CURRENT MISSION

To get started on CS.org! To be a major force for good.

ABOUT ME

A few months away from getting my Poetry MFA and I refuse to take myself seriously.

When I'm not writing I spend most of my time working for the Creative Writing Department here in Tuscaloosa (convincing other writers that U of Alabama is amazing).

PHILOSOPHY

"True compassion isn’t an emotional response, but a firm commitment founded on reason..." -Dalai Lama

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I just started Couchsurfing.org. But it seems great so far!

I'm excited to meet engaging, open-minded, brave individuals. My home is open to those who are looking to travel the American South and I hope to meet hospitable people in my travels who do not mind sharing their insights and cultures.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Some of my best memories have come from crashing on couches across the US! It's time for me to make my way to places I enjoy studying.

Interests

Racquetball, book stores, art, reformist political figures, writing (poetry and non-fiction), meditation, the Russian language

• arts
• culture
• writing
• books
• poetry
• meditation
• politics
• traveling
• racquetball

Music, Movies, and Books

Authors - Slavoj Zizek, Kingsley Amis, Dmitri Volkogonov, Barbara Demick, Raymond Carver, Upton Sinclair, Robert Conquest, David Remnick, Barry Hannah, Plato, Tennessee Williams, Cornel West, Ian McEwan...

Poets - Robinson Jeffers, Stephen Dobyns, Connie Voisine, Robert Cole, Kenneth Koch, Mark Halliday, Robert Wrigley, Terrance Hayes, Richard Hugo, Michael Dickman, Ralph Angel, Elizabeth Alexander...

Movies - I'm a documentary buff; also, The Moon Is Our Home, The Cruise, Heaven's Gate, Goodbye Lenin!, Stroszek, Two-Lane Black Top, Moscow Does Not Believe In Tears, and of course, Caddyshack...

Music - My roots are in Lookout! Records stuff; also, The Replacements, Husker Du, Alejandro Escovedo, Marvin Gaye, Leonard Cohen (I will debate long into the night that "Death of a Ladies' Man" is the most underrated album in popular music), Brian Eno, Antonin Dvorak, Mily Alexeyevich Balakirev...

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I traveled the US coast-to-coast in the back of a Nissan Altima stuffed with band equipment. Sleeping on the ground, at strangers' houses, under a train trestle, and Pep Boys parking lots. I ate nothing but peanut butter-- and it was the best time of my life.

Teach, Learn, Share

I've taught creative writing. Focus on contemporary US poetry and Modernist, Robinson Jeffers.

I'm intimately familiar with Southern, Southwestern American culture.

Incredibly interested in Eastern European politics and culture. I could ask questions all day.

I also want to strengthen my Russian. I've been self-teaching for a solid year now. So, I'm still cutting my teeth.

Countries I’ve Visited

Germany, Mexico, Ukraine, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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