CURRENT MISSION

To cease the aimlessness of my wandering.

ABOUT ME

For the past couple years of my life I have been on a plateau in my journey of personal growth. Stuck in a city that had little more to offer me, I found myself too often dwelling on the dormant state into which I was going. I was managing a local coffee shop, a job which hazed my focus on my education, and while I was doing fairly well, wasn't happy. "I'm too young," I thought, "to not be experiencing more than this".

A friend of mine who worked at the same coffee bar had been listening to me explain my discontent with my situation and proposed a resolution: "Move to France" she said as though she were suggesting we have pizza for lunch. She was planning to move to south France that fall, and when she offered the idea to me, it seemed both crazy and perfect. In the two months that followed, I left my job, sold my car and anything else for which I could get money, found a host family in a suburb of Paris and set out for a life-changing adventure. I'm going to be here as an Au Pair for about one year, and I cannot wait to see what I learn.

PHILOSOPHY

Growing up in Catholic schools and Christian homes instilled in me a core of morality which I still possess. However, in the past couple years of my life, I've learned to be more critical about what philosophies I allow to guide me. I began to go over my beliefs very carefully and have found many of them to be what I consider illogical. I choose to disregard explanations of things which are not based in fact and reality but instead make sense only in their absence. This way of looking at the world is much less comforting and in many ways less fulfilling, but I would rather have my eyes open even if what I see is difficult than go on accepting what I'm taught without questioning it. I am not so arrogant as to think that my opinion of what is logical is accurate and I accept and praise its mutability.

The process of either abandoning or adapting most of my beliefs was both scary and tough. I have found so much joy and solace in Christianity in my life, and therefore appreciate and admire those who gain from religion. I know that I am very young, and therefore am in the early stages of "figuring things out". Perhaps I will again someday believe in a higher power or the like, but for now I am satisfied with the explanations of the universe provided by science and fact.

For now, I get my spiritual lift from those wonderful people in my life. I spend my energy looking around me and learning from what I see rather than looking up to something I cannot know with the same certainty. Sure, it's not as magical and awe-inspiring, but I'm happy with it.

Что привело меня на Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I joined CS because I'm in a new country and I know no one. My friend who also moved to France to Au Pair lives in Paris and is always going to events hosted by CS and also by the groups to which she belongs. I'm new to this community and I hope to participate by attending events and meeting new people!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've gotten the chance to host four of my friends that were visiting Paris while I've been here. When I get back to where my couch is, I will definitely host as I've found it to be such an awesome and diverse community.

Интересы

Disc Golf
Computer Sciences
Music (playing, writing, listening)
Meeting weird people
Writing
Good wine
Seeing really big things
Seeing really little things
"Why?"

• writing
• education
• wine
• coffee
• shopping
• music
• skydiving
• christian
• golf
• computer science
• teaching
• religion
• science
• tourism
• au-pair

Музыка, кино и книги

I LIKE TO WATCH:
Shawn of the Dead
Bienvenue Chez Les Ch'tis!
Hook
Unusual Suspects
Babel
It's a Wonderful Life
Fight Club
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

I LIKE TO LISTEN:
Alkaline Trio
Bayside
Notorious B.I.G.
Tech N9ne
Steve Miller
Big D and the Kids' Table
Atmosphere
Brother Ali
Antoine Dufour
Clapton and his many projects
Oxmo Puccino
K'Naan
Psy 4 de la Rime
The Streets
Modest Mouse
Jurassic 5
Reel Big Fish

I LIKE TO READ:
Breakfast of Champions
Anything else by Kurt Vonnegut
David Sedaris
Phillip Roth
Fahrenheit 451
Where the Wild Things Are

Классная вещь, которую я сделал(-а)

Moving to a foreign country without knowing the language. Oh, and skydiving's pretty gnarly.