I grew up in a republican stronghold of Orange County called Huntington Beach, CA. Some people call it "Surf City," but that's mostly the tourists. I went to Huntington Beach High School, where I was simultaneously a jock, a dork, and completely invisible to everyone and everything that I thought was cool (at the time). My favorite classes were always science and art classes. I was rather pleased to graduate and move on to other things.

After high school I was accepted at UCSB, but I couldn't afford to go. I headed off to Orange Coast College. OCC just happened to be one of the best community colleges in the country, and I flourished there. The college is well known for its Marine Science Program, and I became heavily involved with it. I discovered my passion for Oceanography and for teaching while at OCC, thanks mostly to the sage counsel of Dr. Tom Garrison. If OCC wasn't in Southern California, I'd go back there to teach when I finish my Ph.D.

While at OCC I also took advantage of their semester abroad program. I spent the fall of 1997 in Cambridge, England. I saw Stephen Hawking rolling around, punted on the Cam, and chased Newton's ghost down the hall at Kings College. I was even nerdy enough to go to Greenwich and straddle the Prime Meridian, thus placing myself in two hemispheres at once. I also had the opportunity to intern at the Scott Polar Research Institute under Dr. Robert Headland, the head archivist. I was lucky enough to flip through Wilson's journals (with gloves on, of course), and hold the black flag that Amundsen left at the South Pole. Now that was cool.

In 1998 I finagled myself a full scholarship, and transferred to the University of California, Santa Barbara. I majored in Aquatic Biology, and graduated with honors in 2000. While I was there I worked in Dr. Jim Case's Lab, where we studied bioluminescence. It was the best experience that I gained as an undergraduate student, maybe even more important than my coursework. I formed great friendships with the girls I worked with, and I got a glimpse of what it was like to be a graduate student.

During my first year at UCSB I was a member of the UCSB Rowing team. I absolutely loved doing it - it is the most rigorous physical task imaginable, and it pushes you to all of your limits. I learned a lot about myself during that year. Rowing seriously is extremely demanding, and I couldn't row during my senior year if I was going to graduate with honors as planned. That one year of rowing was filled with some of the best experiences of my life, and I'll never forget the sunrises on Lake Cachuma. Someday I will get back on the water, but until then, go Gauchos!

After I finished up at UCSB I headed up to the innocuous state of Oregon to pursue my Ph.D. in Oceanography. I chose Oregon State University for it's strong programs in Ocean Optics and Plankton/Bio-Optical Oceanography, which are the subject areas of my research. I also wanted to leave California to gain experience living in other parts of the country. (It turns out that southern California is a really strange place, and that life in the Pacific Northwest suits my personality much better)

The plan for now is to continue my research and writing, and complete my degree sometime around the Fall of 2006.