I am a singer-songwriter from northern Minnesota and frequent traveler. I pay the bills as a digital marketing freelancer, working remotely and primarily as a freelance writer and Google Ads specialist.

I love exploring new places, meeting new people, listening to and performing music, trying new cuisines, experiencing new cultures and creating new memories in the most unpredictable of ways. Since 2020 I've traveled to 14+ countries and played music all over the world.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm looking to meet new people and potentially search for housing in my travels, but mostly to try and get the most out of each place I visit by sharing experiences with others. It can get lonely as a solo traveler & artist, so I'm hoping to meet more like-minded people along the way that share a similar desire for music, change and adventure—and who also can relate to the challenges that come with it so that we can support each other.

Interests

• writing
• singing
• cooking
• walking
• music
• karaoke
• hiking
• scuba diving
• food
• nature
• comedy
• songwriting

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: I grew up on 90's grunge/alt rock, and the nu-metal, post-hardcore, metalcore and emo music of the early 2000's, which still runs thick in my blood. However, I listen to and play just about anything that is honest and has an emotional appeal, from outlaw country to hip-hop and instrumental music. Deftones, Tool, Chevelle, Karnivool, System of a Down, Atomship, Hopesfall and Coheed and Cambria are some of my favorites.

Movies: No Country for Old Men, Inglorious Basterds and Drive are some of my favorites that I'll pick up and watch any time. I'd like to get into more foreign films as I really enjoyed Mads Mikkelson in The Hunt (Denmark), Rec (Spain) and The Raid: Redemption (Indonesia). I also love ridiculous comedies like Tropic Thunder, MacGruber and Team America. I enjoy movies that make me think, but if they can also make me cry and laugh then I'm all-in. I've watched the HBO Series Chernobyl at least 3 times and counting and am a True Detective: Season 1 truther.

Books: Currently I'm reading Ghandi's autobiography and Camus' "The Outsider". I enjoy physically reading classical literature and then listening to non-fiction on audio. I love WWII history and I am almost finished with Dan Carlin's 6-part, 24+ hour podcast on the Pacific theatre during that war.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

While in Labuan Bajo, Indonesia during the pandemic, me and a lady friend spontaneously found a local boat owner who was short on work to take us on an overnight boat trip to Komodo National Park, and we convinced a nearby dive shop manager with no clients to bring scuba gear and join us on the trip so we could stop for some epic dives along the way. I was able to dive Batu Bolong, a top 5-10 worldwide dive spot, and she made her first ever dives in which we stumbled upon manta rays near Padar Island. We then hiked Padar Island at sunset with nobody else on the entire island and had the incredible view all to ourselves. Along the journey, we ate incredible local cuisines cooked fresh on the boat, stopped at a picturesque sandbar between islands, looked up at the stars from our small boat at night, and stopped at Komodo Island to see a couple of dragons. It was truly a once-in-a-lifetime trip that I will take with me for the rest of my life.

Teach, Learn, Share

I hope to continue learning Spanish and Indonesian, as well as becoming a better cook. I am TEFL certified to teach English, although I have yet to actually teach. My degree is in Journalism, however, so I can help with English and storytelling quite a bit I'd imagine.

I can play music (originals and some covers) and do my best to teach a little bit of songwriting, basic vocal technique and basic guitar lessons. I'm mostly self-taught, however, so I don't have a structured curriculum.

I can teach digital marketing as I've been freelancing for almost 7 years now, working in almost every vertical of digital marketing, including: Google Ads, Facebook Ads, conversion tracking, Google Analytics, email newsletters, blog & article writing, social media, basic SEO, website copy, basic website design and almost anything in between that's not on the super technical side.

I've also recorded an released original music with friends back home in Minnesota and with professional Balinese musicians while I was Indonesia, so I am happy to impart any wisdom I can on the process of recording and releasing of music.

What I Can Share with Hosts

As I mentioned above, the best things I can share with hosts are my music (playing and teaching), teaching digital marketing & freelance writing, and how to become a digital nomad as I haven't had a least on an apartment since late 2018. I've lived out of backpacks most of the time since, worked with 20+ clients, traveled to 14+ countries and played music in most (if not all) of them since that time.

I can also do a little cooking, with a Turkish breakfast being one of my favorite communal meals to prepare and I recently took a cooking class in Bali to try and improve my peanut sauce abilities for sate and gado-gado.

I also love to get away from my computer screen any chance I get, even if that includes helping with chores, building stuff, chopping/stacking wood or anything else around the house that requires an extra hand.

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, England, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Jamaica, Morocco, New Zealand, Scotland, Singapore, Spain, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Indonesia, United States