Charles Goodrich worked for twenty-five years as a professional gardener, and has also worked as a correctional work crew supervisor, a short-order cook, and a carpenter. He is the author of two volumes of poems, Insects of South Corvallis, and Going to Seed: Dispatches from the Garden, as well as a collection of essays about nature, parenting, and building his own house, The Practice of Home. He also co-edited the volume In the Blast Zone: Catastrophe and Renewal on Mount St. Helens. He holds an MFA in creative writing from Oregon State University and presently works as Program Director for the Spring Creek Project for Ideas, Nature, and the Written Word at OSU. His website is www.charlesgoodrich.com.