CURRENT MISSION

See the world. Read good books. Have good conversations.

ABOUT ME

Jean is a thirty something massage therapy student. She works a variety of jobs while finishing up school. She is interested in meeting people, learning how other people live. She's also interested in free places to stay when she travels.

Tim is a twenty-five year old media and journalism student. He is interested in gender studies, meeting new people, and coffeeshopping.

PHILOSOPHY

Jean:
I don't have one personal philosophy that isn't context specific, but I've always liked Whitman's. In the preface to Leaves of Grass, he said:
Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss whatever insults your own soul

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Stayed with a couple of great people (and an elven co-op!) in Madison, and have had a few different CS people stay with us.

Interests

Reading, massage, biking, yoga, cooking and eating, urban exploration, good movies, good conversations, community, independendce, interdependence, spending time with friends.

• animals
• books
• cooking
• yoga
• massage therapy
• movies
• reading
• socializing
• cycling
• communications
• gender studies
• journalism
• urban exploration

Music, Movies, and Books

Jean:
Dorothy Allison's book of essays, Skin, and Audre Lorde's Zami have both been really important to me. I also love Jonathan Lethem, James Baldwin, Paul Auster, Siri Hustvedt, Haruki Murakami, Kelly Link, Flannery O'Connor, Madeline L'Engle, to name just a few. I have a pretty intense book habit.

T:
I'm starting to watch classic movies and love Harvey, The Philadelphia Story and Singing in the Rain. I like music of all kinds and right now, I'm reading a lot about gender studies and other queer books.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Jean: Just off the top of my head: the northern lights, the inside passage from the deck of an Alaska marine highway ferry (so beautiful), the sunrise (which is amazing and awe inspiring every single morning, but so hard to get up for).