A dear friend said to me something like “Stephie, a lot of the people who read this blog don’t know you from Adam, you gotta tell them a bit about you….”.
So, who am I? I grew up in West Germany, in a small town called Kierspe. At the time around 10,000 people lived there, and they were spread over three somewhat separate areas. So, it was more like living in a town of 4,000
Town of Kierspe in Germany
people. My parents are both teachers. I have a sister, Victoria, almost two years younger than me. She worked for about twenty years with mentally handicapped children. That’s a tough job – I always admired her for doing that.
As a kid I loved reading and learning (yes, I was a bit of a nerd I suppose), painting pictures and assembling things. I climbed apple trees and loved being outside, at times rolling down steep meadows until we got dizzy and other times running my tricycle or sled, depending on the season, into barbed wire fences that were supposed to keep the cows in their field.
Right around 17 I became passionate about rock-climbing. Mind you, I always had great grades in every subject but in sports I was just okay. I just loved this sport because it callenged me to come up with
Tannheimer Huette, Germany
the strength, the endurance, the strategy and also the nerve to do it. And I loved being outdoors! I also absolutely loved writing. I still do. And I became really passionate about science. It all started with me getting fascinated about what matter really is, or what we think it is. But I really was just like a sponge – learning everything around me. I still do that, too. Once a teacher asked me why I was so interested in the subject he was teaching (sociology). Honestly, I thought that was an odd question…
When I was nearly 23 years old I began my life in America as a German exchange student at the University of Knoxville, Tennessee. The endeavor was supposed to last a year. Yet 21 years later I’m still here. Just this year, in March, I became a dual citizen. 
Well, that’s enough for today. Tomorrow or so, I’ll continue, ok?
Big hugs,
Dr. Stephie
