I had a great time with @RickySheety of Digital Nomads! They have several interviews with digital nomads and travelers, so be sure and check them out on YouTube!
How You can help save our Amazing Oceans!
How YOU can help our amazing oceans
Through all of my travels, especially those involving the ocean and diving, I have become more and more aware of the changing state of our oceans. The changes from 30 years ago to the present are painfully clear. Water temperatures are significantly warmer, coral reefs are bleaching and dying, more animals are endangered, over fishing is manifest, and trash in the ocean is at an all time high. What can we do? There are people out there talking about this. Climate Change is settled science, there is no doubt that it is happening and that it is the result of human activities. The only unclear thing about Climate Change is how to pass effective policies to combat it.
[Read more…] about How You can help save our Amazing Oceans!
I Love Introducing People to the Wonders of the Ocean
I have always loved introducing people to the ocean. First time snorkelers, first time divers, and especially children seeing the underwater world for the first time. I cannot count how many people I have taught to snorkel or taken snorkeling, and most of them went on to dive and become certified divers. Since I am always excited to be in the water and see fish and animals and corals, I enjoy being with others who are as excited as I am!
Good fortune came my way in Cozumel a week ago, when a ten year old girl staying next door to me fell in love with the ocean. Her entire family did! They were in Cozumel for a family wedding that took place at Villa Torres, though Villa Coronado did the honors for the ceremony! I loved the whole group, they were just wonderful. The young girl, Addison (love that name), went out on a snorkel with me and we had a great adventure: scorpion fish, flounders, yellow stingrays, and amazingly enough, a seahorse! That was magical. Seahorses are hard to find in Cozumel since the 2006 hurricane, so finding one on a snorkel was just incredible. We stayed out for over an hour, and she could not get enough! It was so fun to show her the underwater world. I had forgotten how much I enjoy introducing new people to the beautiful creatures. She was particularly drawn to the Queen Parrotfishes just becoming adults with their dazzling colors.
The desire to write a book series about our Ocean Friends was something I always wanted to do in order to introduce people to the animals in the ocean. When people get interested and excited, they want to learn more, and to experience it. My first published book, Fish Faces: Photos and Fun Facts about Tropical Reef Fish, is meant to begin a journey of getting to know our ocean friends, and how important they are to our survival on this planet. It all begins with knowledge, and with knowledge comes enthusiasm. Learning should be fun at any and every age! Fish Faces is available on LULU.com right now, and will be on Amazon and Barnes and Noble soon, within the next few weeks. It is the same price on all the sites. Do you know someone interested in the ocean? This is a super fun way to learn about fish species and how different they look from ocean to ocean. I have dived in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans, and many of the seas within them, so my photographs reflect a planetary view of ocean fish, along with fun facts about each species.
I so enjoyed my time snorkeling with Addison, and it makes me want to show people the ocean even more! I hope you take a look at All Fish Faces!
This time it is the Real Deal, My Book is Published!
Yep, it is the Real Deal! Nothing like announcing a book and then have it mucked up in publishing! But, Fish Faces, Photos and Fun Facts about Tropical Reef Fish, is available! After redoing some graphics and changing the formatting, I am very, very happy with it. Right now it is available on LULU.com at http://www.lulu.com/shop/tam-warner-minton/fish-faces/paperback/product-23212566.html. Right now you can buy it on LULU, but shortly it will be available on Amazon and Barnes and Nobles at the same price. It is meant for people of all ages, though children love the ocean and ocean creatures! We can safely say it is a book for children of all ages! What can be better for our planet than learning about its creatures and marveling at their beauty?
I am dedicated to the preservation and conservation of our oceans, and I will give 10% of any profits to the Marine Megafauna Foundation which was co-founded by Dr. Andrea Marshall to conduct research and save our ocean giants. I have gone on expeditions with Andrea, and support her efforts 100%. Take a look, and I think you will too! Andrea is known as the Queen of Mantas, and has a documentary that was shown on BBC many years ago. Thanks to her and her students, much more is known about these animals now! They are doing important work.
4 of the most Amazing Reasons I go on Citizen Science Trips
I participate in Citizen Science trips because I am a big believer in giving back. When we receive a benefit, I believe we should provide a benefit in return somewhere, somehow. Scuba Diving is a passion for me, animals are a passion, and photography underwater is a passion. I love the ocean, the earth, and all of its creatures. The point is, I must give back to the ocean in some way since I enjoy the ocean in so many different ways. How do I give back? I go on Citizen Science trips, which means I participate in collecting data for scientists to use, and in doing so, I also help support their work. I’ve done trips with All Out Africa, Marine Megafauna Foundation, and REEF. Why do I do it? Here are 4 of my reasons.
