INTJ
Mom

I was born in 1965.  I'm married with 4 children who were born in the following years: 1986, 1987, 2003, 2005.  The 1st two kids are from my 1st marriage.  The last 2 are from my current marriage.  I graduated from the University of Utah in 1993 with a degree in Communications-Telecommunication and an unofficial minor in business.  Toward the end of my college time I discovered I had a real knack for computers.

At the same time I had also become interested in law enforcement.  While waiting to try and get on with the Salt Lake City police dept., I got a job as a jr. programmer.  I also did a course to become a licensed PI, but I never really did anything with it.  I actually ended up taking the PI offering the training course to court for non-fulfillment of his contract with me, and eventually managed to get my money back.

Long story short, I ended up really liking and staying in computer science and eventually branched out into IT where I added various professional certifications and worked full time doing all kinds of different things until 2003.  In 2003 I decided to become a SAHM (stay at home mom) to my then newborn son.  Since then I've done consulting here and there as time permits and I have interest.

I'm a person of great inquisitiveness and curiosity.  I love to learn.  I love all kinds of science - both hard and soft/social science.  I'm in a constant search for truth.  A real truth seeker knows the search for truth is never ending.  You may think you have the truth, but you'll never really know unless you keep your mind open and always keep searching for more information, to confirm or refute what you currently believe to be true.  I'm open to exploring all ideas and theories and very willing to change my paradigms when I discover new evidence about any topic.

Personality
My Myers-Briggs or Keirsey personality type is INTJ (hence the name of this website).  You can learn more about personality typing in the personality section of my site.  The INTJ profile and the general Rationals profile both fit me extremely well.

I like being a SAHM right now because besides being able to spend a lot of time with my 2 youngest kids, I actually have a lot of freedom to do whatever I want. I've had the time and energy to discover and develop several new skills. In many ways I have become extremely spoiled.

I'm also a big homebody.  I can go days without leaving my house and not go stir crazy.  I rarely talk on the phone, my preferred method of communication with friends is email or IM.  I'm not big on small talk either, so I usually only call or email friends and even family only when I have something specific on my mind. Though I've been trying to be more communicative of late.

I'm pretty casual.  My favorite attire is yoga pants and a "Life Is Good" T-shirt.  I've got a little collection of yoga pants & Life Is Good shirts.  You'll rarely see me in a dress - only if I have to go to something formal, and pretty much never in the winter time.  If I can't wear sandals with my dress - well, I'll likely find an excuse to not go to the event (unless it's a really important occasion, of course).

I'm not a big fan of parties.  I prefer really small groups and one on one interaction with people (that's the introvert in me). I'm more of a "meet a friend for lunch" type as opposed to inviting people over for a party. My home is my sanctuary. I don't mind hosting family get-togethers but other than that I rarely have people over.

I don't smoke or do illegal drugs - never had the desire to even try them. I also don't drink alcohol - never acquired a taste for it. Plus, I have this thing about wanting to feel like I'm as in control of myself as possible at all times. Drunk or even just really buzzed people make me feel uncomfortable. Though they are interesting to observe from a social sciences perspective.

Fun for me is learning something new or figuring something out. A big "ah ha" moment is definitely in the top 5 of my favorite feelings. I get a huge kick out of analyzing people, situations, events, etc.

I'm considering possibly getting a PhD in social psychology and then being a researcher. I've always been interested in observing people & groups and trying to figure out what makes them tick.  I've also thought a lot about going to law school and becoming a civil rights attorney.  However, a lot of days I just want to do nothing more than live inside my comfy little bubble and just raise my kids.

As I mention on the religion page, I'm not a religious person, though a few people have said they find me to be a spiritual person.  I have 2 personal creeds or mottos that I try to live by.  The first is what I would call my creed of integrity.  I have a Successories photo plaque with the following on my desk:

The Courage of Integrity
The highest courage is to dare to be yourself in the face of adversity.
Choosing right over wrong, ethics over convenience, and truth
over popularity...these are the choices that measure your life.
Travel the path of integrity without looking back, for
there is never a wrong time to do the right thing.

