
Good luck with the book! You'll do great!! I'm going to two conferences this year. One in February, one in May. I hope you finish in time!!! Write. Write. Write.

Rebecca

Super cool thread!

I love seeing other female geeks out there

I'm currently a business systems analyst for a logistics company. Most of my life has been software and systems engineering.

BS's in Computer Science and Mathematics.