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Katarina (Kat) Stenstedt

I go by either Katarina or Kat, which I’ve switched to these past ten years or so, for simplicity’s sake. Or Kata, if you’re an old friend and you grew up calling me that. 🙂 To get in touch, email me at kat@sleeponthehearth.com.

Writing and editing

I was a professional writer and editor from 1992 to 2019, and I’m now a healthcare chaplain. For more about that sort of thing, see my LinkedIn profile.

My novel Soul Boundary is a literary sci-fi story about the human soul.

MusicRosie under my guitar

Until I was in my mid-twenties, I didn’t sing at all. Then I discovered that not only did I enjoy singing, but I also wanted to write and record my own songs. (Which I did, and now I’m kind of over it….)

Spiritual direction

I’ve been a spiritual director since 2002, and a spiritual-direction supervisor since 2008. In 2004, I completed the Diploma in the Art of Spiritual Direction (DASD) program at San Francisco Theological Seminary (now part of University of Redlands). I completed the Together in the Mystery supervisor-training program in 2009.

I pared down my spiritual direction practice when I became a chaplain, but I still have a few clients, who I treasure deeply.

Spiritual community

I’m a member of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers), and I belong to Strawberry Creek Monthly Meeting in Berkeley.

The rest, in brief…

I was born in Linköping, Sweden, and lived in California, Belgium, and Iran while I was growing up. I went to high school in Lafayette, California, and then attended Stanford, from which I have a B.S. in Mathematical and Computational Science.

I married Gene Anderson in June of 2000 and have lived mostly in Oakland since 1997. This is my longest stay anywhere, and I love it.

About my housemates

Star

Star ignoring the paparazzi

I live with Gene (main contributor to the Oakland Wiki and author of the book Legendary Locals of Oakland) and our three kitties, June, Anita, and Elton. Jazmin was with us until February of 2004, Star was with us until April of 2017, and Rosie was with us until December of 2019. We miss those three dearly!

RosieBut enough about the cats already.

I hope you enjoy my website!

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