Here are some random facts about yours truly:

I teach history at a local junior college as an adjunct.

I volunteer in an archive at a railroad museum. The place is dusty, musty, and
cramped, and I love it.

I ride my bike to the store, library, and to pick up my son from school.

My son is nine years old and is in third grade. He loves road trips and reading maps,
just like his Mom!

I lived in Germany during my childhood. My mom is from Berlin and she wanted to go
back home after my father (Air Force Veteran) had passed away. Ergo, I speak German.

My mother and father met at the Berlin Wall.

My mother was once arrested by the East German Secret Police.

I'm a liberal and proud of it. But I am also a very traditional person.

Although I'm not religious, I believe churches and synagogues have a lot of value and
are an integral part of American culture.

I have an extreme dislike for Madison Avenue, and all things devoted to
commercialism and consumerism.

I think hunting, if you eat the animal you kill and have a stamp issued by the State
Department of Wildlife, is okay.

My thesis was called: "Bovinity: Culture on the Cattle Trails in Post-Civil War Indian
Territory."

I have some Choctaw ancestors, though I am not on the rolls. I wish I had been born
Indian, though.

My family name is Cole. I am pretty much related to all the Coles in the South. They are
originally Anglo-Saxon English (London, as far as I know, but they could have come
from out in the country) and arrived in Pennsylvania before the Revolutionary War. Each
preceding generation then moved south/southeast until finally coming to Louisiana
after the Civil War. They made it to Texas in the 1920s, following the Oil Boom. Most of
my family is buried in northern Louisiana, including my father. The men in the family
seemed to have been all carpenters, who made moonshine on the side.

I will not shop at Wal-Mart. I avoid Target. I think shops should be locally owned to keep
our money in our communities.
The archives, where I work.
More random facts:

I like trekies. I married one.

I've been to Germany, France, Holland, and
Mexico. For states, I've visited Oklahoma and
Texas (of course!) but also Arkansas,
Tennessee, Louisiana, Washington D.C.,
Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, California,
Indiana, Illinois, Missouri, Kansas, and
Nevada. I've got some more traveling to do!

I enjoy making pillows. I sew mostly by hand.

I love going to the library. I enjoy reading well
researched (i.e., with bibliography and
extensive notes) history books. I also read
everything I can about urban planning, Route
66, Diners, social criticisms, and anything
written by Fannie Flagg.

I don't watch Oprah.

I love where I live. The Cross Timbers will
always be my home, and I will never leave.
Oddly, I also love Dallas. I am equally at
home in the big city and in the country.

My family and I love to hunt for fossils. I've
found mososaur (Cretaceous) vertebrae, and
some great mollusks.

I want to trespass into old, abandoned
buildings, but I've never gotten the nerve... yet.

I enjoy reruns of Walker, Texas Ranger.
Officer Trivette is a doll.
With our dog Tuesday. She's 13 years old! I had a sunburn,
that's why I'm so red.
Even more TMI:

I just can't stand organized activity, whether it be churches, sports, or social clubs. Or working in an office.

I HATE routines. I never want to know what the day will bring - I want to surprised!

My son and my husband go metal detecting together. They also collect old coins.

A perfect day for me would be to go to the antiques mall off of Forest Lane in Dallas, then eat lunch at Kel's Diner. Afterwards, I'd
drive to the Farmer's Branch Historical Park while listening to NPR. Then I'd go home and read the Dallas Morning News while
having some flan and a good cup of Viennese coffee.

I contribute every year to PBS - KERA (TV) and 90.1 (Radio).

I love listening to They Might Be Giants, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, Dire Straights, and Rondo Veneziano. I also listen to
Blue Grass. I like to make mix-music CDs from song I download from i-tunes.

My two favorite movies of all time are "Thelma and Louise" and "The Straight Story."

My mom and stepdad live on top of an old  town site. My grandmother used to have a store there, too.

I am shy and awkward. I spill things a lot. But I love meeting new people.

My favorite food is Griessbrei (German porridge). My favorite restaurant is Cafe Sicilia in Bedford, Texas.

I have two best friends: Ray and Amie.

My dogs are named Jackie and Tuesday. Jackie is a rescue poodle, and Tuesday is a mix. I also have a cat, Kevin McAlister, who
we picked up at the animal shelter.

I think pricey real estate is horrible. I have a big problem with pricing the working class out of homes.
Other things:

I don't like California as much as everyone
thinks I should. It's pretty, but too polarizing.

I am a socialist, though I usually vote
Democrat.

I think family is the most important thing in
the world. Having a family means having a
life. Yes, sometimes they get on my nerves.
But life isn't supposed to always be a bed of
roses. Adversity, adventure, love and
persistence are what makes life, life.

I miss my dad. He died when I was six.

I have a hard time networking with other
people. I don't get the concept of networking,
anyway. People should be friends, not
business contacts.

When I was first married and going to
college, my husband and I lived in dumps
that even roaches didn't like to frequent. We
existed mainly on cheap tacos and macaroni
and cheese. We were poor, but happy.

I worked my way through college in assorted
jobs. I was a carhop at the Sonic, Dairy
Queen order taker and ice cream maker, fish
bait clerk at a convenience store, and a
computer tech. I got fired from a dental
assisting job, mainly because I HATE office
work.

I was once a juvenile probation officer, but I
sucked at it.

I am contemplating applying for a Ph.D.
program in American West history.

I procrastinate too much.

I like to share history. I don't like grading
others on their understanding of it. That's why
I sometimes feel bad about teaching at the
college - I am forcing others to understand
what comes naturally to me.

I like Farmer's Markets and locally grown
foods.

I recycle like a possessed woman.

I think Dave Barry is the greatest writer ever.

I consider myself gnostic.

I don't like labels, but if someone had to
describe me, I'd hope they'd say
"unpredictable intellectual." Or, "well, at least
she doesn't scare little children."

My favorite ice cream is cookies and cream.
From either Blue Bell or Braum's.

I think folding laundry is a Zen-like activity.

I like quiet.

I think the war in Iraq is a horrific waste of life,
and is just another imperialist ploy. I think the
whole country should stop using so much oil.

But of course I honor the men and women
deployed over there. They deserve our
respect and sacrifice (ergo, we should stop
driving so much, for one thing. I know I've cut
my driving WAY down because of the war).
Bring our troops HOME!!!

My nephew, Patrick, will be going back to Iraq
for a third tour (!!) this December.

If you've read this far, you have more patience
than me!
A catwalk in Shreveport.
David at my favorite place in the whole wide world, Lookout Point
along the Chisholm Trail, outside of Addington, Oklahoma.
George, the cat I bottle raised. He died in the Spring of 2006,
and I miss him terribly.
Two vertebrae that my husband found at the
Sulphur River near Ladonia, Texas.
Back to the "About" Page!
More About Me (if you
really want to know -
I'm not that interesting)