CURRENT MISSION

To enjoy life while making a healthy contribution to society. It's the least we can all do as human beings, right?

ABOUT ME

All about me.. Hmm. Well, I suppose I could give a decent, general spiel about myself. I currently work as a server at a 24 hour diner in small town Ohio, and I teach a couple of yoga classes a week at the local studio. I worked as a Paramedic for about a year and a half after going to school for my certification and as it turns out being a full time Paramedic wasn't really my thing. I wanted to help people and I got a little jaded I suppose. So I downgraded to serving and upgraded to teaching more yoga, as well as becoming a certified Reiki practitioner and I've started training to become a hospice volunteer. I also enjoy the free time of working part time- I think enjoying life more fully is worth a pay cut.

I come from a good family and I miss not living close to them. I moved to Ohio about 4 and a half years ago (following a guy, imagine that! How love rules us sometimes) but I actually came to really love the town I live in- Athens is a strange mix of Appalachia and funky independence and college town fun, so it's kind of cool. Definitely better than the suburban sprawl that my hometown was becoming. I grew up in the country but there's a lot of development going on around my parents' place and it isn't my thing. I don't deal well with suburban sprawl and strip malls. I'd much rather have an interesting city landscape or a small town- I live in a world of extremes I suppose.

I've done some traveling but not enough. I want to see the world and behold all of the natural wonders and strange people out there. I think it would be good to start with a little domestic travel in America but I also want to go smoke cigarettes and drink wine in France. I don't even smoke cigarette's on a regular basis. But if I were in France and drinking wine I don't think I could resist. Or Italy. I'd like to backpack across Europe- I feel like that's kind of a quintessential 20-something-year-old thing to do, I just have to get more tips and set aside some money to do it. So for now, couchsurfing across America is a great start.

Oh, my politics are pretty liberal and I'm a little bit of a feministy, equal rights kind of girl. So if you're uptight, racist, homophobic, sexist, or anything along those lines we probably wouldn't get along too well. It's just a different cultural thing I suppose. Although I'm willing to bet most people on this website are a little liberal leaning. Don't get me wrong- I'm pretty law abiding and all of that good stuff- I just don't like oppression of any kind.

I guess that's all for right now- I'm sure I'll think of more at some point and if you ever have questions the best thing to do would be to just ask.

PHILOSOPHY

Well, life is too short not to do something good or positive with ones' life so I think everyone should do something kind for themselves and others. I also do believe in Karma- yogic philosophy is the closest thing I have to a religion- so I try to keep Karma in mind when I engage in action in my life. I'm also a fairly passionate person, which I tend to downplay- and I don't just mean passionate in a romantic sense. I think it's important to care about what you do with yourself and it's important to love life and try to fully engage oneself with the here and now because that's all we have.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

How I participate.. in couchsurfing? Life? Hmm. I'm new to the whole couchsurfing thing as of right now and I'd be looking to travel and can't really host, but if anyone were in Athens I could certainly take them around town. Does that sum it up decently?

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

The only experience I've had with CouchSurfing is listening to a friend of mine who has traveled and used couchsurfing quite a bit tell me stories about it. They're good stories and I trust her judgements, otherwise I'd never really consider it.

Interests

I'm interested in so many things, I'm not even sure how to sum it up! I'm interested in other people- their experiences and stories; where they came from, where they've been, who they've loved- etcetera. I'm interested in doing what I can to make this world a better place; advocating for people who need their voices heard, doing what I can for the environment by riding my bike places, and absorbing knowledge about what's going on in the world.
I also enjoy hiking, the water in almost any form; I worked as a raft guide in West Virginia for two summers but I grew up going to the beach almost every other weekend during the summer. Swimming in freshwater= one of the most ultimate cleansing experiences ever. I thoroughly enjoy drinking coffee, eating good food, playing in the dirt, Southern blues music (slide guitar.. mmmmm), dancing, being passionate about life, to name a few things.

• dancing
• environment
• dining
• cooking
• wine
• coffee
• organic food
• yoga
• drinking
• politics
• traveling
• music
• guitar
• blues
• cycling
• hiking
• backpacking
• swimming
• teaching
• law
• religion
• tourism
• volunteering
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

I go through phases when it comes to books and other venues of self-entertainment. With books I can read 5 in a row and then not read for 5 months. It really just depends. I just finished reading Swamplandia!, which I thoroughly enjoyed. Fiction, so long as it's well written, is something I find thoroughly enjoyable. Louise Edrich is one of my favorites; especially when I want something serious. Currently I'm working on a non-fiction work about the "Last Great Madam" of New Orleans. It's alright- interesting but not a "can't put it down" sort of read.

With movies, right now I'm in a Kung-Fu phase. I go through these. When I was a child Jackie Chan was a hero to me. I grew up in the nineties- what can I say? It just depends on what mood I'm in and who I'm watching a movie with.

And as far as music, really almost anything goes. I grew up with alternative rock and my first experiences with live shows were these underground basement punk shows in DC and Baltimore- and when you're 13 and 14 it sets the stage. I'm a punk girl at heart but you wouldn't necessarily know it by looking at me. I also love love love Southern rockabilly and blues music. You get me listening to some good slide guitar and it's all over. In a good way.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One amazing thing? It's hard to pick just "one amazing thing"- isn't most of life amazing in and of itself? I'd say it's amazing I've gotten to travel the ways that I have. I'm extremely luck and blessed to have had the opportunities to see more of the world than a lot of my peers. True, a lot of people are getting out there and exploring but I still think each experience is unique and great.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'm proud to say I'm a 200-hour Certified Yoga Teacher. I love to share the practice of yoga with others because I think it's one of the best things anyone can do for themselves. So if you'd be into some one-on-one or small group yoga for yourself and some friends then hosting me would be a fantastic thing to do for yourself.

I'm also a certified Reiki practitioner and would love to offer some Reiki sessions in exchange for hosting. Reiki is something that I find extremely accessible as far as alternative healing goes and it can be used for anything.

I also love cooking tasty meals and love cooking for others. Food is a way to fully enjoy life and show appreciation. I grew up eating lots of organic food and try be buy as much locally produced goods as possible because I think it's important to know where your food came from and what went into the processing of it.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Cooking meals, Reiki treatments, helping clean

Countries I’ve Visited

India, Nepal, Spain, Turkey, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States