Hi! I’m Lisa – and I’m the author of this blog. You needed to be told that, right? I started this blog in 2002 – you can see all the archives here, if you care to browse. Why is the name of my blog “Just A Girl” ? Because of this, of course

I live. . .
In a small town in Wisconsin, originally from a large city in Texas. I live in a sort-of remote area, but it’s close enough to a moderately sized city… and just a little further away from a large city – so I have most everything I need within a stone’s throw. Even though our nearest neighbor is about a 1/2 mile away from us – - we still get hi speed internet way our here – and that rocks!

I work. . .
I worked as a Registered Nurse for 10 years in the area of Home Hospice, caring for terminally ill patients and their families in their homes. I quit my job and walked way from my decade-long career in nursing in 2004 to pursue self-employment in a field that started out as a hobby, and grew into a full time (++) job. I feel very fortunate to have been able to turn my passion into a career!

I am the owner of a very busy design studio called E.Webscapes that provides design and development solutions for several hundreds of bloggers and web site owners, world wide. I started E.Webscapes in 1998, providing download-able HTML templates and it grew into a blog design business extremely fast, once blogs hit the scene! E.Webscapes is one of the busiest providers of custom design and development solutions on the web today – - we provide custom work for platforms such as Movable Type, Typepad, Expression Engine and WordPress. You can find my business site here: E.Webscapes Design Studio.

Together with my husband, Chris, we own and operate a full service web hosting company called Blogs About Hosting. Started in 2002, Blogs About Hosting has an emphasis on blogs and bloggers, particularly the use of the WordPress and WordPress MU platforms for site development. I am in the nicely unique position of being able to provide our hosted clients with experienced and comprehensive WordPress technical support. It surely doesn’t hurt to have a web host who wrote the book on WordPress, right? Approximately 98% of our hosted clients at Blogs About Hosting run WordPress, or WordPress MU, as their platform of choice for managing the content on their web sites and blogs.

I wrote…
In November 2007, together with Wiley Publishing, I authored the official WordPress For Dummies book. It covers the ins and outs of working with the WordPress platform at a beginner – intermediate level. I wrote teh second edition of WordPress For Dummies, released in Feb. 2009 . Read more about the WordPress For Dummies project here.

I do sometimes speak at meetings, groups and conferences on topics related to WordPress design, development and consulting. I am currently available for appearances and public speaking engagements. Please contact me for my availability and interest.

I love. . .
My husband, Chris and I got married in June 2006 in a beautiful outdoor ceremony in upstate New York. We’d been together for 5 years prior to the wedding – - so I guess we decided it was time I make an honest man outta him. He is the owner of a very successful business of his own. We both work out of our home offices – but surprisingly don’t get in each others hair. Each in our own office, we surface in the kitchen 3-4 times a day to share quick 15-20 minute coffee breaks with one another before hitting the grindstone for the day. He is the love of my life and my greatest love story ever told!

Before Chris? I was once married in 1989. Divorced in 1993. Big mistake, don’t ask. However, the part that was not a mistake was the product of that marriage – two bright and beautiful kids, Benjamin and Melissa. Ben was 1 1/2 and Melissa was 10 months old when I divorced. I have full legal custody and an ex-husband who is absent in the role of father. The kids are now 18 and 16 years old . . I’ve raised them by myself all these years and have the gray hairs to prove it!

I like. . .
Music! My first go-round in college had me majoring in Vocal Performance with a Music Education minor. I’ve studied vocal jazz, opera and contemporary. For 5 years, I made a living as the lead singer in various local rock bands: an ’80’s female rock cover band .. ya know, Benatar, Heart, Smyth..) . . . I also rocked out some blues in a band for awhile, and when I wasn’t busy, I belted out jazz at a local smokey jazz club, or hired myself out as a wedding soloist. I play the piano, also. Then I had kids – and I had to grow up and get a real job to make some real dough. Hence, nursing school. My favorites:

• Tori Amos
• Metallica
• Pink Floyd
• Rush
• Queensryche
• Norah Jones
• Andres Segovia

Animals – I have a soft spot for critters. We currently own 3 cats and 3 birds.

Downhill skiing – I learned to ski at Lake Tahoe in 2002 and skied Heavenly and Kirkwood. We ski as a family – my son, daughter, husband and I try and go as often as possible – most recently we skied Gore Mountain.

Scuba Diving – I was OW (Open Water) certified on our honeymoon in Bonaire in 2006 and fell in love, instantly, with all things underwater.

My likes? Candles, Golden Margaritas – shaken, no ice.. no salt, Black Russian on ice, Jazz, Norah Jones, Tori Amos, snow, scuba diving (PADI OW certified – going for advanced sometime in the next year), downhill skiing, fishing, camping, gambling, chocolate, thunderstorms, Williams and Sonoma.

My dislikes? Marmite, polka music, jealousy, sucking up, insincerity, being tickled.

People who know me say I have no sense of humor. I know the truth, however – my sense of humor is very ecclectic and sorta fringe. Folks stare at me blankly when I say I didn’t like the movie “Stripes” or “Animal House” or “Throw Mamma from the Train”. The ‘comedy greats’ never really knocked my socks off . . like, Steve Martin, John Candy, Dan Akroid. Give me some Eddie Izzard or Lewis Black stand up comedy any day of the week … or even some classic Monty Python, and I’m happy.

Find me on the web. . .

E.Webscapes
Blogs About Hosting
Snapping Photos

Twitter
LinkedIN
Flickr