online JOURNAL

7 June 09
...And rebirth. After three and a half years of construction, The Marine Mammal Center celebrated the grand opening of its new facility and had its official ribbon-cutting ceremony on Friday. There has been a flurry of work at the Center this past week as workmen installed many informative placards and displays all around the facility. It was weird going there and seeing signs pointing to the bathrooms and the various departments.

Why is that weird? Because once the signs are up the public will come. I started working at the Center just after construction started, when their doors were already closed to the public, so I don't know what it's like to work "on display," so to speak. Now people are going to be able to watch us do most of our daily jobs, and they'll even be able to see into our lunch room. I fear the novelty will wear off quickly.

The ribbon-cutting and grand opening was a success, however, and it made me feel proud about my involvement with TMMC. As of the 15th of this month (when our doors open to the public), however, I will be working in a different place than I did before. Let's see how it goes.

Sometimes I wonder if I put too much emphasis on my work with The Marine Mammal Center. After all, I'm just a volunteer there; it's not like it's my job. But then again, it *is* a job--it just so happens that I'm not getting paid for it. But I certainly am more passionate about helping animals and saving lives than I ever was about, say, helping some cable tv host recover his lost email. (I still can't believe I got paid so much for such a meaningless job.)

I guess what it boils down to is my work with TMMC has turned into my "career," and I suppose this is how other people feel when they land a job they really love. Neat!

7 June 09
Death... We have a record number of California sea lion pups at The Marine Mammal Center, and a large percentage of them are not surviving. It is becoming common to lose two, three, five, or more animals in a day. When we know we cannot save them, we will humanely euthanize the animals to prevent additional suffering. I've lost track of the number of animals now that I've watch die.

This past Tuesday as we were working with a group of sea lion pups it became obvious that one of them was dying. We called a vet over who determined it was best to help the pup along, and he gave the animal a sedative. (The procedure for humane euthanasia begins with a sedative to calm and immobilize the animal so that the veterinarian can inject the euthanasia solution, usually pentobarbital, directly into the animal's vein.) Once the animal is sedated we take a blood sample, then administer the final injection. I wanted to practice my blood drawing technique so the vet called me over, and I did so. With my hand on the little sea lion's chest I could still feel his heart beating.

After successfully obtaining a blood sample the vet handed me the syringe of pink liquid. I wasn't expecting this; in this circumstance pink equals death. I attached the syringe to the needle still imbedded in the animal's subclavian vein and injected it. The little heart stopped beating, and I had just euthanized my first animal.

I have nothing against euthanasia. On the contrary, I believe it is one of the most humane things we can do for another creature. I also think it should not be taken lightly. Up until last Tuesday I've always been a bit detached from the procedure as I knew it would go on with or without me. Then suddenly *I* was the one euthanizing the animal. It was an odd feeling, a feeling of incredible responsibility, and it definitely made me give some thought to the concept of death. Living beings--humans, sea lions, whatever--can be so robust and withstand so much that it's hard to comprehend that mere teaspoons of a pink liquid can be all that stands between life and death.

29 May 09
Recent Readings:

Righteous Porkchop - Nicolette Hahn Niman - Righteous Porkchop is very similar to The Face on Your Plate, which I just finished reading, but it is also an entirely different book. The similarity lies in that R.P. really does tell you the truth about food; you learn about the major types of animal foods--milk, eggs, beef, pork, chicken, and fish--as well as specifics about how the animals are housed, fed, drugged, and treated. It goes in-depth on subjects such as how "old-fashioned" traditional farms actually improve the soil in their environment, and how "modern" industrialized factory farms pollute and destroy not only the land in their immediate vicinity, but also water sources many miles away.

The difference between these two books lies in how they are presented. Righteous Porkchop is extremely well-researched and written. Some eight years in the making, the author has done her homework. She has a similar mindset to the author of The Face on Your Plate (she does not eat meat nor tolerate animal suffering), but unlike him she never demands the general population stop consuming animal products, and in fact, counts combatative militant vegans as a liability against the crusade for animal welfare.

At 278 pages (plus an additional 32 pages of references and notes) R.P. packs a tremendous amount of information into a small size, including a chapter about "Answering Obstacles to Reform" which both addresses and dismisses the fallacies that "industrialized farming is necessary to feed the world," and "there is not enough land to support the amount of traditional farming needed to replace factory farming" (both statements are used by the factory farming industry as a way to drum up support for their industry). This book is highly recommended for everyone--omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans-- and especially for people who don't care much about where there food comes from. There's a lot to be learned.

The Face on Your Plate: The Truth About Food - Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson - Well, I suppose this book does live up to its title as it gives you the truth about what animals go through in order to be the food on your plate, but it doesn't do it well. The author is a militant vegan and his writing is biased thusly. Don't get me wrong - I'm a vegetarian who tries to be as ethical as possible about my animal-based food choices, but after reading this I get the feeling that he won't let up until everyone else is vegan as well, which just isn't going to happen. He anthropomorphizes animals to the point of ascribing feelings to them, such as claiming a pig, whose tail has been cut off, will continue to feel phantom tail pain. How does he know? The pig didn't tell him, and there were no references proving such. His "data" is poor, in one chapter saying mice and humans share 97.5% of their DNA, and in another stating it is 90%. Masson also claims, "Vegans don't have to worry about high cholesterol," which is incorrect. Oh, and his writing is crap as well, with awkward paragraph structures that can, at times, be confusing. To be honest, I only read about half the book and just paged through the rest. Even though I agreed with the sentiment I couldn't take it anymore. Save your time and money for one of the better-written, less biased, more accurate books out there.

