Day 1: The beginning

So this is my first official blog post, so I think I will start by introducing myself.  My name is Kristen and I am a 25 year old college student studying natural resource management, with additional studies in wildlife management.  I have a passion for anything that has to do with nature, wildlife, and the great outdoors.  I was born in New Haven, CT which is completely the opposite of where I am living now in the vast open lands of Utah. I moved here to Utah back when I was 7 years old, and I have grown up here for the majority of my life.  I moved back to New Haven for my freshman year of college and lived out of my childhood home.  I realized then how much I really didn't belong in the city.  All of the people, trash, pollution, and noise just didn't sit right with me.  I feel like I am meant to live in a waldenesque cabin in the woods somewhere living off the land and making friends with all the wildlife.  I know this is a silly dream but everyone needs one right?  I have always been kind of a tom boy.  Since I was young I was always playing outside in the dirt.  I used to own a sweatshirt, which I wore religiously, that said "next to mom, I like dirt best."  This statement has held true throughout my life.  I am not really afraid of bugs...unless you count poisonous spiders, and I love most reptiles...again with the exception being the ones that can kill me.  I am usually willing to try anything at least once, and most of the time it's with minimum complaining.  I get really ancy if I am in one place for too long, so I am constantly on the move.  Whether I am taking seasonal jobs all over the country, or just taking mini vacations near my house, I am always looking for somewhere new to explore.    This is how my boyfriend Pete and I met.  We were working in Yellowstone National Park at the time, he was from Massachussetts and had gone out there with a few of his friends. He ended up staying with me in Utah once the summer was over.  We have now been together for almost 3 years, and it seems that our adventures will never stop.  Together we have 2 dogs, 2 cats, 3 ferrets, 2 salamanders, and 1 frog.  We both have the same passion for animals, and I don't know what we would do without them.  Our dogs, Cash and Maddie, go with us on most of our adventures.  Maddie is my half chow/ half cocker spaniel, she is all black, including her tongue, and she has some social issues.  I got her from the shelter and I believe that she was abused by her previous owners.  She doesn't trust men (who does lol?) and gets especially nervous when she can smell alcohol.  Other then her few emotional quirks she is a sweet dog and a good companion.  Cash, Pete's dog, is completely the opposite.  He is a social butterfly who loves and trusts anyone and everyone.  He frequently joins Pete at parties and other social events, and is always the center of attention.  All in all he is a big baby, but we love him.  Anyway this blog entry is getting a little long, and I think I have pretty much covered the basics here, so I think I will have to come back tomorrow.  Until then!