Women Once Wild make contribution to Cure Alzheimer's Fund

Adoption fees for Women Once Wild who have new homes have now contributed $925 to Cure Alzheimer's Fund, a charitable organization focused on funding "research with the highest probability of preventing, slowing, or reversing Alzheimer’s disease".   For more info, see http://www.curealz.org/.

Thanks to all the new "parents" of Women Once Wild!

Robineeta (is adopted)

A woman of letters she has traveled the world lecturing on the cultural significance of dolls and toys.  Lest you think that a dull topic, note that her studies have required journeys to isolated tribes on the Amazon and in New Guinea.   Along with lecturing, she regularly loans her vast collection of goddess statues to museums.  When these loans are in Europe, they give her the perfect excuse to go base jumping in the Alps.

PJH 2016

Xeena (is adopted)

Of course she loved the television show with her namesake!  And, since she loves masquerade parties, each year for her birthday she dresses in her favorite warrior princess costume and leads a hearty band of friends through the New Jersey countryside in search of hidden gems provided by clients of her lapidary equipment business.  Outside of work and costumes, she loves parasailing, zip lining, and traveling in a vintage rail car.

PJH 2016

Amaranth

Even the doctor was surprised when she emerged at birth with bright pink hair, thus her exotic name.  Despite predictions to the contrary, her hair never changed color, nor is it going gray as she moves through her sixth decade. She decided early on that being easy to spot in a crowd was an advantage, and parlayed that into a successful career as a conflict correspondent.  In one encounter, her hair color convinced potential captors to release her and her crew, as there would have been no way to disguise her as they tried to escape their NATO pursuers.   Now, quietly retired in the wilds of Alaska, she enjoys going almost unnoticed when she dons a nondescript watch cap and zips along on her all terrain vehicle.

PJH 2016

Sadzi

Even her worst enemies would say that she has a sunny disposition, but they would also say that they would not like to face her in the courtroom.  In her small city divorce court, she rules with humor, dignity, grace, and a death-ray-like stare for those who attempt to mislead her.  Known in court for her light-hearted good will, when she gets on one of her favorite hiking trails, that attitude disappears with her fierce drive to achieve her goal of walking 1000 miles each year.  She is hoping to make up for her more sedentary years in law school with hiking more miles in her soon-to-occur retirement.

PJH 2016

Jaquizza

She grew up around the family’s security firm, with safes and locks as everyday playthings.  So it was no surprise to her parents when she decided to drop out of college and become a professional safe cracker.  No, not the illegal kind, but the one called on when combinations or keys are lost.  Her favorite contracts involve safes on luxury yachts, since she requires that the vessel be at sea before she begins her work.   Digital locks are reducing her work load, but she’s not worried, as many of her satisfied clients have rewarded her with items from the safes she opened. With a healthy nest egg of diamonds and stock certificates, she may just be able to acquire a small yacht of her own!

PJH 2016

Tiger-Lyl (is adopted)

Her parents named her Tigerlilly – as Clemson graduates, they loved orange! But in high school she developed a reputation for snarling a little too much and the nickname stuck.  After a brief foray as a roller derby player, she settled into vet school and now specializes in the problems of Savannah cats, a cross-breed involving African servals and domestic house cats.   Who’s the tiger now?

PJH 2016

Geneva (is adopted)

Despite being named for one of her great grandmothers, she seldom looks backward, except when it comes to mid-century modern design.  In that style, she designs tiny houses for those who can manage that lifestyle. But her own abode is a large modern tri-level, furnished in the style of Florence Knoll, including an original 2544 credenza, which she uses for storing her extensive collection of 1960’s wristwatches.

PJH 2016

Dwynwen

A champion surfer in her youth -- her name means “white wave”! --  she now spends her days collecting shells and photographing sea birds near her Ocracoke Island cottage. While she did not garner monetary prizes for her surfing skills, she did travel widely enough to buy several winning lottery tickets, which she invested wisely enough to support her leisurely life style.

PJH 2016

Chickaleeza (is adopted)

You would never know by her wild hairstyle that she is a renowned forensic accountant.  Since most of her work is behind a computer as a consultant to Interpol and Scotland Yard, she can indulge her fashion whims as she chooses.  When not unraveling criminal ledgers, she spends time traveling in Britain and Europe, riding her Brutus V9 electric touring cycle ………… in fashionable leathers, of course!

