Since this is the family web page, I guess this is the part where I bore you silly with details about me (I've been informed that I can't let the dog have a larger say than I do!).
I enjoyed animals of any sort (even inanimate) from a very early age. I briefly toyed with the idea of being a paleontologist, but T. Rex gave me nightmares, and then decided to be a ballerina. Despite the triumph of my 'I am a Coffee Pot' dance (pictured), my budding ballet career was cut short by the discovery that dancers are supposed to wear make-up when on stage. After being chased around a crowded auditorium for half an hour, me screaming 'no' all the way, my mother and ballet teacher let me perform without make-up, but there were to be no other ballet recitals for me. (Make-up still gives me the chills - I don't touch the nasty stuff.)
So by the ripe old age of 8 I decided on a new career path - veterinarian. I started out doing any sort of animal as long as it wasn't venomous, but now I do predominantly dogs and cats with the occasional reptile, rodent, or small ruminant thrown into the mix.
On the family side of things, I have a younger brother, Nick, and a pair of youthful parents, Les and Kathy. The Rounds family is very loving and supportive - when we're not harassing each other, of course. The photo shows the true Rounds family revealed on the steps of my college dorm (caught in action by my roommate Kris).
Also on the topic of family, I'm married to a wonderful Kiwi lad by the name of Craig. We weren't exactly looking to start a long distance (6000 miles!) relationship when we met, but we got along so well that one thing led to another and eventually Craig immigrated to the U.S. During the first year here, I had to do a lot of translating for him (especially in computer stores), but now most people understand him when he speaks. And I think it's been over a year since he last tried driving on the left side of the road in America (at least as far as I know!).
We have a dog, Libby, whose page you can see, and three cats Craig prefers to forget. They are Cheney (the weirdo), Abbott (the thief), and Deacon (the freak). Work and keeping up with the property take a lot of my time, but I try to work out several times a week (preferably running) and write 21 pages of fiction a week. My ballet trauma notwithstanding, I love to go folk and contra dancing at any opportunity (it's a sad year if I can't go to the Seattle Folklife Festival). I also enjoy hiking and traveling, among many other things, but I'll stop here before you start yawning. The last photo is from a backpacking trip on the Wonderland Trail around Mt. Rainier.
