I'm originally from north of Baltimore, Maryland, where I started my career in journalism, writing, and researching for business publications in the Baltimore/D.C. area. 

In 2012, I moved to the tiny desert beauty known as Sde Boker to pursue a master's in desert studies at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, and continued with a PhD in desert studies and archaeology there. My research topic was Byzantine-era Christian monasteries in the Negev Desert, a little touched-upon subject. 

Researching and bringing to light little-known places and fields is what sparks my interest most of all. My research continues by investigating oddball sites in the Negev and attempting to understand their role in the larger context of the Negev. 

In my free (?!) time, I enjoy non-academic writing in the form of short stories, traveling, and learning the most that I can from my kid.