PJH 2016

Meltem

With a name that means “sea wind”, you would think that she would love the beach, but she would much rather spend time in the mountains.  Perhaps that’s influenced by the summers she spent living with her great grandmother off-the-grid on a mountainside north of Galax.  Since inheriting the cabin, she continues to spend time there, blissfully away from her hectic work life as a Washington lobbyist for the Sierra Club.

PJH 2016

Medusa (is adopted)

It’s certainly not apparent now as she enters retirement that her earliest career was that of a golf ball diver.  While unusual, it was sufficiently lucrative to support her comfortably while she built up her private investigator practice. Specializing in solving underwater mysteries, she made her real fortune by finding the wreck of a 16th century Spanish galleon.  While it was not bringing back gold from the New World, it did contain enough uncut emeralds to fund her lifestyle for years to come.

PJH 2016

Hildegarde (is adopted)

She may look sweet and meek, but cross anyone in her close circle of friends and family and you will experience wrath like that of her Viking ancestors.  Trained in fencing and knife throwing, she is a vicious opponent on the battleground. Luckily she has only been tested a few times, always in urban settings against unfortunately unworthy opponents.  Each time she came away unscathed, ready to ease back into her role of kindergarten teacher.  Huzzah!

PJH 2016

Corliss (is adopted)

As evidenced by her name, someone in her lineage had invented the steam engine that supplied power for the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia.   For Corliss, steam was just the nuisance that caused her hair to curl, but she loved numbers and calculations as much as that long-ago ancestor.   She funded her college years doing statistical analysis for the university, eventually obtaining a doctorate in bio-statistics and a job researching survivability in snake bite victims. Luckily, that did not require that she handle (or even see) snakes, as a childhood encounter left her with a deathly fear of anything slithery.

PJH 2016

Fara (is adopted)

She grew up on the road, daughter of an Air Force mom and an internet developer dad.  So no one was surprised when she bought an RV with her college graduation money and began a cross-country sojourn to find herself. Her friends thought she would always have “the world on a string”, but 10 years and 200,000 miles later, she settled into a little North Carolina coastal town and started a digital art business with the photos from her travels.  She never imagined living in one place for more than a year, but her fisherman partner/lover/best friend has - so far - kept her happily anchored for five years …. and counting…

Polaris (is adopted)

Thank goodness that few people know that she is named for the star at the tip of the tail of the Little Bear constellation. She always imagined that her grandfather – the amateur astronomer – named her, probably influenced by her being the youngest of 8 and names getting harder to find.  If her comedic mystery-writing best friend thought he could get away with teasing her about being a “tail wagger”, he would try, but her quick temper and jujitsu black belt dampens his jesting – most days!   Trained as a cinematic cosmetologist with a specialization in alien life form make-up, her work life revolves around the latest sci-fi thriller, taking her to remote places that look like (and sometimes smell like) alien planets.

(PJH 2016)

Vanessa

Her friends thought her training as a lepidopterist was frivolous until she discovered, with the help of a friendly textile chemist, that butterfly wings could be synthesized to create an almost invisible, stronger-than-Kevlar fabric.   The royalties from this discovery enabled her to get her pilot’s license, buy a Twin Cessna, and travel the world photographing butterflies….. and tasting local varieties of gin.

(a PJH story)

Zaryna (is adopted)

You might think her tame, given her career as a designer of Barbie costumes, but outside of work, she loves to free climb the cliffs around her Colorado home.   Her career came about as she was recovering from injuries after falling 50 feet in one of her earliest untethered jaunts.  While lying in bed, she started to envision sports-oriented costumes for the dolls she had loved as a child.  The sketches she sent to Mattel garnered her a lifetime spot in the hearts of many little girls who were tired of too many poufy sleeves and wide patent leather belts.

(a PJH story)

Deirdre-Anne

She is still famous for asking “Have we gone on like this long enough?” whenever the conversation started to be boring to her.   Oftentimes, it was just the right question to cause the dialogue to go off in a more interesting direction.   But, it didn’t work the night she asked it of the father of her soon-to-be groom.  In fact, things went so badly from there that the cathedral wedding was never conducted. Luckily for her, eloping was just a grand idea, and they lived happily – albeit without his family – for a good long while.   Now she remembers those good days while hoping that she lives long enough to meet an alien from another planet.  After all, whenever she needed to change the topic of conversation, she could always count on wishing for aliens to create lively repartee.

