Many people read my AG user profile and see that I'm from Chicago, now living in Lithuania. From most I receive a natural follow-up question - how did I wind up in Lithuania? I have come to dread that question, because it's such a long story, and I don't think too interesting. But since I do get it so often, I decided to make my life easer by just writing it all down here. That way if you get too bored, you can just stop reading...lol... In 1986 I started my studies to earn a master's degree in Lithuanian language and literature at the University of Illinois at Chicago. I have a bachelor's in both journalism and biology, but translating Lithuanian fiction into the English language was something I did as a professional hobby. I went to Lithuania at the end of 1986 on a university sabbatical to brush up my understanding of the modern Lithuanian language. Now this is the part that may be boring to some, because I have to go into some history of Lithuania, but there is no other way to continue my bio without it. Lithuania had been occupied by the Soviet Union for 50 years. The dream of independence for Lithuania had been a driving force in most ex-pat families in the U.S.(I was born in Chicago, both my parents are from Lithuania), I grew up going to Lithuanian Saturday school, being a Lithuanian girl scout, belonging to Lithuanian dancing groups, choirs. We lobbied Congress constantly not to recognize the Soviet Union's occupation of Lithuania, we demonstrated every year in daily Plaza on Lithuanian Independence Day (Feb. 16, 1918). Anyway, even though we went through all these motions to fight for independence as best we could, no one ever really thought that it would happen, but while I was in Lithuania, things really started to happen. Right after Gorbachev began his perestroika campaign, different political movements began cropping up in Lithuania. At first they were very timid, speaking of economic independence, rights, etc., but by 1988 the largest movement, the Lithuanian Reform Movement (LRM), had delcared openly that it's goal was complete independence from the Soviet Union. This is where I come in. In 1988, when LRM was officially registered and it's goal made clear, it was stormed by foreign journalists, something that had not happened for 50 years. The leaders of LRM were getting bombarded by CNN, Associated Press, and almost all major daily newpapers, radio and television stations across the world. The organization had no way to deal with this, as not only didn't anyone have any experience in setting up a press organization, hardly anyone spoke English. So that's when I was asked to help out, and I became the director of the LRM Information Bureau. That's basically the day I put all the plans in my life on hold and just dropped everything to help attain what Lithuanians all over the world have been dreaming of for decades. In 1990 LRM candidates won over 95 percent of the seats in the Lithuanian Parliament. I basicaly just made a two-block move of my office and settled in as the director of the information agency for the Lithuanian parliament. On March 11, 1990 the parliament declared Lithuania's reinstatement of independence. I never planned on having anything to with politics, but had to stick around until I was sure that I could leave with a clear conscience. Declaring independence was the easy part, the hard part was getting everybody else in the world, especially the Soviet Union, to recognize it. I won't go into all the details of how that happened, many of you might remember tanks in Lithuania on Bloody Sunday January 13, 1991. Anyway, it wasn't easily won by any means, but after Gorbachev's overthrow at the end of 1991, the first country to officially recognize Lithuania's independence was Iceland, and it was a chain reaction from that point on.

So that's the history lesson for today. In 1992 I felt I could safely leave the Parliament and leave the agency in the hands of new and up-coming career civil servants. The problem was, what was I going to do now? It's a little hard to understand if you haven't been through it, but I was in the middle of history being made, blood being shed and a country being born again. I really couldn't imagine going back to the U.S. to talk with friends about mortgages and diapers, or who's screwing who in politics. So another long story as to why, which I won't go into, but I started a business, the first of which was a Chicago-style pizza place, pick up and delivery only at the end of 1992. In 1994 I opened an American restaurant and bar, and in 1996 a Lithuanian restaurant, and that was up until 2003. Now I'm taking it easy, doing some consulting work. Oh yeah, turns out I was wrong about not wanting to be in politics, as I'm a Vilnius City Council member.

To all those who ask what I'm doing here in Lithuania, I hope I answered your question...