The Whale Warriors: The Battle at the Bottom of the World to Save the Planet's Largest Mammals - Peter Heller - Part lesson in species preservation, part adventure on the high seas, and part sad reality, The Whale Warriors is a real-life account of one of the world's most dedicated ocean conservationists. Paul Watson is the head of the Sea Shepherd organization, and each Antarctic summer he and an incredible team of volunteers take to the Southern Ocean in an attempt to stop (at least some of) the whaling that still happens there. In defiance of international anti-whaling treaties the Japanese kill about 1000 whales every season, including significant numbers of endangered species, and Watson is one of the few people on Earth who has the cajones to confront the whaling fleet. I couldn't put this book down. Highly recommended.

23 May 09
Recently I mentioned that I have been on Livejournal since early 2002 (and had journal entries up on my own website for two years prior). I started poking through some old entries and came across a list of things going on in my life in years prior. I thought it was neat to see how things had changed, so I'm re-doing the list from today's perspective. (The original list was written in 2002.)

About 10 years ago I...

Was about to embark on my third trip to Europe.
Would officially retire after many years as a club DJ upon return from that trip.
Had just started working as an IT Project Manager for Macworld.
Had been living in my apartment, by myself, for about three years and loved it.
Was on the cusp of major personal growth, but didn't yet realize it.

About 5 years ago I...

Was back in school full time and had just completed my hardest, yet most enjoyable, semester to date.
Still planned on majoring in Nursing.
Was living with my boyfriend, and in the best relationship I had ever had in my life.
Knew The Marine Mammal Center existed, but didn't really know anything about them.
Had done only eight scuba dives in the previous 12 months.

About 2 years ago I...

Was still in school with the intention of graduating, but had changed my major to Biology/Zoology.
Had recently celebrated my first wedding anniversary with the most wonderful man in the world.
Had been working at The Marine Mammal Center for over a year.
Had done 37 scuba dives in the previous 12 months.
Had officially declared myself a vegetarian just a few months prior.

About 1 year ago I...

Had recently been promoted to Assistant Supervisor of one of The Marine Mammal Center's animal care crews.
Had just completed my most recent round of finals, was pretty burnt out on school, and although I didn't know it at the time, I would not be going back in the Fall.
Was in the middle of a major home remodeling project and did not have a kitchen to speak of.
Wanted to be more active in the conservation movement, but didn't know how to go about it.
Was so focused on school that I wasn't putting a lot of thought into other endeavors.

Today I...

Haven't been scuba diving for nearly a year.
Recently marked the one-month point since our beloved kitty passed away (we couldn't bear to go away while she was sick, hence the no diving thing).
Have two upcoming dive trips scheduled, and are planning a third.
Am a member of a team of people working to promote conservation in and through The Marine Mammal Center.
Am developing an interest in gardening.

3 May 09
Lately I have been getting into gardening. I've always loved beautiful gardens, especially the wild- and overgrown-looking gardens, but never thought I'd be interested in working on one myself. Then about a month ago I realized we had a blank canvas of a yard that seemed to be calling to me, so now I'm giving it a shot.

Our yard is split in two, the upper and lower halves, by a small retaining wall and a couple steps. The lower half has some bamboo, a few small trees, and a lot of river rocks on the ground. The upper half has an ornamental plum tree, a datura tree, and a whole lot of empty ground. So last month Frederick and I put in a stone walkway from the deck to the lower half of the yard, nicely bisecting the upper half. I've since planted one side of the upper half, and am starting to plan out the other half.

The portion I've planted is done with all drought-tolerant native California plants. I'm trying to stick with purples and yellows for the flowing plants, if for no other reason than they seem to be popular colors (in the flower world). The other side of the walkway will be a mix of some native plants and some raised beds for vegetables. For the last few years I've really liked the idea of growing my own food, and very soon now I'll be able to try.

Of course, right now I'm in the fun part of gardening - the planning and planting and watching everything take root. Soon will come the time when I have to get in there and start with the pruning and weeding and other non-glamourous tasks. Right now I'm just waiting for the weather to clear so I can get out in the backyard again!

30 April 09
Hmm, it's been too long since I last posted here. I guess that's because I either haven't had much to say, or when I think of something to say then I haven't had time to sit down and write about it. I have been pretty vocal on Facebook, but that's only because it's easier to find twenty seconds to type a blurb than it is twenty minutes to type a page of stuff.

I've found my schedule has gotten very full lately. It's our busy season at The Marine Mammal Center so I'm working 11.5-12 hour days on Tuesdays. Which means I go to bed early on Monday nights, and often on Tuesdays as well. I was recently elected to the Volunteer Council so I attend one meeting a month in that capacity, and I joined the Center's new "Green Team" to help increase sustainability and conservation in all aspects of what we do there. And just in case that's not enough, we're gearing up for our public grand opening on June 15th (after which date you'll be able to come see us in all our slicker-clad glory).

My work at the Academy of Sciences continues and I still find it fascinating. I hesitate to use the word "like" because it's weird to say I like disassembling dead animals, but it is very interesting. I do feel that only by becoming familiar with death and the intricacies of the body (human or otherwise) can one really appreciate life and the fact that these bodies actually *work*.

We have a group dive trip planned for July, and again will be travelling with several friends. Frederick and I are both really looking forward to this as it will be our first dive trip in a year. (We've had some things going on this past year which prevented us from travelling.) Earlier today we thought about arranging an additional trip just for the two of us but then realized we won't have any time until the end of July or beginning of August! How did our lives get so busy?