I am a Techno Quaker!

Do you ever wonder about what attracts you and why? I personally have a rather schizophrenic combination of attractions and luckily even the oddness of my pairings is one of the things I'm attracted to. I love pairing things that don't "belong" and seeing what happens!

My parents are both Mennonites and we come from a stream of inter-marrying Mennonites heading back to the 14th century when Menno Simons formed the group. My great-Grandma spent all of her early life moving around Russia and even deeper into the East in a wagon train - trying to find a place where the community could settle and practice Pacifism. Promises from leaders like Catherine the Great allowed temporary settlements where - in exchange for civil services like dike building - my ancestors did not have to fight in wars. Those promises were eventually always broken and finally my great-Grandma ended up in Canada where eventually my Grandma and my Mom were born.


My siblings and I are the first to live outside the Mennonite community. Without going into all the details, we ended up being raised in San Jose, California and in one generation all the trimmings fell to the side. Maybe there are a few traditional foods my Mom or sister still make - but there's not much Mennonite in the Wiens/Schultz stream anymore.

Oddly, (I'm seen as a bit of a "black sheep")- I am an adamant Pacifist, believe in separation of the Church and State, and there is much about the simple life that I love. I am completely in love with growing my own food, canning, building things from scratch and other aspects of the simple life.

On the other hand - I'm a programmer who loves her technology and all things digital. My partner and I are in the process of converting our living room into a multimedia paradise with a Maschine board (please check it!), video projector & VJ software. No traditional tea parties or prayer meetings going on here!

Still I love my heritage and I think the spirit that brought my ancestor's wagon train to Tajikistan in search of peace in the late 1800s is very present in me and I am thankful for that!