I grew up in southern Germany. In 1999, I was offered a position at the University of Minnesota. I packed up my belongings to spend a few years abroad, but never returned to Germany beyond annual family visits. When our children were school age we left snow suits and mosquito spray behind and moved to San Diego, California. I retired from Veterinary Behavior Medicine and started to play with clay in a local studio. Soon, I was hooked and built my own home studio. Today, I work here as well as at Get Centered Clay Studio. I still wear my Behaviorist hat when I train service dogs for people with disabilities, but the majority of my time is spent creating pottery.