I am a kind, respectful, quiet, easy-going, low-maintenance digital nomad looking to see more of the United States. To raise money for my travels, I write, edit, and do research for various clients who range from obstacle racing companies to naturopathic urologists to doctoral candidates. I graduated with a Bachelors degree in Philosophy from St. Olaf College in 2015, and I intend to write a book about my experiences within the next five years. I have no allergies, smoking habits, food restrictions, pets, or obnoxious political/religious views. I am 24 years old, 25 in February 2017.

I worked for Spartan Race for five years as an editor, copyeditor, and copywriter. Through participating in many Spartan events, I've gained a love for travel and adventure, and I'm glad I now have the opportunity to travel full-time.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm on Couchsurfing because I'm walking across the country (on foot, in case that wasn't clear) from October to March. Consequently, I'll need a lot of places to stay. I'm prepared to sleep outdoors if I have to, but I'd really prefer to meet people during my travels. I'd be very grateful to meet friendly faces in the cities I visit.

Interests

Philosophy, religion, psychology, languages, trying new foods, jumping out of planes, making electronic music, biking for long distances. I love "type 2 fun," which (if you're not familiar with the term) means something that's not always fun to do but fun to talk about afterwards. I love writing, and part of the reason why I'm doing such a long trip is so I can write about the things that happen.

Benjamin Franklin said to "Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing," and I'm hoping to do both.

One of my biggest interests is the orthography of languages. I love reading about the history of symbols, especially alphabets. I remember when I was a kid I would thumb through the pages of my parents' monstrous red dictionary just to look at the first page of every section and gaze at the many variations of each letter from various time periods. Now, I love to invent my own writing systems. I do this as others would doodle, just in my spare time, on a bus or on a napkin somewhere.

I love words and languages in general, and if you can teach me something about a language other than English (or even about English), I'd be super excited.

• books

Music, Movies, and Books

I tend to love all movies by certain directors, and these directors are the Coen brothers, Wes Anderson, and Quentin Tarantino. I don't read much, but when I do, I like to read college textbooks and non-fiction books like mushroom-picking guides and birding manuals. I love learning; maybe that's why I do this.

In terms of music, I tend to listen to Burial, an obscure British dubstep producer. Oddly specific, I know, but that's just me.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One time I took a trip to Japan to complete a Spartan endurance event called the Agoge. It ended up being about 73 hours long, jam-packed with hiking through urban and natural environments, riding bullet trains, eating sushi, doing burpees in the middle of the Tsukiji fish market, and enduring four hours of costume karaoke, during which I was dressed as a French maid. My group and I did all of this while carrying 24kg kettlebells, and we slept for a total of about 4 hours sporadically between the start and end of the event.

During this event I learned that anything is possible and that nothing really matters, so we might as well enjoy the beautiful opportunities our brief lives afford us.

I have a ton of stories from my travels and events like the one I mentioned, and I'm happy to talk about them (or not talk about them).

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach you how to properly pack a backpack for an adventure, how to make curry, how to do a burpee, how to say certain useful phrases in French or Thai, how to write in cursive, how to set up a campsite, how to prevent foot blisters while walking long distances, how to make cheap Gatorade, how to tie your shoes so they fit better and don't ever come untied, how to start a fire (legally), and MANY MORE THINGS.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I'm not sure what to write here that I haven't already written in some form above, but here goes!

I can share a good conversation, a laugh, a smile (I have a good one), a life tip, etc. etc. etc. Who knows?

Countries I’ve Visited

Cambodia, Canada, England, France, Italy, Japan, Norway, Thailand

Countries I’ve Lived In

Thailand, United States