Michelle loves her home state of Montana but was driven away by long, harsh winters and the lack of Indian restaurants. However, she and her two children return home each summer to help her parents cut down bark beetle infested trees on their property, hike, bike, wakeboard, and golf. Much to her teenage daughter’s dismay, Michelle enjoys doing research, writing papers, studying, and reading dry non-fiction. Michelle also dabbles in photography, a talent that was encouraged by her high school art teacher after seeing one of her drawings. A zeal for education and writing prompted her to test the theory of a dear old professor who stated, “If you stick around the university long enough, they eventually put you on the payroll.”