My Thesis is Out!

I officially hold a Master's degree! Be sure to check out my thesis, entitled "La Vida Online: The Parallel Public Sphere of Facebook as Used by Colombian Immigrant Women in Atlanta."

You can download it here: http://digitalarchive.gsu.edu/anthro_theses/52/

I am so very excited. Thank you to everyone for their support!

Home Sweet Home... Almost

So Tim and I just bought our first home! Very exciting! The whole process moved quite fast because the house had been on the market for a while and the owner was eager to sell (like all houses in this market, I'm sure). There had only been one owner who purchased the house new in the 1950s. He passed away a couple of years ago and left the house to his neighbor who had been taking care of him. The neighbor works with horses and needed money to build a new horse barn and, therefore, was eager to sell the house. We got an amazing deal on it and it's in a great location. Here's the kicker: it needs a lot of work! At first glance, the house is definitely in livable condition. However, we have problems with moisture in the crawl space and some other issues. Tim has remained positive and is working with his dad to find the best solutions to these problems. I'm so thankful to have a husband who is so open minded and such a hard worker. He was so worried that I wouldn't want a fixer-upper, but, honestly, I couldn't imagine getting any other type of house. I'm very excited to move in! Our lease on our apartment is up March 20, so it has to be before then. Hopefully we'll start moving in by the end of February. I'll keep you posted on the process!

Too Much To Write About

So it's been way too long since I've posted. Here is my life over the past 1.5 months:

1. Christmas - NYC was amazing. I'm IN LOVE with my parents' apartment.
2. Found out mom had cancer, it was removed, but there's a 50% chance it could come back in her lungs.
3. Bought a house.
4. Started 2nd semester of graduate school. Busy, busy, busy.
5. My baby boy (dog) is very misbehaved. Must get him formal training. Am loosing my mind.
6. Lots of work to do on new house before we can move in.
7. Walking about 543,342,234 dogs each day.

Whew, glad we got that out of the way. Will write more later.

Meet Teddy!

I'm a proud new mother to a little maltese puppy! His name is Theodore Bear Dye (Teddy for short). He was born December 26, 2008, and he's a bundle of energy!

Check out my YouTube video of Teddy's first night home!

She cut off their tales with a carving knife

So there I was, leaving my apartment with Tim, when this girl passes us on the staircase (going downstairs from the apartments from above). She's bundled up with a blue wool cap, matching gloves and a trenchcoat down to her ankles, all of which were overshadowed by the zombie-like stare that glazed over her eyes. It wasn't until I was walking down the stairs behind her that I notice it: a huge kitchen knife in her right hand, held firmly by her side.

She continues to march down the stairs, but instead of going out to the parking lot, she makes a sharp, right turn and practically runs into another apartment. So from an upstairs apartment, with a knife, and back downstairs into another apartment (not to mention, at an unusually fast pace).

Ok....whaaaaaaaaattttttt???

Fleeing the scene of a crime? Safeguarding herself from the terrors of the night? Re-enacting a zombie horror flick? All are reasonable presumptions.

Alright, enough overreacting. You didn't see her face, though. Trust me, there was something fishy going on.

Autumn Leaves and Chilly Drives

The hubby and I finally took our weekend getaway to Maine! We rented a convertable and drove from Boston all the way up along Maine's coast and up into the mountains. We bundled up and blasted the heat since it was chilly with the top down. Tim reserved a room for us in a little bed and breakfast in a tiny town. We were also able to hike part of the Appalachian Trail. It was a gorgeous, relaxing weekend (although it took us FOREVER to get home flying stand-by).


Although it sounds cheesy, I'm glad to be able to take little weekend getaways as a married couple. Trust me, it's more fun than it sounds!

Joey's Return to the Sea

I got to go on my first trip with Georgia Aquarium! Three Aquarium biologists and I traveled to St. Simons Island with Joey, the Aquarium's loggerhead sea turtle, to release him back into the ocean! I went as a part of the new media team to document the event with photos and video.

Joey was a rescued hatchling and the Aquarium rehabilitated him. Once Joey was six years old, Aquarium biologists weaned him off human care and taught him the skills needed to return to the ocean.

We released Joey on Thursday, Sept. 11, 2008 on St. Simons Island, GA. Prior to the release, Joey was fitted with a special satellite transmitter, which allows the Aquarium to monitor Joey's activities and movements. It was amazing to see him swim out to sea and to track him online! What an awesome experience!

Check out my photos and videos here: http://www.georgiaaquarium.org/animalguide/sea-turtles/index.aspx.