Paula Ann Kochanek is a woman of many firsts—the first female toolmaker at the legendary A.T. Cross Company, a massage therapist for 27+ years, and now a writer weaving life’s struggles and joys into limericks, journals, and wisdom-filled books. In this heartfelt conversation, Paula shares how she navigated a male-dominated industry, pivoted careers, and found creative freedom in writing—even when trauma tried to silence her. Now, dreaming big from her 400 sq. ft. in-law apartment (just steps away from her grown kids), she proves that reinvention has no expiration date.