I am a self taught illustrator, cartoonist, and gallery artist. My parents were refugee immigrants, and because I did not speak English when I started school-I was the scapegoat kid, the one that got picked on, so I drew for the other kids to get picked on less, and I haven’t stopped drawing since. I went to university at 18 for art, but left before finishing, as my teachers told me I had no talent at all. I didn’t listen and opened my first store –“Why Not?”, then 2 more stores -“Last Mango in Paris” and “Dervish”, and sold mostly my art for 13 years, including hand painted clothing. I went back to school at age 35 in Cambridge, MA, and interned in Boston to be an expressive therapist to work with patients with art, music, writing, and movement. I moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico and worked with Indians and teens. I came to Hawaii, illustrated kids’ books with agents for 9 years, started writing and illustrating my own books, and put work into galleries. Now I also teach how I use color with watercolor pencils and wax pastels, to make images look 3D and really come to life.