I have been painting and making art all my life. I went to Music and Art High School in New York (in music). I graduated from City College of the City University of New York with a BA in painting. I spent a lot of my college years on strike for affirmative action and against the war in Vietnam. I have been a child-care worker, teacher's aide, office clerk, switchboard operator, waitress, hospital nurses aide, artist’s model, house cleaner, and construction worker and have learned something valuable from each of these jobs. I retired from Alameda County Public Works in 2013. I have been a social justice activist all my life.