What's What and Who's Who

I have had this blog for a couple of months now, so I figured it was time to share some interesting tidbits about myself with you guys!

1.) My name is actually Rhiannon, not Rio.

I use Rio here in the blogosphere (which makes it sound like we bloggers live in our own little world... which is kind of true :)) because (1) it has been my nickname forever (along with Rhi, Nannon, etc), and (2) Rhiannon takes a lot longer to type out all the time... yes I am that lazy haha!

Me and my pretty puppy Rocco :)

2.) I am really, really short.

I'm not talking about just below average height, either! I am 4 feet eleven inches tall... yup under 5 feet tall. I actually like being this short though; it works for me :). There are really only two things that bother me about it: 1) People think they can pick me up all the time. This is not only weird, it's kinda creepy haha! 2.) People think they can talk to me like I'm 5 years old. Earlier this year, a silly girl who was probably a good 4-5 years younger than me actually baby-talked to me at a concert. Not cool man, not cool! Overall, though, I like being small. :)

My mom is 5'8" just for reference as to my shortness :)

3.) I am a waitress.

I work at a small Hawaiin food restaurant that serves Hawaiin style plate lunches, i.e. chicken teriyaki with rice and macaroni salad. I make pretty good tips (dollah dollah bills y'all haha), and I plan on working there until I'm done with college. There is only one girl who works at a time, along with the cooks, and a food runner on the weekends during summer, so the girl working has to take orders, run food (except in summer), clear tables, clean, and stock everything. It's tiring and not my ideal job, but I do like my coworkers, bosses, and a lot of the regulars I've met in my almost 2 years there.

3 item combo plate w/ coconut prawns, kal-bi ribs, and chicken teriyaki

4.) I am a science nerd through and through.

I am going into my senior year as an Earth Science major at UCSC, and my main focus is marine/coastal geology. At my junior college, I was a teaching assistant for an Oceanography lab for 2.5 years, and it was awesome. This quarter, I will be taking 3 upper-division geology classes, and I get to be an instructional aid for a California Geology class, which means I have to run my own discussion section...ahhhh scary! What can I say, I really like rocks. ;)

Geology field class at the Pinnacles National Park

5.) I love traveling.

I loooooove it, seriously. My family is definitely far from being rich, but my parents have always made traveling a priority. We have driven through Baja California more times than I can count, through the desert, scary cliffside roads, getting lost, popping tires, and shattering windows! We also went to Bali as a family, and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life. My mom and I went to Costa Rica two summers ago, and I fell in love with the country, the people, the zip-lining through the forest,etc. I just love going new places, meeting new people, and trying new things. I'm always thinking about where I want to go next!

Waiting at the Liberia Airport in Costa Rica, 2008

Anything you feel like sharing about yourselves?