I first met Heather when I was in graduate school. Actually I saw her just a few days before we first met. I had stopped by the old Erno Tattoo shop, back when it was on Fillmore at Haight. I was picking up a form to register for the National Tattoo Association convention that was coming to South San Francisco. This was 1994. Greg Kulz gave me the form, pausing in his tattoo work to do so. He was inking a rendition of Picasso's Minotaur onto the right shoulder of a woman.

Two or three days later, checking out some book with tattoos or piercing from the grad school library, the librarian said I should meet the new student library assistant as she had tattoos. And she introduced me to Heather, who looked at me, said my voice sounded familiar and asked if I had ever been to Erno Tattoo. Turns out she was the woman getting the Picasso. (shown at right)

Heather is also a dollmaker and costumer. Her natural specialty is creatures that are a blend of animal and human, but usually she is at home in the realm of the fantastical in general. That's actually her to the right, in the guise of Tazzel, on of her furry personas.