Profile

Despite the paucity of actual entries these days — as I am busy enough for five women — I am here, I am reading and when I do say something, rest assured that it will be opinionated, vibrant and most likely pugnacious. I'd recommend sticking around for that, were I you. But perhaps I suffer from an excess of self-esteem.

I try to keep ClaimID updated to where I am electronically, but not always successfully. My e-mail is jessica@pobox.com, should you need me.

For those of you trying to keep things straight, let me refresh your memory. I went to Simon's Rock College at age 15 in 1997. I left in 1998, a regret but with the immense benefit of becoming a step-mother that same year, at age 16. Alicia, a remarkably sanguine person, was an infant when I met her and is 13 today. In 1999, I married Alicia's father Jason during leave from the military, where I was training as a medic while remaining pacifist. In 2000, I was released to my reserve unit and 3½-year-old Alicia was given a Christmas present on Boxing Day — Julianne, who is now 9½. In 2002, Jason and I began our long march toward divorce, mostly amicably.

In 2004, Alicia, then 7 years old, looked up from her 2^nd-grade homework and announced to me that I needed to finish university before she did. Thus, I applied to Wellesley College to read history. Alicia often points out to me how I lag in academia, but forgets that I am coping with chronic illness of multiple sorts, the role of chatelaine of an assorted household and being the child of now-elderly parents and the worries those bring.

In 2007, a gentleman known as crschmidt decided to cast his lot in with us permanently, and so on 9 June, 2007, we were married. The signatures of many of our friends met first on LiveJournal are on our wedding certificate, some of whom took incredible journeys to be there.

Life in recent years has quieted, thankfully. I can lose myself for hours in my studies of manuscripts and archives, Christopher has embarked on a career as a cartographical programmer and Alicia has remained sanguine and Julianne has shown herself to be phlegmatic and empathetic. I can say without restraint that they are my pride and joy.