Our first WBW workshop (in May) was a great success!  We held the workshop in the glamerous Grammy building in Los Angeles, and had a great turnout!  Despite some technical difficulties that required a room change, we had a fantastic time and got great feedback from our attendees.  This workshop was designed for a surfer audience.  This was a group who loves the ocean and spends a lot of time at the surface enjoying the waves, but hadn't spent as much time learning about the ocean as a habitat and discovering the local species that they share this habitat with when they paddle out.  For more information about how to schedule a workshop check out our website!

While abroad, one of the tough adjustments for me was the diet.  I normally consume massive amounts of fresh fruit, veggies, and whole grains.  When in Honduras, the food consisted primarily of bleached processed pastas, rice, and breads, and the veggies were few and far between, while the fruit was all but MIA!  So, after a few days of shock my digestive system tolerated it, but I can't overstate how great it is to be back to my healthy food ways!

After I got back, all I wanted was veggies and fruit!  It took a little while before I could even consider making pasta, even though my version of pasta is pretty different from what I had in Utila!  So, in light of this, I've been working on adding a few new Recipes, very veggielicious!  Enjoy!

The week kicked off with my first seamount dive at Black Hills dive site off Utila.  A great fun dive for the staff, full of schools of fish (horse-eye jacks shown below) with the sounds of dolphins overhead!

My next two dives brought 5 spotted eagle rays, encounters with a snacking green sea turtle, and a peak at a yellow stingray!

Looking forward to more great dives as we finish up the research transect dives and our last round of reef ecology for the season!

I have officially reached the halfway point of my stay with Opwall in Utila.  It has been 2 weeks filled with diving and teaching reef ecology, getting familiar with ongoing research projects, and brainstorming ideas for new ones.  Internet has been a bit of a challenge since I arrived, so I will keep this brief!

I have been busy taking a lot of photos (mostly underwater), and a few videos as well.  A little tricky since I can't change mode or settings for close up vs. landscape photos while the camera is in the housing!  But I've been able to snap a few good ones!  I'll just post a few now. 

colorful brittle stars & christmas tree worms

the fascinating flamingo tongue and black coral

a hungry school of blue tangs

schoolmaster snapper staking out the elkhorn coral

a male stoplight parrotfish patiently being cleaned by juvenile blue headed wrasses

a pair of trunkfish exploring the reef

I am finally launching my website today!  I hope you enjoy reading about my latest adventures outdoors, in the classroom, and in the kitchen.  Since I am off to Honduras tomorrow you can follow my travel, research, and education-related activities right here on this blog!  You can also find quick links to all of my posts on the various topics found on my site and in this blog via the RSS feed.

Thanks for stopping by!