I am a leadership coach and communication skills trainer based out of Ithaca, NY. I use activities adapted from improv theater to create workshops that teach people how to really listen to each other, and to speak so that they will be heard. I have a private coaching practice working with individuals to achieve their personal and professional goals. I also teach improv theater, help run a nature-based playschool, volunteer as a conflict mediator, and am constantly inventing scenarios to have more international traveling in my life!

My family is Chris - husband - and our charming 6-year-old, Kieran. Chris is a software engineer specializing in open-source geospatial programming (think cool online maps). He is also a great cook, joyful father and dedicated partner in all our family adventures. Kieran is just getting started in this lifetime, and so far his top interests are drumming and music, babies, Legos, Paw Patrol, mazes, and cooking.

PHILOSOPHY

Life is interesting (that is when its not just downright obviously amazing). Magic, lessons & a whole lot of fun are right at our fingertips. My challenge is to remember this in every moment (at which point I suppose I'll vaporize in a poof of smoke, which will probably be interesting too)

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have very much enjoyed both hosting and surfing for many years while living and travelling in Central and S. America (especially Ecuador), and while in graduate school at the University of Florida.

Our biggest adventure that involved couchsurfing was our 4-month "parental LEAVE" trip to Indonesia, Thailand and Fiji with Kieran, who was 6-10 months old at the time. It was fantastic! Traveling with baby - highly recommended!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I love couchsurfing! I have had great experiences both in the US and abroad hosting people, being hosted and traveling with fellow couchsurfers.

Interests

Leadership and life coaching, improvisational theater, personal development, plants, especially origins of cultivated food and medicinal plants, learning to sail, travel in general, birds, adventures, learning new skills, natural history and science stuff, dancing, kayaking, camping, ice hockey, underwater hockey, hitchhiking, puppetry and stilt walking.

• birds
• theater
• dancing
• dining
• cooking
• running
• coach
• traveling
• magic
• kayaking
• camping
• surfing
• sailing
• hockey
• ecology
• genealogy
• history
• science
• software
• volunteering

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I was touched by lightning while descending a volcano in Ecuador. We could see the lightning all around us and then as the storm came closer we started to feel our hair start standing on end. Then the feeling intensified until it became undeniable that we were being jolted periodically by the lightning. Fortunately we outran the storm and no one was injured. We had hired a guide for this trip and he was pretty scared because he had lost colleagues to lightning on these exposed slopes in the past.

Teach, Learn, Share

I've done a lot of things ONCE and I can be very practical, level-headed and creative, so I'm a good person to have around to generally figure out how to handle a situation, especially one involving things breaking, getting lost, improvising solutions, etc. Years ago I built a house and I worked in residential construction so I've got a lot of those skills. I've learned a lot of plant names over the years and can figure out the ecology of an area and tell lots of adventure stories. I can teach you to walk on stilts.

I'm often good with people and love helping connect people with opportunities, so I'll help you out however I can. I can be a good listener and helpful when someone needs insight into a situation. I work as a volunteer mediator and so I love helping people articulate what they really want and help them figure out what they can do next!

Along with being an amazing cook and wonderful father, Chris also has years of experience in IT, so he may be able to help you out with any computer problem you might be having.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belize, Canada, Colombia, Costa Rica, Fiji, France, Germany, Guatemala, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Peru, Serbia, Switzerland, Thailand

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ecuador, France, Germany, Italy, Nicaragua, Sweden, United States

•