(a PJH story)

Jovita (is adopted)

When your mother is a Latin scholar who waited until age 40 to have a child, it’s not surprising that your name is a Latin word for “Happy”.   Luckily for all involved, her nature matched her name.   Always smiling, albeit sometimes with her mouth but not her eyes, she followed in her mother’s footsteps and became a professor of Greek mythology.  Once retired she moved to the island of Milos where she met a widowed restaurateur and now spends her days welcoming the occasional guest and forging custom daggers in her backyard blacksmith's shop.

(a PJH story)

Novia (is adopted)

Despite, or perhaps because of, her long hair, she always craved adventure and travel.   She backpacked through Australia instead of going to college, only to find later that she loved the classroom almost as much as the outdoors.   After achieving a masters in spatial informatics, she went on to design solutions to complex highway reengineering projects.   Following the completion of a major bridge rebuilding effort to connect Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, she began analyzing travel patterns - but this time her own - once again backpacking her way around the world, with her long hair leaving a definite impression wherever she goes.

(a PJH story)

Bellatrix (is adopted)

When your father is an astrophysicist and your mother a professor of astronomy, it’s not surprising to be named for a star in the Orion constellation.  And, like Orion, she grew up loving to hunt – animals (but only for food), bargains (but only for things that you actually need), and people (but only when asked). Her attention has always been far more on Earth than the Heavens, especially when she dons flame orange leathers and speeds into the night on her Harley.  If you’re really brave, ask her where her shooting star tattoo is!

(a PJH story)

Pixel(is adopted)

Her parents never imagined that her 3rd birthday present of a Leapfrog computer would lead to careers in biostatistics and photo-realistic animation.  But they must have had some clue, given the name they gave her. While her geek buddies continue to give her grief about her name, they stand back in envy as she signs still another lucrative contract with Pixar.

(a PJH story)

Cerise (is adopted)

She could count to 100 at age 2 and do long division by age 4.  But it took her until age 40 to realize that counting cards at the blackjack tables in Vegas was not a good way to make a living. Today she manages a very, very lucrative hedge fund, and build braille abaci for vision-impaired children.

(a PJH story)

Pippa (is adopted)

She filched her brother’s trucks as soon as she could crawl, and never lost that love for big, tough, four-wheeled machines.  By age 40, she had started, grown, and sold a wildly successful firm that manufactured armored tow trucks for use in battlefield rescues. Now, in early retirement, she spends her summers driving a red jammer in Glacier National Park, and her winters commanding a snow cat (and an awesome snow board) on the slopes of Telluride.

(a PJH story)

Suma (is adopted)

It was much later in her life that she found out that her name meant “born in the summer”, but she had to admit that it was a perfect choice, as she loved everything about the ocean.  She especially enjoys sharing her love of the ocean with those who can not see it, which leverages her talents both for music and spoken description.   Much earlier in life, she had spent some wild years with a rock band, but now her synthesizer strictly makes water sounds.

(a PJH story)

Journey (is adopted)

As a small child, she wondered if she had been named for her parents' unrequited desire, as they never seemed to go anywhere special.  But as soon as she was able to be on her own, she hit the road, traveling with a troupe of off Broadway actors, putting on shows throughout the States.  Even now, she looks back at her photos from all those miles and wonders if she could stand to live in one of those teeny-tiny travel trailers for more than a month or two.

(a PJH story)

Sedonya (is adopted)

One of four first cousins named after places in the American West because their mothers (four sisters from a large New England family) all dreamed of hunky cowboys.  Her mother’s spelling of the Arizona town was a little off, but Sedonya likes the way her name sounds… even when it was loudly shouted by the nuns trying to get attention back into the classroom. Years later, all that day-dreaming paid off, as she designed several labor-saving procedures for pediatric nursing.  Today in retirement she regularly visits children’s hospitals, where her colorful pigtails never fail to bring smiles and giggles.

(a PJH story)

Cheyenne (is adopted)

One of four first cousins named after places in the American West because their mothers (four sisters from a large New England family) all dreamed of hunky cowboys.  Unlike her mother, Cheyenne dreamed of tepees and riding horses bareback.  Following her college graduation from Harvard, she packed up and went west to apply her doctorate in urban planning to the challenges of modernizing Native American reservations.  As an adopted member of several tribes, she regularly grabs her peace-keeping spear for a war dance or two.

(a PJH story)

Nevada (is adopted)

One of four first cousins named after places in the American West because their mothers (four sisters from a large New England family) all dreamed of hunky cowboys. She has yet to set foot west of the Mississippi, but she loves horsepower, especially the kind found in the engines of the vintage Aston-Martins that she restores.  While her mother was disappointed with her career choice, the hunky (and wealthy) race car drivers almost overshadowed the dreams of cowboys.

