When I was a child, drawing was one of my favorite pastimes (as it is for many children) and I still have a large box of childhood drawings.  In college, I was able to fit in a few art courses -- but early on I decided to major in something that might pay, and to keep art as a hobby.  Hence -- math.

Armed with undergraduate and graduate degrees in math, my first and only salaried job (discounting the usual college jobs of waitressing in a restaurant and clerking in a school office) was with RTI, a contract research organization.  After graduate school, working at RTI felt as though I'd died and gone to heaven.  During the early years I enjoyed it so much that I was amazed that I actually got paid to do it.

As with most paid employment, things changed over time.  With increasing responsibilities, my RTI work became less and less fun, and then became actually unpleasant.  Many days I dreaded going to work.  So, on a sudden impulse, I pulled a "Johnny Paycheck" -- one Monday I drove to work, went to the personnel office, and resigned on the spot ("Take this job and shove it"), then got in my car and drove back home.

If you count both my child's hand-crank Singer (doll clothes around age 6) and a beautiful treadle machine that belonged to one of my grandmothers, I now own SIX sewing machines.  Among quilters, multiple machines isn't unusual.  Oh yes, and there's that miniature sewing machine for my magnificent four-story dollhouse -- that makes seven.

So far, in quilting, I am playing with several widely differing styles.  I enjoy making what many call "art quilts" ~~ wall hangings of non-traditional construction incorporating non-traditional materials.  At the same time I feel satisfaction in traditional quilting whenever the points match, the quilt is straight and flat, and the design and colors sparkle.  I love designing my own patterns, some of which are for sale.  And I'm developing a passion for miniature quilts (almost the same time to make, but easier to display).  In short, I'm experimenting with lots of quilt styles and, to date, have enjoyed everything I've tried.

I've also taken up lots of other crafts -- dyeing fabric, painting silk scarves, and making purses and tote bags to name just a few.  I've even reverted to math, spending many hours developing rotations for card players at multi-table card parties.

In a large research institution, most employees are only small facets of huge projects, few employees receive any recognition (beyond their paychecks) for their work, and a personal accomplishment can be rare, intangible, and hard to describe to family and friends.  (My mother often said, with a sigh, that she had no idea what I did for a living.)  One of the great satisfactions of what I do now, as compared to my former job at RTI, is being able to make something with my hands, then hold it and look at it and think "I made this."  If someone else likes it too -- particularly if they like it enough to pay me for it -- then that's a bonus.