Traveling through Sandyville

    Hey there folks, welcome to my blog. I will be your host for the semester period, my name is Sandy. I guess I should start off by telling you a little bit about myself. It all starts with a brief introduction from my past, just so you will have an idea of who I am. My dad was in the military for twenty three years, a Navy man. Therefore, I grew up in a few places before landing here in Oxnard. I was born in Santa Barbara, California. My dad was in Vietnam for the first year of my life. Upon his return to the U.S. we were stationed to Annapolis, Maryland. I was too young to remember much about living in Maryland except for getting a baby sister. After a few years in Maryland, we were stationed to Puerto Rico, where I got a baby brother. I often have fond memories of Puerto Rico when I hear someone mention Puerto Rico. At school, the local kids would call me "the little Irish-Puerto Rican girl." They called me this because I acted more like a Puerto Rican than an American girl. I learned to speak Spanish in Puerto Rico, which I almost spoke more than I did English. After four years in Puerto Rico, sadly, we were stationed back to the U.S. to Norfolk, Virginia. Thankfully, Virginia turned out to be a wonderful place to live. My mom had family in Maryland, while my dad's family was in West Virginia. We often made trips to both states to visit our family members. It was the first time I was able to grow up with aunts, uncles and cousins. Before, I never knew I had family. Due to my dad being in the Navy, he was always gone six to nine months of the year. Therefore, it was up to my mom to raise, as well as entertain us. Which she did a great job doing. When my dad was home, we often traveled to either my mom or my dad's side of the family. We would travel all over Virginia, Washington D.C., Maryland and North Carolina. After four years in Virginia, my dad made Chief Petty Officer, and we were stationed to where I now call home, Oxnard (Port Hueneme). I've lived in or around the Ventura and Santa Barbara county areas for the past 28 years. I graduated from Hueneme High in 1986. I attended both Oxnard and Ventura college off and on until settling into a job in Santa Barbara for 11 1/2 years. After almost twelve years as an inventory logistics manager, I tracked off to Los Angeles to work in the film industry, which I had worked on 12 feature films (6 that made it to theaters). I have an amazing 20 year old daughter, Autumn, who attends college in Los Angeles with her wonderful boyfriend, Mario. I have a niece, Tamara and two nephews, Aulama Jr. and Tanielu.

    What has led to my present time, unfortunately, was the passing of my father in 2009. My dad had been battling lung cancer off and on for about seven years. On December 26, 2008, my dad called a family meeting, in which we all attended. On this day, my dad informed us that the doctor said, there is nothing more they could do for him, it was only a matter of time, and we should spend as much time with my dad as we could. My dad had a talk with me about my future. I was suppose to go to Napa Valley to work on a film, instead I chose to move back home to help take care of my dad and to spend time with him. In talking with my dad, he asked that I move back home, help my mom, and go back to college and get a degree. He was saddened that he would never get to see me graduate from college. After my dad passed and I talked with my mom, I enrolled for classes here at Oxnard College. I am currently enrolled here at Oxnard college with hopes of graduating this semester. When I'm not in school, I keep myself busy with various activities. During softball season, I play on two teams; co-ed and women's, with some high school friends. I spend time down in Los Angeles and Monterey Park hanging out with my daughter, her boyfriend and a friend of mine. When I'm at home, I spend time remodeling my house. Last summer I refurbished both my kitchen and dining room areas. This past summer we refurbished my mom's bathroom and vanity areas. It was a surprise to her because my daughter, her boyfriend and I secretly remodeled it while she was in the hospital having a knee replacement. I spent a lot of time at home this summer to take care of my mom while she recovered. I like spending my time trying to redesign my yard and garage. When I'm not doing these activities, I like to spend time down at the beach. Since I'm currently majoring to be an environmental marine biologist, I spend time checking out our environment at the beach. I look at the things that wash up on the shore, try to figure out why I see fewer things than I used to and learning to identify the sea birds, sea creatures, and beach plants. Currently, I'm debating if I want to join my friend's roller derby team. I'm interested in joining but I need to make sure I have time before making a commitment to the team.

    I don't know what my future holds, but it's a future that's looking bright. My main goal for the future is to complete college with a Masters degree in Environmental Science with an emphasis on Endangered and Threatened species. I'd like to apply for a job with Paul Watson's and Whale Wars. I'd like to work in Ventura or Los Angeles County to help improve the environment we call home. I am looking forward to watching my daughter graduate from college not too long after I graduate. I'm hoping to stay healthy in order to accomplish the things I want to do with my life. I want to travel, especially to Ireland and Hawaii. I'd like to visit Canada, the United Kingdom, Figi, and lots of places in the United States. I want to continue playing softball for as long as I can. Some other activities I'd like to do consist of: sky diving, swim with dolphins and turtles, zip-line in Hawaii, remodel my home, join a paintball league, and some day watch my grandkids grow. Like I said, "I don't know what my future holds, but it's a future that's looking bright."