About Me
I love helping people. I’m loyal. I’m a hard worker. I have the highest standards of anyone I know. I have a knack for leadership. I denounce mediocrity. I’m judgmental, but I promise you’ll thank me for it later.
Hi, I’m Michelle.
Well actually, my name’s Sophia Michelle Sharp, but I go by Michelle. And my name used to be Judy. Hmm, you say? Ok, here’s my story…
My mom is from the Philippines and my dad was in the US Army fighting in Vietnam when they first met in Manila. He was smitten from the jump. She was disinterested at best. We all know how the rest goes.
I was born in southern Virginia, but grew up in Hershey, PA. You know, the Sweetest Place on Earth. It’s an idyllic hometown and a great place to grow up.
I have two older brothers and trust me when I tell you, they got the short end of the stick when it comes to the names in our family (Elvin Eugene and Rickyray Dwight. No, I’m not kidding). When my mom immigrated to the US in the early 70’s, she was befriended by a neighbor several years her elder named Judy. It took some time for my mom to adjust to life in the states, especially in the south where feisty Filipinas weren’t very common and people were rude, but Judy was there for her. So when I was born my parents named me after her because she was such a positive light in their lives. There’s even a family rumor that she used to babysit Elvis! Some time later, and I can never get a straight answer from anyone about this, they realized “Judy” wasn’t quite right for me, so they renamed me Sophia, after Sophia Loren. I think it suits me. There you have it.
After college and a few years living in NYC where I worked in PR for big pharma, I moved to Pittsburgh to be closer to family and start my career in digital marketing. You can learn about the rest of my professional life over on my Work page.
Today I live in East Liberty with my husband Jay and our two ragdoll cats, Hatch and Hoagie. Jay is the co-founder and co-owner of Cotton Bureau, and previously United Pixelworkers and Full Stop Interactive. He also serves as a great personal chef. We just designed the hell out of and built our dream house in the city.
People who know me know I’m pretty passionate about recommending things I love, especially food and Pittsburgh, so here are some things I like:
If you’re visiting our fair city of Pittsburgh and you’re not that familiar with it, this is the food you want to eat: Noodlehead for the pork belly steamed buns and any other dish, Gaucho for the meats, The Vandal for the fried chicken and breakfast sandwich, Bird on the Run for emergency fried chicken when CFA is closed on Sundays, Madeleine Bakery for the baguettes, bouchons, and chocolate chip cookies, Point Brugge for the red curry moules frites, Morcilla for the croquetas de bacalao, and Nak Won Garden for simply great Korean and an immigrant owner who reminds me so much of my mom that I feel like I’ve definitely disappointed her for not becoming a doctor, too.
Pittsburgh boutiques and makers I love and support: Moop, Make + Matter, Stak Ceramics, Von Walter & Funk, Sasha Handmade, and Studebaker Metals.
