Finding Nemo.. and other creatures of the Great Barrier Reef

I think I may have just found a way to spend even more money in Australia. Just what I needed, but diving is worth it. I just got back from my 2 days on the live aboard boat and am now a certified scuba diver. We spent two days in the classroom and the pool before getting taken out to the boat yesterday at 7 am. We were almost immediately thrown into the water to snorkel around a part of the reef called "The Whale" and immediately saw a turtle. Pretty soon after that we did our first dive and it was incredible. I did seven dives overall on the boat and saw more turtles, a shark, giant Maori Wrasse fish that can bite off your arm, stingrays, these cool slug like worms whose name I can't remember, giant clams, the beautiful but poisonous lionfish, and lots of little Nemo clownfish. Ever since my first dive I have really wanted to watch Finding Nemo and might try and see if my hostel has it (I know I am a loser). I did learn that the plot of the movie is very unrealistic because in the reef in Nemo's mom had died his dad would have soon changed sex and become his mom. I got to do a night dive which was kind of scray but very cool. I saw a fish eat another fish and saw these weird underwater creatures that you could only see when you shone the light on them. My guides had never seen it before. Sleeping on the boat was interesting and not very enjoyable. My roommate and I decided it was like being rocked in a cradle, which was nice until the person rocking the cradle went crazy and you went bouncing against the walls and almost fell out of the bed. I did not get very much sleep, especially since we got woken up at 5:30 am to do a sunrise dive and watch the coral and fishes wake up. I wish that I had more time in Cairns because I would have stayed on the boat and got my advanced diver certificate. I still really want to go to a shipwreck. My next two days are full of day trips to Cape Tribulation to see the rainforest and the Atherton Tablelands to go hiking to some waterfalls. I am excited for them but really just want a day to sleep! So now I am going to go read my guidebook and find all the other places that I can dive in Australia and spend my money even faster!