CURRENT MISSION

serve well in the social economy and pursue my passions in rich communities

ABOUT ME

I love experiencing life in all its richness - connecting with people, giving, learning, loving, and growing. I'm laid back, intuitive, open minded, and open hearted. I love to laugh and enjoy finding humor in everything - I don't ever take myself or anything else too seriously. I'm extremely easy going and patient and nothing ever really makes me angry or upset. I am a student of natural health and ways of living and eating.

I started and completed university far too early, ending up with a career path that I realized offered me no opportunity to develop my potential or contribute anything of real value to the world. I left that career and entered a 10 year traditional Chinese martial arts training program, where I lived for a year in the middle of no where in the woods on a mountain with several other young male students and our master. After one of the most intense, profoundly trying, and unbelievably rewarding years of my life, I was forced to withdraw from the program due to a debilitating illness that I later learned was lyme disease.

After a three year (mostly complete but still ongoing) journey back to health, I've settled in the east bay and make my living as a CPA helping nonprofit organizations with their financial accounting and management. I also passionately pursue and train partner acrobatics/acroyoga, kettlebells, hand balancing, juggling, and other fun skills.

PHILOSOPHY

I enjoy the richness and life affirming quality of every experience, ecstatic and painful. I seek to be open as possible, able to accept everything for whatever it is, gain as much from the experience as possible, and let it go when it's time.

I seek to cultivate meaning in my life, and explore my highest physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual potential.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have couchsurfed in my brief travels to Amsterdam and Copenhagen, and was once very active in the CS community in San Francisco. While living in SF, I hosted somewhere around 100 people. I love to host, as well as meet other locals and attend/organize events and gatherings. The community aspect of CS is amazing. It's wonderful and life changing to have so many incredible encounters from people around the world, despite the difficulties inherent in only knowing these people for such a short time.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Couchsurfed and attended CS events in Amsterdam with a couple different hosts. The people I encountered were some of the most open, kind, interesting, and fun people I have ever met. Likewise for all of the CSers I've met locally in San Francisco. I've hosted many, many guests. CS has enriched my life beyond anything I could have imagined.

Interests

I devote most of my discretionary time to partner acrobatics/acroyoga, gymnastics, ashtanga yoga, tai chi, biking, walking, juggling, and kettlebells.

Misc: intense human connection, conversation, learning, juggling, natural health, music, movies, the state of humanity, political economy, ecology, cooking, meditation

• arts
• cooking
• yoga
• meditation
• walking
• movies
• juggling
• music
• cycling
• martial arts
• gymnastics
• ecology
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: Anything by Kubrick, Tarantino, and many many others. Don't really have much time for movies anymore.

Music: Classic rock, indie rock, singer songwriter stuff. Favorites: Beatles, Pink Floyd, Led Zep, Hendrix, Simon & Garfunkel, The Kinks, Velvet Underground, Leonard Cohen, David Bowie, Andrew Bird, The Decemberists, Arcade Fire, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Radiohead, The Shins, The Pixies, Of Montreal, Neutral Milk Hotel, Sufjan Stevens, Elliot Smith, Broken Social Scene, Black Keys, Black Lips, Architecture in Helsinki

Books:

-fiction: Mostly classic/literature types. Orwell, Vonegut, Dostoevsky. Many others. I also like some modern stuff like Haruki Murakami. Hitchhiker's Guide the Galaxy series is one of my favorites as well.

-nonfiction: I read mostly nonfiction these days, to inform myself on the subjects of health and nutrition, economics, philosophy, politics, history, religion, science, spirituality, and whatever else interests me in a moment of impulse

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

The year I spent training martial arts in the mountains. Nothing else has been anywhere near so intense in its highs and lows, so rewarding in its benefits, so utterly devastating in its costs, or so transformative on so many levels.

Teach, Learn, Share

Learning and sharing skills and knowledge is one of my greatest joys in life.

Things I have to offer: partner acro, cooking, bike mechanics, juggling

I love to talk about life, to hear people's stories, to learn from people's experience

I'm always eager to learn, please teach me something :)

Countries I’ve Visited

Denmark, Greece, Italy, Netherlands

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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