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@are_you_for_scuba

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🧜‍♀️ Dive Safety Officer | 🪸 Coral Restoration | 🌊 Forever salty ocean girlie living the dream
🌴Follow my journey🤘

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What type of dive buddy are you PART 3 - Valentine’s Day edition! 💕

We all have seen those cute couples while diving & maybe this is you and your buddy! Or the other couples cuteness annoys you 😂

Tag them below ⬇️ and which one is your favorite!?

❤️🧜‍♂️ @scubahippieslovetravel
📸 @gopro
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#scuba #divebuddy #valentines #scubadiving #uwphotography #reels #scubadivingmag #scubaaddict #scubaworld #scubadivinglife #scubagram #couplegoals #bestfriends #pool #part3 #gopro #goprolife #scubalife by @are_you_for_scuba

What type of dive buddy are you PART 2! 🌴😭

This one may hit a little closer to home, but they were too accurately funny not to do 😂 remember - this is all for fun my friends

Be honest, which one is you OR your buddy⁉️ Make sure and tag them 😂

Wait for the last one! It happens too often on dives!

Dive buddy 🧜‍♂️ @scubahippieslovetravel
📸 @gopro
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#scuba #part2 #scubadiving #divebuddy #scubadive #whichone #scubadivingmag #uwphotography #reels #uwvideo #couplegoals #scubalife #scubadivinglife #gopro #goprohero #pool #jokes #laugh #scubagram #scubaaddict #type #scubacouple #uw #funny #swimmer #bottombouncer #recon #noisepollution by @are_you_for_scuba

Which type of dive buddy are you?! 🧜‍♀️

Tell me below! ⬇️
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Should we do more?!
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Dive buddy 🧜‍♂️ @scubahippieslovetravel
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#divebuddy #imaspidermonkey #princess #surfer #scuba #scubadiver #iamssi #scubadiverlife #gopro #pool #goprohero10 #underwatertiktok #goprouw #underwaterphotography #midwest #bestfriend #couplegoals #diveprofessional #scubaaddict #scubadiverslife #scubadivingmag #scubapro by @are_you_for_scuba

Happy Halloween! 👻🎃🍭 #scubadiving #gopro #pumpkin #halloween #underwater by @are_you_for_scuba

I genuinely enjoy creating videos and sharing what I do on a daily basis because what we do matters. 🪸

But if I’m being honest, I feel uncomfortable posting a lot of the time. I worry about what people will think, how I’ll be perceived, or whether anyone actually cares to see it. I feel silly.

Then I get a DM or a comment from someone saying I inspired them, asking questions about coral restoration, scuba diving or wanting to learn more about marine biology and this unconventional career path… and it reminds me why I keep sharing. 🫶 it makes being uncomfortable worth it.

#cringe #marinebiologist #scuba #coral #doitanyway by @are_you_for_scuba

5 things I have learned working in Coral Restoration

1️⃣. You don’t have to follow a traditional career path. You can build a career around what you love, even if it looks different from everyone else’s. I started my career path as a dive professional working & traveling around the world. Gaining experience & knowledge to get me where I am today. It’s not the conventional way to get into this career, but it worked for me.

2️⃣. Conservation takes patience & unfortunately sometimes there are setbacks. Nature doesn’t work on our timeline & you won’t always land the job you wanted on the first try. That is okay, just don’t give up.

3️⃣. You never stop learning. There’s always a new skill to develop. I can’t express enough to NOT be afraid to say you don’t know how to do something. You should be surrounded by people willing to help you understand & there are so many things & skills to know being in this field. You can’t be expected to know them all. I can be terrible at asking for help because I don’t like the feeling of being vulnerable & showing people I don’t know how to do something. It is something I am working on.

4️⃣. The work isn’t always glamorous.
Most just see the beautiful reef or the full healthy nursery but actually there are hours of hard work, maintenance, problem-solving, & getting your hands dirty. Most of our days are spent with a brush in hand cleaning detritus and algae off of our corals in our nurseries & data collection.

