I returned and went to Goddard College in Vermont (which became my favorite state) for a year, spending most of my time in film production.  I returned to New Jersey, and worked for several years in NYC, most of that time as a computer operator.  I moved to Boston in 1973 to attend Boston Architectural Center, as architecture had been a strong interest since high school.  However, I discovered I still wasn’t ready for college. I spent most of my “working” life as a mainframe programmer/analyst and technical trainer for a large financial services company, but lost my job at the end of 2004 due to a merger.  In April 2005 I did a month-long solo bicycle tour in Spain, having ridden the millennium-old Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route with friends the previous year and wishing to see more of the country.   I spent more time exploring cities than on the open road, and much of that time was used to visit museums. 

This rekindled my life-long interest in art and that summer I took two Continuing Education courses at MassArt (formally known as Massachusetts College of Art and Design),and realized immediately that I wanted to go full time.  I’ve always been a critical person and enjoy writing, and was amazed to discover that art history combines these two activities.  However, having been out of school for so long I knew I needed to develop a portfolio before I applied to the day school, so took three studio C.E. classes that fall.  I received the acceptance letter on my birthday, finally ready for college at the age of 59.