Tracy Christenson

More About Tracy Christenson

I was born and raised in Arizona, and I have lived here all my life. I have Associate's degrees in Web Design and Web Development from Mesa Community College, and I have an earlier BA in History from Arizona State University.

I use some of my hobbies as the basis for some of the practice websites that I make for myself. I love history, which is why many of my personal web sites have historical themes. My favorite hobbies are reading and games (mainly board games, but really, all kinds of games), but I have many of other hobbies, such as sewing, knitting, juggling, magic tricks, and geocaching. I enjoy the challenge of teaching myself something new from time to time just because I like variety and experimentation.

Part of the fun of having hobby-themed sites is also connecting with other people who share the same interests. I've met many interesting people through some of the sites that I've built. So far, my website about Historical Games has gotten the most attention. I've had some odd questions from people who like my site, fielded inquiries from people asking me to identify old games and even a couple of inquiries from museums, and had some encouragement from a man who's a big fan of Chaturanga, the original form of Chess, and who really wants me to add that to the site also. It's going to be awhile before that happens because I want to make some changes to existing parts of the site first, but I have plans. Some people have also thanked me for the bibliography pages because they are nicely laid out and have helped them with other projects, including someone who was helping to set up a Medieval fair and someone who was teaching a summer class. Most of the people who have thanked me for the bibliography pages have contributed a suggestion for additional sources of information. My bibliography pages include recommended sources as well as the sources that I actually consulted when I created the site, so I'm always ready to add reader suggestions and give them a thank you on the main page of my site.

Sometimes, I do volunteer work for non-profit organizations. I helped Treasures 4 Teachers to manage their Google Ads Grant from January 2020 to March 2024. In my page of Professional Sites, I explain the site that I designed for New Frontiers For Lifelong Learning, an organization for continuing learning for retirees that is affiliated with Mesa Community College. This site has changed since I last worked on it, but my explanation describes my work on the site and the features that I created. I also did data entry and customer service at Lost Our Home, an animal shelter and boarding facility for dogs and cats, which is how I got my dog, Betty. Betty is my "Velcro dog" - I cannot go very far without her sticking to me. She is a miniature schnauzer/terrier mix, probably with a little daschund as well. She looks a little like Toto from The Wizard of Oz. She's very shy because she was apparently abused before being abandoned, but she is slowly coming out of her shell. She's a little needy and very spoiled since she started living with me, but she is a good girl!

Now, I'm working professionally for other nonprofit organizations, Bridging AZ Furniture Bank and their nonprofit furniture store Got Legs. I manage their Ad Grant, WooCommerce and Shopify listings, and social media posts. Originally, Got Legs Furniture used WooCommerce for their product listings, but I recently converted their listings to Shopify and helped them set up Vendoo to manage and coordinate listings through various other marketplaces, such as Facebook Marketplace, eBay, and Etsy. Last year, I created a website for the Veterans Furniture Project, a project of the Bridging AZ Furniture Bank.