5️⃣. You don’t necessarily need a master’s degree or higher to work in marine biology.

Yes, I said it.

Having an advanced degree can absolutely make you a more competitive candidate for certain positions, especially research & academic roles. But it’s not the only path into this field.

I’ve met & worked (also currently work) alongside so many incredible people in marine biology & conservation who don’t have advanced degrees but have years of hands-on experience, specialized skills, & an incredible amount of knowledge.

I am one of them.

I don’t have an advanced degree, & I’ve built a career doing what I love 🪸🌴🧜‍♀️☀️🫶

#coral #conse by @are_you_for_scuba

This has to be the most perfect stingray outline ever 🤣🫶🏼🌊

As our in-water nursery continues to grow, we’re seeing more and more fish, stingrays, and so many other cool critters calling it home!

I love watching this little ecosystem grow and seeing how much life our corals bring in. It’s definitely a cool perk when working in coral restoration!

Happy Diving Fam

#scuba #stingray #underwater #gopro #marinebiology by @are_you_for_scuba

It’s that time of year again 🤿

Every year in October, our dive gear is due for its yearly service. I will be overhauling all of the regulators and completing service checks on the BCD’s.

Since we are diving more often, we now will have an annual check in April - 6 months after major overhaul to check all the pressures, leaks, mouthpieces, etc. 🤙

Luckily I am able to break my week up a little bit with a Field day to take photomosaics of our out-plant plots in St. John on Wednesday!!

Have a wonderful day and hope you all are staying current on your dive gear service!

#scubadiving #service #overhaul #scuba #girlsthatscuba by @are_you_for_scuba

Representing @tropicaltrekvi in the mountains of Colorado! ⛰️ by @are_you_for_scuba

We traded in the ocean for the mountains ⛰️🌲🌼 #colorado #rockymountainnationalpark #travel #explorer by @are_you_for_scuba

Join us for 𝘈𝘤𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘢 𝘱𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘢 (APAL) genetic sampling collection in the field 🪸🫶

These samples help us better understand genetic diversity and support ongoing coral restoration and conservation efforts! 🥳

Step 1: identify a healthy APAL colony on the reef to collect the sample from

Step 2: install a cattle tag or marker

Step 3: Collect data: take measurements with a photo of the coral, record the depth, and take a GPS location

Step 4: carefully snip off a small frag from the colony and place inside a pre-labeled falcon tube.

Step 5: when Topside (land) in a sterile environment, we transferred the frags into pre-labeled cryovials and send off via a freezer for testing!

Such a cool effort to be a part of 🫶

Let me know if you have any questions about what we do at cwori!

#marinebiology #scuba #marinebiologist #underwater #coralrestoration by @are_you_for_scuba

Even to this day, people say that marine biology isn’t a “proper” career path because it won’t make you rich.

Maybe they’re right.

It definitely hasn’t made me rich in money.

But it has made me rich in so many other ways. 🌊

Rich in experiences.
Rich in memories.
Rich in places I’ve been lucky enough to see.
Rich in people I’ve met along the way.
Rich in purpose.
Rich in every day is different
Rich in getting to spend my days doing something I genuinely love.
Rich in pushing me outside my comfort zone
Rich in continuously learning

I get to work underwater (most days), contribute to coral restoration, explore the ocean, teach entry level scuba diving up through the scientific diving course, learn animal rehabilitation from the best (@kelsrubia ), and hopefully leave the reefs a little better than I found them. What could truly be better?

So no, maybe marine biology didn’t make me rich financially.

But I’d choose this kind of wealth every single time. 🫶🌴🧜‍♀️☀️🪸🐠💦

I saw someone post a similar reel and I had to make one myself.. it resonated with me and the unconventional path I chose to take in life. Find a career that makes you rich in life.

#marinebiology #coralrestoration #conservation #scubadiving #underwater by @are_you_for_scuba