Short version: I am a caring, friendly, adventurous and responsible person that believes the world should smile and love more. I am currently doing the travel that I wished for in my 20's. I enjoy exploring culture, spirituality and getting to know people. I would love to share a dinner, a glass of wine, a cultural event, or an adventure in your neighborhood/area. I am highly social but now reveling in solitude as well.

Core belief: The world is a beautiful and good place. You can accomplish what you envision when followed through with action.

The long version: I am enjoying a self-appointed gap year. Self-appointed because my industry didn't offer any such benefit. I am exploring the world and delving deeper into myself. I love the synchronous moments that allow me to meet kindred spirits that also wish to bring more peace into the world. People enjoy hearing my travel accounts and encouraged me to write a book, so I am doing that.

English is my first language and I am happy to help someone expand their English vocabulary or just practice. My other language skills ... well ... please be patient with me. I have a wide range of interests, but places that I gravitate to include creative/artistic venues, historic and sacred spaces, as well as natural settings.

I am a Reiki Master. Reiki is a form of energy healing. If that appeals to you, I am happy to provide a session. Otherwise, I can provide meditation instruction; do oracle card readings. I also have a yoga teacher certificate but have only taught family and friends.

I grew up in the United States. My Mom is Canadian and so I've had the good fortune to visit Canada often. As an adult, I lived in 6 different states. In January 2019, I left Washington DC to drive across the United States; I lived in Hawaii for 6 months and stayed in the following countries for a month or longer: Bahamas, Wales, England, India.

Now that you've got the creative/spirited insights, here's the logical/practical side. For a decade, I was a consultant for a global firm, acting as Program Manager for 31 (U.S.) Federal Emergency Management Agency coastal storm surge projects. Before going back to school for engineering, I was a Purchasing Agent and an Office Manager. I have been on the Boards for non-profits and co-founded DemocracyFest, a grassroots advocacy organization to prepare campaign volunteers to support politicians.

I am now using my writing to delve deeper into the previously unexplored aspects of self. This was all prompted by a series of severe illnesses. I am super healthy now and am looking forward to taking a lighter approach to life before taking some time in solitude to write further.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Who doesn't want an opportunity to make the world more accessible, friendlier and peaceful? I love the idea of getting to better know the people that inhabit the places I will visit. A dear friend showed me the site recently. She is both a host and a traveler. I look forward to being a host in the future; but for now, I am strictly a traveler.

I've previously used sites like Air BnB often for travel for I preferred staying in a home rather than a hotel. While I don't have many references on CS, I do at Air BnB. I am happy to direct you to be able to review those references. Thanks for your interest in reading this far. 😀

Interests

• arts
• culture
• dancing
• yoga
• reading
• traveling
• music
• hiking
• scuba diving
• spirituality
• social justice
• exploring
• exploring nature
• energy healing
• equal rights
• environmental protection

Music, Movies, and Books

Asking me to pick favorites is never easy. My memory is too short and our world is full of amazing artists. Even still, I am looking forward to expanding my exposure to new authors, musicians and directors.

Mostly, I avoid horror and violence, and nowadays ... I even avoid the too darn dramatic or sad movies.

Couchsurfing didn't ask but I believe our favorite quotes say a lot about our values. Mine is lifted from Shakespeare ... "To thine ownself be true." I chose the quote when I was in my mid-20's, because it was on a comic piece of work with a dog in the center balancing on a ball while juggling with a smile on his face. The dogs on each side of him were sitting looking bored.

At the time, I felt like the dog in the center: happiest when juggling lot of things, but the words the artist selected for the work served as a reminder to me, to make sure that I was juggling the things that made me happy and not those that other people or society required of me. Despite buying and keeping that artwork with me...my journey was not often focused on what made me happy, so health issues followed. But those days are past. Some of what helped turn me around were the guilty pleasure movies that I would watch when I was in severe pain or simply needed a laugh: Arsenic and Old Lace (Cary Grant!), Bringing Up Baby (Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn), It's a Wonderful Life (Jimmy Stewart), Grease, Mama Mia, Guardians of the Galaxy

Here is a smattering of movies that I have watched more than once and/or want to see again.

ET, The Artist, Black Panther, Lord of the Rings, Sixth Sense, Avatar, Life is Beautiful, American Beauty, Pans Labyrinth, Princess Bride, Inception, Moana, Out of Africa

Reading has been neglected by me lately, except for going to for inspiration. But ones that have been pivotal to me: Toni Morrison, Maya Angelou, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Shakespeare, Fredrik Backman, Paulo Coelho, Thoreau, Louis May Alcott, Oscar Wild.

The more spiritual books:
Steve Taylor's The Leap (forward by Eckhart Tolle), Stephen Harrod Buhner's Secret Teachings of Plants, Byron Katie's "You're Inner Awakening"

Next up: Goethe and Joyce

Music: My list is a bit dated but I love almost all music. Least favorite: Country, Folk and Blue Grass.

My "Go To" Uplifting Artists:
Michael Franti, Xavier Rudd, Prince, Santana, Van Morrison, Elvis, Aretha Franklin, Bob Marley, Beatles, ABBA, Shaggy, Tom Jones, Sean Kingston, LCD Soundsystem, Louis Armstrong, Michael Jackson

Other Playlist Artists:
John Lennon, U2, Sting, Indigo Girls, Adele, Casandra Wilson, Pink Floyd, Etta James, Bob Dylan, Queen, Johnny Lang, Robert Cray, Live

Meditative:
Tchaikovsky, Snatam Kaur, Krishna Das, Tina Malia, Meditation and Sounds of Nature Music

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I spent a year of trust, having faith that I was divinely guided, following the flow from one synchronicity to another. One opportunity to meet another like-minded soul or simply someone who needed a kind word or deed.

That is how I met my next mindfulness teacher. The one that offered me a rite of passage; something previously not on my agenda. The night we walked Hanalei Bay, he noted “you really wanted a challenge, even the Moon is hidden.” Did he think I controlled the moon? Like many other questions I had, I knew not to ask him for clarity. He offered we could walk all night or to Africa until I found the right spot to enter the water.

When we meet, you can get the story of how I became one with the waves, pass the point he could not see me anymore, and returned to hear him shouting, "You're so brave! You're so brave!"

Teach, Learn, Share

Teach yoga techniques and energy healing concept

Learn more about our world by learning more about you, your area, and your culture

Share stories, cleaning up after dinner

What I Can Share with Hosts

* Share stories and cleaning chores
* I can offer yoga and Reiki
* Dog walking or cat sitting

Countries I’ve Visited

Bahamas, Cambodia, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Egypt, England, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, India, Ireland, Italy, Laos, Mexico, Nepal, Puerto Rico, Spain, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, Virgin Islands, British, Virgin Islands, U.S., Wales

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States