So yet another attempt at blogging and here goes a little bit about the girl behind the updates. My name's Melana Portnoy, I'm 20 years old and have just begun my third year at Baruch College as an accountancy major and a psychology minor. I was born and raised in Brooklyn, growing up in a Russian household yet keeping in touch with my American roots. Aside from English and Russian, I can speak Spanish and Italian fairly well from courses taken years back. I'm the kind of girl with a very eclectic laundry list of interests, varying from attending a head-banging, hearing-terminating, rock concert from time to time; to cooping up in my room with a good mystery or romance novel. Time spent with family and friends typically trumps it all for me- whether it'd be a casual dinner or an unforgettable night on the town, with those that'd raised me and with those that have stuck by me, there's never really been much of a dull moment. I have my fair share of hobbies; the rock shows, the shopping sprees, reading, creative writing, the bad karaoke and dancing worries away. With that said, I've also made time to focus on academics, as I probably should, and consider just what the future looks like through my own eyes. Up until that first day of college, I've changed my mind regarding my major and career so many times. It's all gone from art and acting, to becoming a child psychologist or a teacher, but now I'm pretty sure I've settled well on going into the business field with accounting. Maybe even changing my mind along the way once again. This basically seems about right when it comes to describing myself in a nutshell; just simple, open-minded me.