Hey y’all, I’m Marisa McCaskey, and I currently live on a century farm in Union, Oregon with my loving boyfriend and furry family. I previously lived in western Washington, but was born and raised in Florida. I’m absolutely obsessed with my dogs (yes, I’m that girl), and will advocate for rescues until I die. I currently have a senior lab mix named Sadie Sue, a field bred English springer spaniel named Barbara Ann, and a chihuahua mix named Orson Beef Wellington. I spend my free time with them, hiking, painting, or reading. I was previously studying fine arts before moving to Washington in 2013; where I then began working for Washington State Parks, and then worked as a FF/EMT for 3 years. I left the fire service last spring when I decided to move to eastern Oregon to go back to school. I’ve (mostly) enjoyed the change of pace, and I’m excited to see what the future holds. I’ve been to a lot of places, but this corner of Oregon is something special.

I’m currently majoring in Rangeland Sciences at the EOU campus in La Grande. This is not only my first year back in school, but also my first OSU internship, and my first blog; so let’s all try to be forgiving. I’m hoping to mix weekly summaries with plant identification each week. I’m also going to try very hard to not get digital stage freight, and just focus on recounting my experiences as if I was telling my momma. Above all else I love learning new things, so I’m excited to share some of my summer with the rest of the internet!

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