I am a Stage-Four melanoma patient living from scan to scan in a lovely zone of uncertainty where I reject life's fussy little annoyances and embrace the good stuff that each sunrise sends my way. I took a cross-country, solo tent camping trip to celebrate my unexpected reprieve from near certain death, and I tell about that trip in Melanoma Mama: On Life, Death and Tent Camping. I reside in both Oregon and New Hampshire. In Oregon, I draw support and inspiration from Making Today Count, a women's cancer support group at Providence Hospital.

In former days I was a tricky trial lawyer, but I fled the fray to write, travel, ski, and dance. I have written several law-related books including Gun Control and Gun Rights. I've also written articles for an eclectic range of periodicals from legal to outdoor to popular to academic. My opinions have appeared in the "Oregonian" and the "New York Times." I love to share creative writing techniques in Connie's Writing Playground.