Shelley Smith:  

I was born and raised in Vermont (USA), living in Perkinsville, Ludlow, Proctorsville, Chester, Gassettes and Mt Holly. I worked as a Nanny in Willimantic, CT; in New York City; and in Summit, NJ. I met my husband (Terry) while living in New York City, fell in love and I'm now married to the most amazing man I've ever known and we moved to Scotland 2 days after the wedding. Terry is British and we chose to live in Scotland due to his work. He's a Research Scientist who's ultimately looking for a cure for African Sleeping Sickness. The best equipped lab for his work at that time was (and still is) in Scotland. I worked as a Nanny for a total of 14 years (in the US as well as in Scotland) before going back to school and getting a degree in horticulture as I've discovered a love of plants...me, a person who used to kill cactus from neglect! lol I damaged my lower spine (among other injuries) in a bad fall on icey cement steps at the college nine years ago and am now in a wheelchair. A few years later I started attending University to get a BSc degree in Botany & in Biotechnology as I want to do research on plants due to all the Genetic Modification that's being done recently. I haven't finished those degrees yet due to a change in the disability laws in the UK. So I have to continue the degree at a later time when the university's science labs are rebuilt to accomodate wheelchair using students. I won't give up on that course of study though and am looking forward to returning to it. In the meantime, I've begun learning Photo Shop and studying graphic design, which I am just loving. I love learning and it's such a pity that I didn't discover that back in high school, but back then I really hated being forced to do anything. Terry and I will be married 14 years in March ...Expand for more