My very first post!

So I have decided to start a blog. This is both for my benefit- to keep a journal of the important things that are happening around me everyday but - also for my friends and my family to share in some of the experiences I don't get to tell them about everyday. This is also a place that I can share interesting things I come across on a daily basis with you!
Now most of the credit for the creation of this blog should go to my housemate Christina (www.storiesfromacountrygirl.blogspot.com/) who is a brilliant avid blogger and whose blog is worth checking out! She made me realize that sometimes its nice to have people read about what you're thinking...it can be quite interesting! Also, I have too much stuff in my head right now, writing some of it out is quite therapeutic.
I am, as my name suggests, an aspiring marine biologist. I have been since I was old enough to stick my feet in the ocean water and understand the feeling of sand between my toes. As most people will tell you, becoming a marine biologist is a childhood dream. As I will tell you, I am no longer a child and I am living that dream! There is a book I would like to share with you that illustrates this point quite well. It was given to me by my dad when I was visiting home. For those of you who have read The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch or even seen him present it (if not I suggest you YouTube it- http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji5_MqicxSo), this book is comparable in terms of its inspirational qualities.
The book, All I Really Need To Know I Learned In Kindergarten, itself was published in 1986 by Robert Fulgham. It is a compilation of small thoughts he has had over the years on different subjects. He says that everything that is useful to us in our daily lives revolves around those little lessons we learned in our very first classroom setting:
1. share everything,
2. play fair,
3. don't hit people,
4. put things back where you found them,
5. clean up your own mess,
6. don't take things that aren't yours,
7. say you're sorry when you hurt somebody,
8. wash your hands before you eat,
9. flush,
10. warm cookies and cold milk are good for you,
11. live a balanced life-learn some and think some and draw and paint and sing and dance and 12. play and work every day some,
13. take a nap every afternoon,
14. when you go out into the world, watch out for traffic, hold hands, and stick together, be aware of wonder.
If you are smiling right now then you, like me, know that he's right. These lessons made us very happy when we were children, and if we all followed them on a regular basis, we would all be a little happier :)
My copy of the #1 Best Seller in its day has yellowed pages and a $.50 sticker on the front from where my dad picked it up at a garage sale. The best things in life aren't always free and dishing out two quarters for this find was a bargain!