About the Authors
Hi, my name is Christopher. I like reading the classics, hiking, traveling, and learning new skills—or at least that’s what I tell people, so I don’t sound so boring. In all honesty, I like spending time with my family and watching movies. I grew up in Florence, Oregon, spending the entirety of my youth in or around my parent’s video rental store. 10/10 would recommend it for those hoping to be reincarnated. I’m fairly sure that at one point in my life, I’d watched every VHS in the store. Always remember, "Be kind, rewind."
After eighteen years in a small town, I thought, "What the hell?" and moved to Tokyo with my then-girlfriend where I attempted to educate myself through the adult experience known colloquially as “debt.” Tokyo was amazing and an experience that I will always remember fondly. If I enjoyed languages half as much as I do a delicious grilled cheese ... well, my life might be different—though I am lactose intolerant, and grilled cheese is a cruel mistress.
After Tokyo, my now-wife and I moved back to Oregon. I was eager to be of service to the community that had given me such much growing up, and I found great experience in doing that through my local Hospice.
It is enlightening to be invited into the last days, weeks, and months of someone’s life. I am supremely grateful for that moment in time where I was of use to people when they needed someone most.
​
It's this strange accumulation of experiences that I've attributed to inspiring me to write "A Simple Thought of Sanity." Now, life is all about throwing sticks for Ornstein and spending time with my best friend and co-author Ellen.
Growing up, I had a band-aide collection. My best friends were named Pidgdee and Rosebeary (sorry, Splendache and Niktay), and I stabbed a hot fire poker into my parent’s carpet to see what would happen. Hi, my name is Ellen.
Life hasn’t changed much for me since then. I’m just moderately taller and I know now that it’s pronounced “comforter,” not “comfurfur.” I’m from the small town of Florence, Oregon, born and raised. Aside from causing trouble and burning perfume in the sink, I spent almost every childhood-day outside, traipsing around in the woods. I recall declaring to my parents at least weekly that I wholeheartedly intended to, “Escape into the forest and live off the land.” It’s a good thing I never went through with it because I can barely take care of myself with a real roof over my head, and I have a habit of getting lost in new places when trying to find the bathroom.
If you read Christopher’s bio, well, then you’ll have mostly read mine.
We’ve known each other since we were 15 and have barely spent a month apart.
During our time in Japan, I focused on getting my degree in Fine Arts, a hobby I still enjoy pursuing to this day. A lot of my inspiration for almost everything comes from the long afternoon walks I used to take, just winding through the streets of Tokyo and absorbing all the details.
While Japan will always hold a special place in my heart as a second home, I couldn’t be happier that we decided to come back and settle down in Florence. Back home near our families, so I can still sneak over to my parents’ house and try to poke a new hole in the rugs they keep replacing.
I have a great job that I love at a small, local bank, where I get to be as creative as one possibly could in the financial industry. In my free time, I’m usually yelling obscenities at the videogame characters I hopelessly try to command. But more often than not, I find myself buried in my sketchbook and enjoying the company of my best friends, and always armed with copious amounts of tea.