my meaning of life

It's no secret to anyone that even remotely knows me that I am a huge animal lover and if you've read my post here then you know that as well. For me, rescuing animals and adopting pets has always been a way of life and to be quite honest, I don't understand people who don't embrace this view as well. I've noticed that when I don't have animals in my life, it's a lot less meaningful. So, as one of my New Year's resolutions, I vowed to add more animals to my life in some way. Now I already have a super precious puppy in my life (who we adopted of course) so I had to get creative. 

Cue: volunteering at a badass animal nonprofit. I decided to apply for an Animal Care position at the Pacific Marine Mammal Center in Laguna Beach and after months of interviews and training, I scored the position :) I truly feel so much happier now that I am able to work with animals on a weekly basis. Here are a few pictures of the little guys I get to help rescue, rehabilitate, and release:

giving some of the baby sea lions a warm bath :)

what makes it all worth it: releasing the animals back into their home!

this little lady really wanted to be a guest on the blog!

our baby harbor seal who has us all wrapped around her finger flipper

A Novel Idea...Or Five

It's no secret that I'm a super huge bookworm. It may even be a fact that I can't fall asleep at night unless I get a good reading sesh in first. There's just something about getting completely lost in a some crazy love story or badass psychological autobiography. Sooooo, I decided to create a little list of some of my all time fave books ever.

Call it fact, fiction, or something in between, there is absolutely no denying the slew of emotions you will wholeheartedly experience while reading this story on addiction, love, loss, and the craziness that life really is. Not to mention how amazingly informal, choppy, and profanity infused the writing is; English teachers, take that!

A psychological thriller, twisted love story, and modern classic. Need I say more? Okay, okay, maybe English teachers do know a thing or two (After all, they did force me to read this back in the day.) 

A guy sets himself on fire in an attempt to kill himself and lives to tell about it in a sardonically humorous and laugh-out-loud sort of way. Don't believe me? Read it yourself.

The start of my die hard obsession with the name "Atticus."

A woman's recount (and actual journal entries) of surviving a frighteningly abusive relationship as it played out from the very beginning to the very end.

Now I promise not all of the books I read are super serious and dramatic, but you have to understand I did study psychology for six years! In all actuality, I'm a total sucker for trashy cheesy romance novels and trendy teen series (ahem, Twilight, 50 Shades of Grey...). I could go on and on about the 9098423899 books I've read and adored, but I'll practice self-restraint and stop at my fave five.