I'm what they call a divergent thinker. I'm a web developer. Before that I was a community developer, and I still am. They both develop; they both create. I taught, too, and I still do. Before that, I was an anthropologist, and I still am. All these things are about people, the stories we tell, and the experiences we create. I haven't done any of it in the traditional way. It's worked well for me.I I collect and tell stories, and I create user experiences. I always have. Over the years since the World-Wide Web came into being, I've mostly specialized in making and maintaining online communities, and guiding how the user and the community shape one another. My background is community development (CD), anthropology, and healthcare. Nobody seems to be able to agree on a precise definition for community development, but a major component of it is helping create an environment for people who share a common passion to easily swap knowledge, work together, and tell their stories. This is where the Web and CD intersect, and it's there that I most often find myself doing my best work. When the Internet came along, I found a tool with more power and reach than I’d have ever thought achievable. Of course I taught myself everything about it I could manage.Specialties: I solve problems. I seem to spend a lot of time juggling flaming bobcats and chainsaws, because (against my better judgment) I have developed a reputation for being good at handling multiple crises at once. I'm pretty sure my official job title is "Spackle", since I tend to get deployed into whatever horrible hole or gap manifests itself, and I get to figure out a creative way to make things whole.