Kathy Petras
Marital Status:
Married
Children?
None
Grandchildren?
And also, given my answer to the above, none
Education:
BA in English from NYU
Occupation:
writer mainly humor (I write books and calendars with my brother Ross RHS '74; our niche is stupidity, as in our calendar, The 365 Stupidest Things Ever Said, and our books, like Unusually Stupid Americans), but like most writers, I'm still hoping to finish and sell that great American novel (or even the NOT-so-great American novel... Hell, whatever. I'm not picky!)
Volunteer and Professional Activities:
set up and run a website and on-line support community for women who've gone through premature ovarian failure or early menopause (www.earlymenopause.com) This is one of those cases where a bad thing that happens to one turns into a good thing...
Current hobbies and interests:
reading (and I think Snape is STILL good FWIW...); eating out; drinking wine (am most fond of Italian and Greek vastly underrated); watching the Yankees (LOSE this year, I fear...) ; getting involved with some political issues (marched many times in protests over the past few years even though it didn't make any diff. ultimately....sigh Hope some of you anti-war folks will hit Washington in Sept.though!), playing computer games like KOTOR and (my new addiction) World of Warcraft (geez, how geeky can a middle-aged woman get. Deep within me beats the heart of a teen-aged boy, I fear...)
What percentage of your hair is visibly gray (is this a trick question?)
2%? Something like that not much, but it's definitely there....under the bangs and settling like a (scant, so far, thank heavens!) spider web over the rest of my head
If you had one year free of all responsibility and unlimited funds, what would you do?
Hmm....donate a lot to charities, volunteer up the wazoo, relax, write what I WANT to write other than that which pays the bills, go to the beach more often and get a great (politically incorrect) tan!
What are the most rewarding things that you have done in your life?
On the sillier side: Got on Jeopardy a few years ago (but came in THIRD. Sigh. And all I won was 1) a hideous watch, which my husband keeps in his pocket since it's too ugly to wear and too cheap to pawn; 2) a Steam Vac; 3) coupons for Gorton's Fish Sticks...)
On the more serious side: helped a lot of women via my meno book and web site, which has been/is most gratifying and humbling (you can't imagine what it's like to realize you've helped a young woman who's in her late teens or early 20s and has just learned her ovaries have failed. It can be heartbreaking)
I'm also proud that I've made lot of people laugh! Sounds corny and/or nuts, but it's true. Laughter is the great equalizer sez me (take THAT, death!) and I love the fact that I've spread a few laughs.
What rewarding things do you plan to do in your life?
I'd love to help more people in some way - more hands on, I guess... I've always thought about working with the elderly and there's this center right down the street in the Village and I SHOULD be volunteering... (man, I feel guilty right now that I haven't done this already...) Plus I'd like to write more.
What are your favorite non-family related things to do in your free time?
Pretty much what I said as hobbies/interests.
How would you best describe your idea of "being successful?"
Helping others and the ol' corny health/happiness thing although I wouldn't mind winning Lotto....
What are your most vivid memories of your days in Ridgewood?
Hanging out outside RHS before the bell rang (for that matter, hanging out in general!), driving around ENDLESSLY on Friday and Saturday nights looking for a party, working at Town & Country with Chris Gallagher and Sue Fox, going to Espo's and feeling terribly adult even though I now realize I was such a kid
What achievement or activity are you most proud of in your life?
This is a toughie... I guess I'm most proud of setting up my early menopause web site since I've been able to help women around the world (literally); I'm also proud of the fact that I've been a self-employed writer since 1980-something and fall into that lucky 10% of writers who actually can support themselves (and their family!!!) on it
What single piece of wisdom would you like to leave for the next generation?
Relax. Life is pretty damn short, so don't waste time getting stressed out about (Oh no! I sound like those "Don't sweat the small stuff" people!) Listen to your gut...most of the time. And don't be so self-conscious (even though it's inevitable as a teen.) But honestly? They're all thinking about THEMSELVES, not about you. (Uh oh! That wasn't single, was it?!?!)
How have you changed since high school?
I like to think I've matured. Whether I actually HAVE is another story...
What else should we know about you?!
I NEED YOUR HELP!!! I"m currently working on a book about RHS '76 — still in its very early planning stages. My agent loves the concept i.e. we're the archetypal baby boomer class what happened to us? How did we nerds, jocks, freaks, whatever cope with life after high school? Did high school set a pattern for us, or did we set patterns on our own? The book is TOTALLY based on interviews (and I can hide your identity easily if you want!) If you're interested and/or want more info, e-mail me at kpetras@att.net I'm hoping this will be a cross between Gail Sheehy's Passages and Studs Turkel. (Okay. So I'm setting my sights high!!!) But I'd love to see a lot of you respond. I think this could be pretty damn insightful....