CURRENT MISSION

To Examine and Explore Life and the World

ABOUT ME

I am a queer artist and educator based in NY and the Berkshires. My husband and dog also live and travel with me.

PHILOSOPHY

"Walk so silently that the bottoms of your feet become ears."-Pauline Oliveros

"Only the guy who isn't rowing has time to rock the boat." -Jean-Paul Sartre

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

My husband, dog, and I generally keep busy, but we are open to hosting at the moment.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have Hosted and Surfed in various locations around the world and find CS to be a really special and unique way of discovering and forging human connections as well as supporting community. Other times, it can be a way to help out an artist or student in need of a place to crash.

We would be happy to host travelers visiting the area, particularly those with shared interests.

Interests

I have a wide variety of interests and an insatiable love of learning. Particularly interested in artistic, humanistic, and spiritual topics. Also general fun (bonheur), and social justice concerns are of interest.

• arts
• literature
• contemporary art
• postmodern art
• photography
• music festivals
• salsa dancing
• flamenco
• tango
• lgbt rights
• animal welfare
• vegan
• yoga
• movies
• live music
• classical music
• electronic music
• kayaking
• skiing
• ornithology
• philosophy
• psychology
• travel
• food
• permaculture
• composing
• postcards
• antiques
• advocacy
• philology
• vegan cooking
• cannabis
• music composition
• mycology
• post-rock
• composing music
• composting
• food justice
• contemporary music
• postmodernism
• queer theory
• proust
• deconstruction
• micropolitics
• biopower
• rhizomes

Music, Movies, and Books

I love all musics, especially classical and avant-garde/contemporary music. Just a few favorite albums from 2017 were:
8. Black or White-Mercedes Sosa
7. No Shape-Perfume Genius
6. Everything Now-Arcade Fire
5. Planetarium-Sufjan Stevens (et al)
4. Pure Comedy-Father John Misty
3. Utopia-Björk
2. The Dreaming Room-Laura Mvula
1. Crack-Up-Fleet Foxes

Some favorite composers: Johannes Brahms, Maurice Ravel, Erik Satie, Pauline Oliveros, Björk.

I love great books and films, too, especially those which pertain to my interests. Currently reading:

Teleny / Oscar Wilde and others
Fresh complaint : stories / Jeffrey Eugenides.
Living in the end times / Slavoj Žižek.
Locking up our own : crime and punishment in Black America / James Forman, Jr.
The handmaid's tale / Margaret Atwood.
Iraq : the borrowed kettle / Slavoj Žižek.
Violence : six sideways reflections / Slavoj Žižek.
Interrogating the real / Slavoj Žižek ; edited by Rex Butler and Scott Stephens.
What does Europe want? : the Union and its discontents / Slavoj Zizek, Srecko Horvat.
The technological singularity / Murray Shanahan.
The internet of things / Samuel Greengard.
Queer / William S. Burroughs ; edited and with an introduction by Oliver Harris.
The musical brain and other stories / Cesar Aira ; translated by Chris Andrews.
Shelter in place / Alexander Maksik.
Letters to his neighbor / Marcel Proust ; translated by Lydia Davis
The map and the territory / Michel Houellebecq
Orientations / collected writings by Pierre Boulez
Autumn / Ali Smith.
The association of small bombs / Karan Mahajan.
The world goes on / László Krasznahorkai ; translated by John Batki
Exit west / Mohsin Hamid.
Life, a user's manual / Georges Perec

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

2010: Moved to New York City to attend college at Lincoln Center
2012: Became a LGBTQ activist and took the helm of my university GSA
2013: Had my first NYC premiere (a composition of chamber music)
2014: Programmed and MC'd a concert at the Apollo Theater in Harlem (NYC)
2015: Programmed and MC'd a concert for 1,000 at Riverbank State Park (NYC)
2015: Got married at a lavender farm
2016: Moved to upstate NY and began a more mindful and creative daily life practice
2017: Finished Master's and began PhD studies

Teach, Learn, Share

Pretty knowledgable in history, philosophy, music and music theory, as well as theology, gender and sexuality/queer studies. Currently taking a PhD from University at Buffalo in the department of learning and instruction.

As a music educator by trade, I can share a lot about those kinds of topics including: instrumental performance, vocal performance, composition, music theory, and improvisation.

Looking to learn more about nonwestern philosophies and spiritualities.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Ask and see!

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bahamas, Canada, China, Cuba, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Morocco, Puerto Rico, Sint Maarten (Dutch part), Slovenia, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, Spain, United States