(a PJH story)

Montana (is adopted)

One of four first cousins named after places in the American West because their mothers (four sisters from a large New England family) all dreamed of hunky cowboys. She realized her mother’s dream when she met and married a handsome rancher who shared her loves of geology and cheerleading.  Now competition judges, they travel the Southwest in search of perfect pyramids.

(a PJH story)

Regina and Beverly (are adopted)

Regina and Beverly were sisters, separated by only 20 months, and best friends from the time of their earliest memories.   Their parents loved music of all types, but Regina and Beverly were especially enamored by R&B, laughing quietly at the irony of that abbreviation.    As they grew older, they envisioned careers performing with their favorite artists.   But, alas, neither Regina nor Beverly could sing.  Oh, they tried, but almost everyone agreed that they should choose a different career path.   Not deterred by lack of singing ability, they entered the R&B scene, partying with all their favorites, staying on the road for weeks following tours, and generally having a very, very good time, especially after they discovered that they could make a lot of money by helping performers manage their finances.   So it was that Regina and Beverly spent many years, had many good times (some of which they even remembered!), and made a small fortune being close to what they love.   And, now in retirement you can find them still enjoying R&B music ........... but beware if you encounter them on karaoke night at the senior center, because they still can not sing!

(a PJH story)

Staranise (is adopted)

As a child she was fascinated with light. Prisms and magnifiers and kaleidoscopes were her favorite toys.
Lightning and rainbows made her anticipate storms and watch their fury with wonder and respect for the power held there. Her most prized possession was a huge MAGLITE flashlight which, at almost 2 pounds, she carried everywhere. Once, after many years, as she was leaving a laser weaponry conference at the Pentagon, she was accosted by a pair of burly thugs. A few paces behind, her military escort advanced to her rescue.By the time they reached her, she had stunned one with the bright light of her "MAGGIE" and whacked the other hard in the knees with the grip. The MPs cleaned up the rest. When questioned about the incident  later she was quoted," they were up to dark deeds but  I believe they saw the light ."
(an EPS story)

Indigo Kapute

Having always favored the color blue, even as hair color, she was never a slave to fashion or convention. As a young woman she was always on the fringes of the music scene writing for indie bands and street buskers. Some of her more outrageous performance pieces were " If you put a bow tie on a turnip", "that is one bad looking baby" and, the holiday classic, " six feet past where the guy who got my goat left my goat".  She now leads the Worship band at the All Points of the Compass, non-denominational congregation of Directional Meditation. She is described as steadfast and dependable by her fellow meditators but sometimes, after service, left all alone, she will wail the opening vamp of "Jumping Jack Flash" on the lonely alto sax.   (an EPS story)

Ivy (is adopted)

Little did her parents know that her name would portend her career choice.  Showing an aptitude for chemistry at an early age, she wrote her doctoral thesis after researching the biochemistry of plant poisons.  Later she discovered several antidote compounds now used in emergency rooms worldwide.   And, her research continues in retirement, so beware if she invites you into her greenhouse …. all the plants there are certain to be deadly!
(a PJH story)

Zagonetka (is adopted)

She was fascinated with jigsaw puzzles from the age of two, solving 1000 piece puzzles by six.  Her exceptional visualization skills led to a long and successful career as a demolition engineer. She could quickly and reliably determine just where to place the charges for effective destruction.  These same skills played a key role in her escape from a deranged kidnapper, who had over-confidently confined her in an elaborate corn maze, only to find her (and the police) waiting on his doorstep 10 minutes later.
(a PJH story)

Daawwn (is adopted)

A diehard Pirates fan, she has a Southern drawl that can both charm and irritate even the most stoic.   Little did folks know that under all that sweetness lay a champion biathlon athlete.  Don’t let her near your guns, boys!
(a PJH story)

Willyamae (is adopted)

From the time she learned to read at age four, she loved stories – the more complicated and mysterious, the better.  But by high school, she became convinced that her disposition was too sunny to inspire best-selling murder mysteries.  In college, she discovered a love of horticulture and was inspired to create her now infamous landscape architect detective Lucille Flowers.  And the sunny but deadly series has paid very well.
(a PJH story)

Judy

Born in Mount Pilot, she was constantly taunted by her cousin’s imitation of Goober Pyle saying “Judy, Judy, Judy”.  Some say she left home just to escape that teasing.  Now a wealthy video game designer in San Francisco, she can laugh about her cousin’s antics, especially when she thinks about the hack that inserts that snippet from the Mayberry series into every Skype chat he has with his Wall Street colleagues.

