I graduated from the University of Minnesota-Duluth in Spring 2015 with a double major in History and Philosophy, with a focus on Greek and Roman history.

I have a 13 month old Alaskan Malamute puppy named Keira, who I got as an 8 week old (tiny) puppy. She was adorable as hell, but a monster! Tiny, sharp, biting teeth! And she stole (and sometimes still does) socks right off your feet! Fortunately she's mellowed out a bit with her first year out of the way, lol. She's still quite the character, however, and wants nothing more than to get all the attention.

I've done a bit of traveling on my own, going to Israel twice now, Ireland for four months in 2014, and China for four months in 2014. Honestly, if money weren't an issue, I'd go somewhere every summer on vacation and live in a new place every year, hah. Alas, money is indeed an issue; maybe I can win the Power Ball or something some year? I can hope.

I'm a big fan of online gaming, currently playing Diablo III, World of Warcraft, Heroes of Newerth, and Skyrim (not really an online game, but it's definitely good enough to play anyways).

Recently I've been getting into anime, and have been watching some of the better series, such as Avatar, Legend of Korra, Sword Art Online, One Punch Man, and most recently I've started in on Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I've also seen many of the Studio Ghibli movies and a few of Mamoru Hosoda's movies (Wolf Children, Summer Wars, Girl Who Leapt Through Time).

I'm also a fan of fantasy novels, particularly of Mercedes Lackey's best stories, Jennifer Roberson's Sword Dancer series, and the Song in the Silence trilogy by Elizabeth Kerner. Obviously I enjoyed Lord of the Rings, Name of the Wind, and Game of Thrones, but who doesn't like those?

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

As mentioned in my 'About Me', I'm not exactly the wealthiest individual. And with the American Historical Association's upcoming annual meeting taking place in Atlanta, I need a place to stay for the nights before and after so that I can get a proper feel for Atlanta as long as I'm there. It would be a shame to go all the way to someplace only to not see any of it.

I have my status listed as: "Not Accepting Guests"
The reason being that I'm currently living with my parents at their home, and they're absolutely not interested in having anyone they don't know in their home.

Interests

Huh. Guess I already answered this, in my 'About Me'. I'll copy paste and perhaps reiterate and expand.

I'm a big fan of online gaming, currently playing Diablo III, World of Warcraft, Heroes of Newerth, and Skyrim (not really an online game, but it's definitely good enough to play anyways).
I first started gaming when I was 3 or 4 years old and realized that my older sister's NES system looked fun. My parents tried to get me to play 'educational' games, but what fun is that? I got bored of that crap quickly and went on to play Dragon Warrior! Star Tropics was also pretty sweet, and I couldn't get enough of Link to the Past, Donkey Kong Country, and Illusion of Gaia (look that last one up; it's one of the best games no one knows exists for the SNES).
When I turned 10 I got into Diablo II, at I think patch 1.08. 1.09 was where I really had the best time with that game, as the PvP has never been better in any Diablo game than during that patch. Skill could let an undergeared level 60 beat a level 99 with the best possible non-glitched gear of the same class, and there was nothing that could kill a player in one hit like in so many other games (and even in Diablo II's later patches).

Recently I've been getting into anime, and have been watching some of the better series, such as Avatar, Legend of Korra, Sword Art Online, One Punch Man, and most recently I've started in on Puella Magi Madoka Magica. I've also seen many of the Studio Ghibli movies and a few of Mamoru Hosoda's movies (Wolf Children, Summer Wars, Girl Who Leapt Through Time).
I've tried some of the other popular shows, but stuff like DBZ really doesn't seem capable of holding my interest.

I'm also a fan of fantasy novels, particularly of Mercedes Lackey's best stories, Jennifer Roberson's Sword Dancer series, and the Song in the Silence trilogy by Elizabeth Kerner. Obviously I enjoyed Lord of the Rings, Name of the Wind, and Game of Thrones, but who doesn't like those?

• arts
• dancing
• cooking
• anime
• movies
• video games
• traveling
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

I love almost anything music-wise aside from rap (Epic Rap Battles of History is an exception, though I don't really consider those music so much as entertainment). I've also found that I'm not the biggest fan of modern Country music, it all just sounds too similar and ridiculous.

Movies... I really liked Gladiator when I was a teenager. As a child I watched The Lion King until the VHS tape wore out. I'm not really the biggest movie fan as an adult, though I'll watch something if I don't have anything better to do. I guess I could say if I had to pick a favorite movie right now I'd probably go with Wolf Children.

Books. Where to begin (obviously with what I've already said in 'About Me' and 'My Interests'). I've been a fan of fantasy novels since I was around 10 years old, and I've acquired a few top favorites over the years.
The Last Herald Mage trilogy by Elizabeth Kerner is amazing. Brightly Burning is also incredible.
The Sword Dancer series by Jennifer Roberson is an outrageous amount of fun.
Song in the Silence by Elizabeth Kerner is a really solid forbidden love story with enough magic and action in it to keep it from being some sort of romance novel.
Malazan Book of the Fallen by Steven Erikson is one of those series that's just so good while being so bad at the same time (but not in a good way). I like the series for the actual story, and dislike it for the drudgery of too much useless and irritating crap. I'm still on my second read-through of it despite that, though.
And then there's the Codex Alera series by Jim Butcher. I need to reread it, again. He apparently wrote the series going off of the idea of a mashup of a lost Roman Legion and Pokemon, and it's insane. It definitely has some of the best action scenes of any books I've ever read. At one point it was like watching the best action movie ever mixed with playing all the best action video games ever, and if I were like the guys in that song by Lonely Island (you know the song, and which guys) I'd have needed an entire new wardrobe by the end of the final book.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I got hit by a truck, dented the truck, and walked away without a bruise?
There are many things which I have done, but none of them stand out as any more amazing than any other.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm a good cook, and I'm good at video games. I'm not really sure how much of anything I can teach in just a day that's really all that useful, unless you want to learn how to be an incredible tank or a good healer in World of Warcraft; I can definitely do that, though it would take you quite a bit of practice with my tips and advise before you'd truly be either.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I'm more than happy to cook dinner.
I can definitely share some good YouTube videos.
Hopefully I can bring you some entertainment, and share my excitement about and enjoyment of some of the things you take for granted in your city.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, China, Ireland, Israel, Taiwan

Countries I’ve Lived In

China, Ireland, United States