millefleur

I have lived in a little old house just outside of a small town in Western Montana in the Bitterroot Valley for 36 years, but was born (during WWII) and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, where I joined with other young people during the magical times of the 1960s.

I love writing (I have written a column about nature for a local newspaper since 1986) art (I taught art in an alternative public school in an inner city), reading (my favorite book this year so far: 'Marten Martin' by Bryan Boyle), film (particularly foreign) and the outdoors (especially Wildlife Refuges).

I have always had a dog in my life -- usually a terrier (I have two dogs now, an Irish terrier and a Saluki/terrier mix) -- and have a small flock of rare and colorful Icelandic chickens. I have never been officially married but have been living with the same amazing man for 51+ years. We have four daughters (a nurse educator at a large hospital; a social worker for disabled adults at a university; a psychic counselor; and a leather artist) eight grandchildren (a cook, a playwrite/actor, a university student studying media arts, a stay-at home mom married to a Marine Sergeant, a granite counter installer and a high school senior) and two great-grandchildren (so far they are just healthy and strong little girls). Most live nearby so I get to see them a lot. All of our family loves the arts, sitting down for big dinners, and being involved in our communities. I worked for a small newspaper (18 years) and a horse magazine (15 years) as a writer and graphic artist. I'm retired and in spite of being old and creaky I am now working toward getting a magical local hot springs into public hands and open to everyone.

I've traveled to Mexico, Canada, England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, and have lived on both coasts of the U.S. and in seven states: California, Oregon, Idaho, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida and Montana. I've driven across the Trans-Canada Highway from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, and the southern route across the U.S.from California to New York. We now live between two magnificent national parks: Yellowstone and Glacier, near the Bitterroot River, between the Bitterroot and Sapphire Mountain Ranges, and very close to two wilderness areas.

I hope that you tell me a little about yourself or something you love. Poems are nice too. I especially like handmade postcards but am happy to get any kind you send. Send me a friend request on Facebook if you wish, and mention Postcrossing so that I know who is asking to be a friend to me: Dorinda Hogue Troutman