My 2nd personal creed is better known as:

 "The New 10 Commandments"

1	Don't do to others what you wouldn't want them to do to you.
2	In all things, strive to cause no harm.
3	Treat your fellow human beings, your fellow living things, and the world in general with love, honesty, faithfulness and respect.
4	Do not overlook evil or shrink from administering justice, but always be ready to forgive wrongdoing freely admitted and honestly regretted.
5	Live life with a sense of joy and wonder.
6	Always seek to be learning something new.
7	Test all things; always check your ideas against the facts, and be ready to discard even a cherished belief if it does not conform to them.
8	Never seek to censor or cut yourself off from dissent; always respect the right of others to disagree with you.
9	Form independent opinions on the basis of your own reason and experience; do not allow yourself to be led blindly by others.
10	Question everything.

I find the above much more profound and poignant than the bible's 10 commandments.  All the important stuff from the biblical 10 commandments are covered by #s 1-3 in the above list.

I'm an activist.  I stand up and speak out against the injustices I see.  I'm not afraid to say what I think needs to be said and I'm ok with whatever consequences come from that.

Organizations I Currently Belong To

Secular Coalition of America	American Humanists Association	Humanists of Utah	The Brights
Atheists of Utah	Freedom From Religion Foundation	Americans United

I'm also an ordained minister of the Universal Life Church.  I did it as more of a "just because I could" type of thing.  Supposedly if I register with my county, I can perform marriages.  I just haven't bothered to do it yet.

Hobbies & Interests
Being a 40-something parent of 2 wild, hyperactive, and precocious preschoolers doesn't leave me a lot of time for myself right now.  A website we have for the little kids - a kind of online journal/scrapbook - is probably my main "hobby" right now.  I love learning new things and reading - I have over 50+ books on my "to read" shelf in a wide variety of topics.  I have a bit of an addiction to buying books.  I keep saying I'm not going to buy any more books until my "to read" shelf is empty, but invariably I come across books that I "just have to have right now", so it seems my "to read" shelf is always hovering around 50-60 books.  I like to sit on my butt and read or "ponder the mysteries of life and the universe."  I easily get sucked into watching shows on NGC, History, History International, Discovery, & Science.

I also enjoy science fiction, crime, and medical dramas.  I can easily get sucked into watching shows on NGC, Discovery  Science, History & History International.  Right now I'd say my favorite TV show is the Showtime series "Dexter."  I'm also a fan of Dr. Who, Torchwood, NCIS, The Mentalist, Battlestar Galactica, Numbers, Grey's Anatomy, Heroes, The Universe, History's Mysteries, Burn Notice, Eureka.  I also like Survivor and Amazing Race - more to observe all the different personalities and social interaction, which I find fascinating.  I've also gotten interested in a show on Discovery Health called "Big Medicine."

I enjoy gardening and sometimes cooking if I'm in the right mood.  Actually, I'd like cooking a lot more if someone else would always clean up, LOL.

When I was younger I was into music and I was known as a talented pianist and vocalist.  However, I haven't sang or played the piano much for quite some time now beyond our yearly family Xmas carols on Xmas Eve.  Singing and piano playing was more of a way to spend my time and stay out of trouble as an adolescent.  Developing those talents helped me to have some confidence in myself as a teen.  It was fun, but later I discovered other skills that I found much more enjoyable and I lost interest in singing and playing the piano.  If music still interested me, I'd be doing it.

I tend to prefer thinking to listening to music.  When I'm lost in my thoughts I either tune out any outside noise, including music, or I find music distracting.  So I rarely listen to music.  My IPod is filled with NPR podcasts, and science, political, and skeptic podcasts.  However, I do still go through periodic phases where I'll listen to some music.  I tend to prefer classical and new age/environmental type music, though I'm generally amenable to anything except "twangy" country and hard rock.  I've also got my 80s favorites like Madonna, Depeche Mode, Erasure.