CURRENT MISSION

To never stop being thrilled, baffled, awed, and shocked by the world we live in

ABOUT ME

Hello! My name is Dylan. I'm 34 years old and I live in the middle of the Chihuahuan Desert. I am a curious and enthusiastic nonfiction writer who loves being outside, biking, and collecting interesting notes, letters, and drawings people accidentally drop on the ground. I was a newspaper reporter for a few years, and some of my favorite subjects to write about are offbeat true crime, landfills, and the hidden histories of everyday things. I have written two books, "Dance of the Trustees," a look at small-town Ohio history was published last year and the other, a history of the Principality of Sealand, will be published early next year.

I have tried my hand at a number of different strange professions: among other things, I have been a professional mover, office drone, overnight hotel maintenance man, driver, carpenter, substitute teacher. Some of this was great, some was terrible (when I was a sub, the kids tormented me like in the movies!) but all were fascinating experiences and taught me a lot of practical and impractical things I'm now glad I know.

As far as potentially hosting me goes, I'm happy to let you do your thang if you're busy, but I'm also up for anything - I love seeing new places and talking to new people, and so I'll be down with seeing whatever you think I should see or doing whatever you think I should do!

Feel free to contact me with any questions! Thank you!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have had some wonderful couch surfing experiences over the years, from learning to play Stump in the woods of Kentucky to taking an all night walking tour of Milan (aka I missed the train and wandered around in the strange midnight hours) to eating with a group of middle-aged friends who have been meeting at the same Mexican restaurant every Wednesday for fifteen years.

I really like CS because you can meet so many cool people and see so many interesting places - the best way to travel is definitely with someone who can give you an inside look at wherever it is you are staying! Fortunately it has almost always worked out like this every time I've couchsurfed.

Interests

Instagram: shakespeare_sucks

• writing
• walking
• reading
• traveling
• surfing
• journalism
• soda water
• chewing on toothpicks

Music, Movies, and Books

Long-form nonfiction about anything, seriously. Some perennial favorites include "The Tiger" by John Vaillant, "American Heiress" by Jeffrey Toobin, "Nagasaki: Life After Nuclear War" by Susan Southard, and more recently some well-regarded true crime.

I haven't read any novels in a while, but I tend to like Victorian literature, detective novels, Studs Terkel, Heinrich Boll, Franz Kafka, David Lodge. As far as musick goes, I love death metal and fast noisy punk; I don't watch many movies but I do like film noir and heist flicks.

Give me something to eat and chances are I'll be really into it!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Visited the Principality of Sealand and got my passport stamped with the customs sigil of the world's most enduring micronation!

Countries I’ve Visited

Bahamas, Belize, Canada, Czech Republic, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Spain