CURRENT MISSION

To remember that I live in a world

ABOUT ME

I am studying in Amsterdam for the year and am looking for the ultimate exchange experience by constantly keeping myself open to opportunities of creation, inspiration and adventure. I consider myself from all the places I have lived, having each location and setting add to my growth and development. These locations including major U.S. cities such as Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, San Francisco and now the European Union and beyond! Not only have these places helped with my identity, my hobbies of playing drums/electronics, skateboarding, writing poetry and making movies have helped me continue to learn through the people and places around me.

PHILOSOPHY

Every being has a sound quality to their voice. Their words, actions, mannerisms and presence is a walking, breathing, moving composition filled with the symphonies and cacophonies of one's life. I have this personal philosophy that music is everywhere, especially in the voices of every human being. So, I am working on the art of communicating with people to hear their tonalities through their individual wisdom and ideas they possess. I do my best to break down all the pre-judgements that we conceive when viewing people and instead listen and absorb the intelligence and kindess that I believe all people possess. In order to do so, you must truly project this happiness for others to see. You must be willing to lose face in order to gain new ones. This personal philosophy is a work in progress, but it really is a pleasurable one.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I shall participate by offering a place to stay, good food, great conversations, collaborations and by being an enthusiastic tour guide.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

This is my first introduction to the couch surfing experience. I have hosted new friends through six degrees of separation and these moments have been the upmost enjoyment. I cannot focus in on one story, but by becoming apart of something as strong as couch surfing, I look forward to adding my stories and experiences soon.

Interests

I am very interested in drumming, electronics (pertaining to music i.e. effect pedals, sampling), skateboarding, and anthropology. I have found new passions in media studies (tactical media/cyber activism) and digital archiving (audio/visual) as well.

• arts
• writing
• poetry
• photography
• diy
• ethics
• dining
• coffee
• walking
• electronics
• movies
• music
• drums
• surfing
• skateboarding
• anthropology
• communications
• engineering
• tourism

Music, Movies, and Books

Everything and anything rock n' roll, punk, blues, mo-town, gospel, mambo, indie, hip-hop, electronic and dance. Moving to Amsterdam has helped expand my pallat for the DJ/Club scene which is different from my comfortable scene of house shows/live bands. Either way, it is something to help me learn more about music.

Some movies that have stuck with me are Tokyo Godfathers, Eraserhead, Waking Life, Planet of the Apes, City of God, The Science of Sleep, and Pi.

Some books I am reading off/on at the moment are Art and Physics by Leonard Shlain, The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting by Milan Kundera and The Story of Crass by George Berger.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I have traveled on freight trains from Los Angeles to Portland (a strong story follows over coffee/tea).

Teach, Learn, Share

Topics I feel comfortable teaching are: the art of sampling music, DIY ethics and executions in artistic communities, audio production/sound engineering via analog methods, creative writing prompts/exercises, basic knowledge on digital media (video cameras, photography, etc.).

I am always finding something new to learn everyday. This keeps levels of productivity at a constant high. I always am enthralled to see people talk/teach about something they love. As long as someone is passionate about what they are teaching, I can find the concentration to learn what they are teaching.