Sharing the Mind and Musings of a Life Traveler

Blah Blah Blog – Barbara’s Bio

Barbara Hartley began life as the youngest in a career Marine Corps family. She has meandered through life, amassing all sorts of experiences and knowledge without a specific plan. Lacking a “hometown,” she has lived in North and South Carolina, Florida, upper state New York, southern California, Rhode Island (twice), and Louisiana (briefly), with four different periods in various regions of Virginia. By age 18, she had attended four elementary schools, two Junior Highs, and two High Schools. Referring to herself as a “tangential learner,” she has attended four colleges and holds degrees in Music Education and Communications Arts, which are also peppered with diverse certificates in insurance, real estate, and business. Beyond her credited coursework are various OTJ training courses, untold numbers of non-credit courses, seminars in government and transportation processes, political lobbying, business conventions, nutritional health and naturopathic remedies, and other “interests du jour.” Early on, she was introduced to the Science Fiction of Robert A. Heinlein, Ray Bradbury, Isaac Asimov, Arther C. Clark, and others. She wrote her first graphic novel in third grade (The Spooky Boos), but her visual arts endeavors date back to her pre-preschool years and have progressed ever since. Her editorial experience began with her high school yearbook and progressed to professional and business publications, as well as advertising and marketing projects. Barbara, a recent past mayor of a small town in coastal Virginia, owns an art gallery/custom frames/antique shop. Widowed, she has three married children, four grandchildren, a Boykin Spaniel, and lovingly recalls a long train of deceased furry feline and canine family members.