- I love to dive, so almost all of the citizen science I do is underwater. The ocean is in trouble, and so are many of its animals. As the ocean warms, coral bleaches and dies off, killing the foundation of life for many fish and animals the earth depends upon for sustenance. In order to know how a species is doing, data must be collected. That data involves Identification photography, noting the animal’s sex, noting any injuries, and watching the behavior of the animal. I love contributing to the body of knowledge about our ocean friends.
- I am fascinated by animals. There is nothing more exciting to me than watching them, and when appropriate, interacting with them. Most of the time, you don’t want to interact or disturb their behavior, but every once in a while you get to look them in the eye, or blow bubbles with mantas or play with dolphins, and it is nothing short of magical!
- I’m a geek. I love collecting data and loading it into data systems to produce results. Every time I submit an ID photo of an animal, I can’t wait to find out if it is a “new” animal (one never documented before), or if it has been encountered before, and where. When you report and encounter and upload data to Wildbook for Whalesharks (www.whaleshark.org) or Manta Matcher (www.mantamatcher.org) you receive updates if that animal is seen again. Almost every summer I go off the Yucatan to snorkel with WhaleSharks, and I always take ID photographs to upload. I receive many notifications every summer and fall that animals I have encountered have been encountered again. I like to look at the photos, and I feel a certain sense of accomplishment.
- Probably the most important reason I go on these trips is, simply, the people. I have met the most wonderful, amazing people on citizen science trips. You are always hearing people talk about their “tribe”, well, this is my tribe. Sadly for me, I can’t do it as a profession, all year long. I’m an introvert, but I am a social introvert, I can hang out with people and enjoy myself. I loved teaching at the university and counseling high school students. No man is an island! What is exciting for me is to be able to spend time with people who share the same interests and passions. These trips draw intelligent, excited, animated people who share my love of the sea and my sense of contribution. I can interact with the scientists and learn about the animals and the ocean itself. I love the people (for the most part!) I meet on these trips, and I am still in touch with many of them. We share a bond through the experience of passion and participation.
An incredible group of wonderful, bright, enthusiastic women! 
You will love this…somehow the two of us found out we share an ancestor who was hung as a witch in Salem! 
With Bakari and Anton, crew members extraordinaire!
The last trip I took with Marine Megafauna’s Dr Andrea Marshall, Queen of Mantas, was an 11 day voyage in Raja Ampat, Indonesia on the luxury boutique liveaboard, The Arenui (not all trips are so luxurious, believe me!). It was a wonderful trip, and I enjoyed getting to know the other divers, who mostly were not there for the same reason I was, but who became very enthusiastic about taking Manta ID photographs. I believe no matter where they are diving, they will take ID photos of animals and send them to the databases for turtles, whales, dolphins, mola mola, and others. Inspiring others to take part in citizen science is also a contribution, and a way of giving back. You can do it too!
One doesn’t have to dive to do citizen science!No matter where you are, there are opportunities to participate. There is National Geographic’s list, and there are projects closer to home. I live in Dallas, Texas and here is a program to document wildlife in urban areas in North Texas Wild. You can also go to www.citizensciencecenter.com. Citizen scientists are a boon to scientists because so much more data can be obtained. If you are interested, you can find an opportunity near you! I highly recommend it!
Win a Free Copy of my First Published Book on Amazon!
My first published book on Amazon! Yes, I finally did it! I wrote a book on a subject near and dear to my heart, our intriguing fish friends in the ocean. FISH FACES, Photos and Fun Facts, is a photo book of common reef fish from all over the world. Children of all ages (that includes you!) will enjoy looking at these colorful and engaging fish, and learning a fun fact about each one. A paperback copy will soon be available as well.
As an amateur underwater photographer, scuba diver, and citizen scientist, I have seen the damage being wreaked on our ocean, and on our ocean friends. By learning about these gorgeous and fascinating fish species, it is my hope we can teach our children and grandchildren the value of the underwater world, and how necessary it is to protect our oceans. FISH FACES is the first book in the series, OCEAN FRIENDS. 10 percent of the profits will go to Marine Megafauna Foundation, a non profit dedicated to saving our ocean pelagics from extinction.
I am, of course, very excited about publishing my very first book, and to celebrate, I am giving away 3 free copies on Amazon! Please visit the GIVEAWAY on Amazon, and be sure to enter and share with your friends!