(a PJH / RHW story)

Saphronia (is adopted)

She doesn’t wear the 4” spiked heels as often now, but she can still spin intriguing stories of hustling home after her midnight shift working frame at the phone company.  Those spiked heels were especially helpful the night the two thugs tried to steal her embroidered shawl.  A couple of well-placed jabs later, two groaning young men were writhing on the sidewalk, listening to those heels click safely away.
(a PJH / MRC story)

Star (is adopted)

Her four older brothers had always teased her about being “the one bright star” in the family, but when she started a company to send the ashes of loved ones on a journey to Alpha Centauri, her childhood nickname took on a new meaning.   Twelve rocket ships later, Fly Them to the Stars is wildly successful and her brothers claim all the credit for inspiring her.

(a PJH / MMB story)

Orange-Jade

Since she was two years old, she wanted to be called Pinky, but neither her family not her hair would support that change.  Now she realizes a part of her dream writing science fiction novels set on a planet where everyone and everything is in shades of pink.  While planet Pinktopia is pure fantasy, her place in the best seller list is quite real.

(an RHW story)

Sventanya

She never knew how her Italian parents decided to name her, but she was grateful for the uniqueness of her moniker.  After college she married her Tahitian sweetheart and moved to Bali to manage his family’s batik fabric business.   And, no one there ever mistook her for an everyday Sue or Jane or Amelia.

(a PJH story)

Claudine (is adopted)

Even though her childhood in the little town of Bethune, SC was in no way uncomfortable, she couldn’t wait to grow up and escape.  So at 16 she packed a small suitcase and boarded a bus for Montana, not realizing that most towns there were almost as small as Bethune.  But somehow training Andalusians for dressage came easily to her, and ranch life with a multitude of hard-bodied cowboys had its own pleasures, so she never returned to Bethune.

(a PJH / MMB story)

Aquavinian (is adopted)

From her earliest memories she loved the ocean. Unfortunately her family lived in Kansas City and beach trips were few during her childhood years.  Later, armed with a marine sciences degree from UNC-W and a PADI dive master certification, she lived out her dreams on a treasure seeking vessel off the Florida Keys.  Even now, years later, she swims like a fish and wields a deadly accurate spear gun.

(a PJH story)

Wendy

As a small child she was dazzled by a television special on daredevils, including a woman who did ballet moves while standing on the top wing of a biplane.  While she never danced on an airplane wing, she did fly by wire across the stage in an off Broadway production of Peter Pan’s Sister’s Friend.  She loved the role so much that she wears her fancy wings regularly, even when they get in her way while working as a land surveyor.

(a PJH / RHW / MMB story)

Oceaneeka (is adopted)

She always knew there was some truth in the stories about mermaids, but she never imagined that her ill-fated suicidal plunge off the Lions Gate bridge would result in such a transformation.  Now she counts porpoise and orca as everyday companions but still relishes sunny days on the rocks of Vancouver Island where she can dry and fluff her colorful hair.

(a PJH story)

Kapreesha (is adopted)

She always wanted to be rocket scientist, but money woes and bad study habits kept her out of engineering school.  Her mechanical skills led to great jobs in custom motorcycle design and paid for her backyard workshop, where her still-in-testing-phase time machine has successfully sped her 10 minutes into the future and back safely.  At least, she thinks it was just 10 minutes; in Winslow, Arizona it’s sometimes hard to tell the passage of time.
(a PJH story)

Aweburjean (is adopted)

Her great grandfather was in France in WWI and somehow fell in love with her name, but it took 40 years for him to get anyone in the family to use it, and then the spelling challenged them.   To her, the name seemed exotic and foreign from her south Alabama home, so she loved it.  That is, until later in life when she learned that it meant “eggplant” in French and was correctly spelled “aubergine”.   She hates eggplant, so now she introduces herself as “Just Jean”.
(a PJH story)

Zophia

None of her childhood doctors could determine the genetic flaw that made her hair such a wonderful shade of purple.  As an exotic dancer in a small but safe club outside Oxford, her distinctive mane brought generous tips which funded her doctorate in genetic counseling.  Now she pursues post-doctoral research in the genetics of complexion while counseling parents of children with unusual eye, skin, or hair color.
(a PJH story)

Quintanita

As the 5th of 7 sisters, she was often overlooked as a child. But once she joined the Marines, she excelled at hand-to-hand combat and became a judo instructor. Even now, many years into retirement, it’s best not to sneak up behind her.

(a PJH story)