Post #1

Wow, so this is blogging, huh? I guess I expected more trumpets and confetti.. Though I suppose dust bunnies and the whine of computers will do.

So I guess technically, this isn't my first blogging experience. I've had LiveJournals, Bebos and Myspaces before. But all of those are more focused on the meeting people aspect, while this feels more . . . professional. Laughable, I know.

Why in the world am I blogging now? Well, to be honest, I'm not sure! I need somewhere to just write, talk things out, and this seemed like a good idea at the time. Not sure what focus this blog will have, I've got several hobbies that I could use this for. I'd rather stay away from personal stuff here, but it'll probably creep in. I'll try to preface it with a tag at the bottom of any post.

Decision time - Which hobby do I use this place for? Bettas? Model horses? Graphic Design? Photograhy? All of the above? I could make a seperate post for each thing, and just use a identifier. That may work.. If not, we'll figure things out later.

Ok, introductory post here we come! Beware the diatrabe.......

Bettas (also known as Siamese Fighting Fish):
I've been involved with owning bettas for about 6 or 7 years now. The first one I remember owning was one I took to college with me. He was a cute red boy, the typical petstore betta. He had been my mom's, living in one of those horrid plant/vase things. When I took him, I gave him a new tank, a 1 gallon bowl. And, after a while, he finally had a name - Petey. My roomate at the time named him. I had been calling him Buddy, but my roomie said that any animal she knew named Buddy died, so that wasn't a good thing to call him. So, Petey he became. I later got another male, also red. That one was named Jam, by a dorm friend. She lived across the hall from me and turned out to be one of the most fun people to hang around with. Jam liked her alot, probably because she gave him such a tough name.

After that, I've always had bettas. I got my first "fancy" betta from Jenniver Viveiros of Luv My Betta. And it was all downhill from that. I now own 20 something bettas (my highest numbers have been 33) and hope to breed at some point. My focus now is on Veiltails (pet store bettas) and Plakats (both traditional and HM). Color wise, I love blacks and marbles. I'm also a sucker for a good steel, but I am picky. I don't like reds too much, but would KILL for a good, true blue. I've got several fish currently that I would love to breed if I ever had the chance. Maybe one day.

If you're looking for a good place for betta information, check out UltimateBettas.com. That's a forum I'm a part of and there you can get some of the best information from the most knowledgeable people.

Model Horses:
Despite my attempts at saving money, my fish and my model horse habit are wallet suckers. Models are like little pieces of art for me. It also used to be a creative outlet for me, but since I'm not able to customize anymore, that's gone. Still, they're beautiful and they make me smile. I'll expand on this more later, but for some reason, I'm just not feeling very verbose on this subject right now.

Graphic Design:
This is actually more than a hobby. I have a Bachelor of Arts in Communication, Visual Communications concentration, with a writing minor. Graphic Design is what I really love to do. I'm currently working as an Information Systems Specialist with a small bank in Middle Georgia, but my heart is in design and photography. I miss doing this work - this is what I'm comfortable with and love to do. I hope I can get back into it in a few years.

Photography:
Anyone who knows me, knows that I have a camera with me at all times. I'm a shutter bug without a doubt. I can take over 200 pictures of almost anything. On our trip to Alaska a few years ago, I took easily 1,000 pictures. Photography is my passion, but I haven't been doing alot with it recently. I want to work on it more and improve my skills, but it's been hard currently. Hopefully, that'll change. :D

I'll be trying to get a photography website together and I'll post a link here eventually.

Warning, Personal Post!
Ok, more about me. I'm a 23, almost 24, year old female, living in middle Georgia. I was born in Warner Robins and raised in Macon, which is my true home. I'm a small town girl, an animal lover and a total wacko. I love making people happy, and my animals are my kids. I don't ever plan on having children, so I devote my time and energy to my pets. I've got 2 cats, and as I mentioned before, 20 something fish. I hope one day to have even more animals - reptiles, dogs, rodents, horses... Yep, I'm gonna need some land for that.