In a moment, life can change forever. Yes, yes, we all know this and have been through it a hundred times. But suddenly, one of those moments really does change everything and you can no longer ignore how profound these moments can be. When my husband and I decided (literally in a moment) to buy a ruined farmhouse in Italy, our world turned upside down. And we've never looked back. I had a long career in technical and marketing communications writing in Silicon Valley; he was a professor of psychology and art at the University of California, Santa Cruz, for 30 years.  We gave it all up and moved to Italy. I wrote my first book about our adventures in Italy--stories about reconstructing the house, the people we've met, the culture, the food, wine, and art, the lure of Italy. I'm a bit of a photographer as well, so there are 45 original color photographs to accompany the stories. Ah, life was wonderful. And then menopause hit. Talk about a life-changing moment. As I spiraled into the depths of depression, anger, anxiety, night sweats, and just not giving a damn about anything, I realized I'd better do something before my husband killed me or vice-versa. I was, after all, trained as a psychologist--if I couldn't help myself, who could? So, I wrote my second book, a humorous "guide" for family members to help them survive HER menopause. I continue to observe moments, these windows of change that are handed to us. I listen to them, act on them or not, and, after that first hot flash, I know I'll never take them lightly again as long as I live. 

My two books, "The Field Stones of Umbria" and "How NOT to Kill the Woman You Love: Your Guide to Surviving Her Menopause" have been included in the London, New York, Frankfurt, Bejing, and American Library Association book fairs.

I'm currently writing an oral history book, based on interviews with a man in Prague, Czech Republic, who was secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jan Masaryk, from 1945-1948.