CURRENT MISSION

Connect with people, places, and events. Exchange and share ideas and experiences. Learn what I can, help when I can, and play as much as I can.

ABOUT ME

I spend most of my time thinking of solutions to problems, absorbing whatever knowledge I can, hunting for inspiration–as cliche as that sounds–in some way or another working on my photography, writing, and/or music . I consume a lot of literature and visual art. I laugh a lot. I smile more. I'm not a vegetarian but I love veggie burgers more than hamburgers. New things excite me. I love finding things I share in common with other people. Also, if it's feasible, I will bike almost anywhere I need to go around town.

PHILOSOPHY

We're all in this together.

A good friend of mine recently said that in the past 30 years he's learned "to be really suspicious of feelings of division." If there was ever a lesson to be learned in life, this one would be inches from the top.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I've hosted a few travelers over the years. All great experiences. I love the idea of being open and sharing trust with fellow travelers. I will definitely utilize Couchsurfing for my future travels, even if I don't have to. I just love engaging with new people and experiencing all of the unique ideas and perspectives every individual brings to the table.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

After my home caught fire in 2010, I spent a good deal of time couchsurfing with some extremely generous and hospitable friends in Oklahoma before I finally made the move to my current home in Atlanta, GA. I've honestly never felt safer and more comfortable about an idea or community as I do about couchsurfing. The fact that this movement is so powerful in such an overwhelmingly positive way gives me a lot of hope for our future.

Interests

Everything? Reading, writing, visual art, making music, telling jokes, telling stories–and listening to those–backpacking, new people, adventures of all shapes and sizes. I get a rush when I can find common ground with someone completely different than I me.

• arts
• writing
• literature
• photography
• vegetarian
• gardening
• reading
• music
• guitar
• cycling
• hunting
• engineering

Music, Movies, and Books

Books: The Razor's Edge, Stranger in a Strange Land, A Brief History of Time, Maribou Stork Nightmares, The Forever War, Kafka On The Shore, The Wisdom of Insecurity, Hocus Pocus, House of Leaves, Dracula, The Willows, The Hitchhiker's Guide trilogy

Movies: City of God, Samsara, 5 Broken Cameras, The Act of Killing, Bhutto, Sunshine, Ravenous, All the Real Girls, Valhalla Rising, The Man From Earth, Enter the Void, Little Nemo, Beetlejuice, Better This World, City Lights, It Follows

Music: Dr. Dog, Radiohead, Queens of the Stone Age, Them Crooked Vultures, Pink Floyd, Nine Inch Nails, Muse, Delta Spirit, Rage Against the Machine, Wu-Tang Clan, Mos Def, Outkast, LCD Soundsystem, Nobody Beats The Drum, St. Vincent

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

In the summer of 2011, I drove 15 hours solo through the night from Oklahoma City to Atlanta to work on a horror film--my first major film. The production company rented some of my camera equipment and hired me as 1st AC for two weeks of night shoots, 7pm to 7am. While there, I got to ride in a cop car during a chase scene, I watched a car explode, I saw blood and guts and gore, and I even got to hold a couple of fake decapitated heads, which looked one hundred percent real. After we wrapped, I was offered future camera work on various gigs, and three months later I made another 15 hour drive to Atlanta, this time with everything I needed to start a new life and a new career.

Teach, Learn, Share

I would be willing to teach whatever I think I know. Right now, I think I know photography, cameras, storytelling, humor, a great bruschetta recipe I learned in Brazil, longboarding --not necessarily longboards--guitar, how to use the internet to find whatever I need.

I would love to learn how to focus, speak a different language (i.e. Spanish, French, Turkish), program, engineer an electronic device, create a functional and relevant iPhone app, garden successfully.

Countries I’ve Visited

Brazil, Canada, Mexico, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States