I'm from the US, and have lived in Rwanda for the last 2 + years. I'm in a chapter between chapters? Figuring out what is next. I love being a part of international community - all our connections and similarities, and our large and small, nuanced and radical, differences. Of course I like comfy things - friends, family, food, warmth, new experiences.... and, I also find value in, and feel committed to, facing the uncomfortable - injustice, contradiction, inequity, the small and also huge challenges we face (and create) as humans.

I'm new to couchsurfing, but it seems rather like home. In previous, slightly distant life chapters, I WWOOFed in various countries, hitchhiked my way around, attended a Waldorf (Steiner) school until I was 13.

I'm easy going and easy to please, at least in the context of couchsurfing! I enjoy connection, getting to know people. And sport, art, fresh food, light and serious conversation, going out, staying in, learning new things, being helpful, being social. Humor and laughter!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Most everything about it seems better than the alternatives - a gift - getting to know people who would otherwise might not cross your path, getting to know a place, getting out of your own routine. I like sharing the real, and cultivating open minds, together.

Interests

Professionally, I'm interested in design and global health - specifically, how programs, projects and products can be better designed to meet human needs (both patient and provider) in increasingly complex systems and settings; and, how this can be done in ways that are intrinsic, and in which ownership, power and expertise are curated and conferred with intention and, as trite as it sounds, deep respect for difference and human experience.

Personally, I like coffee and love riding bikes. Running, swimming, yoga are not quite the same, but I'm quite happy doing all. Cooking and new foods, dancing, live music, making art (mostly drawing and photography), projects that create something (home renovation, gardening, pottery). Trying to hew out more time for writing and reading. I like being challenged - physically, intellectually. I don't fit in a box, and feel peace around juxtaposition and contradiction. I'm as human as the rest of us and of course loose sight of it sometimes, but I think we're always capable of growth and compassion.

• arts
• writing
• design
• photography
• dancing
• dining
• cooking
• coffee
• yoga
• running
• gardening
• reading
• pottery
• drawing
• music
• live music
• cycling
• sports
• boxing
• rock climbing
• swimming

Music, Movies, and Books

I just saw Stromae in Kigali. Absolutely Fantastic. His lyrics engage serious meaning as he pushes the edges of so many themes around culture, identity, sexuality, gender, power - while, simultaneously, his beats get everyone dancing. All. Night Long. Beyond impressive.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Recently, its the little, mundane things that seem somehow more amazing than the feats. I'd love to hear your amazing stories! and likewise have some great ones to tell ... but I'm finding myself allured by the small things lately, like trying to go to sleep an hour earlier so that I can feel amazing the next day? So far, and hilariously, this had proved to be far more difficult than, say, climbing a active volcano, but, I'm working on it.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Making dinner? Wash dishes? Conversation? A bike ride? A night out on the town?
Or just being chill and quiet and not taking up space.

Countries I’ve Visited

Burundi, Canada, Democratic Republic of Congo, England, Guyana, Haiti, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Rwanda, South Africa, Spain, Tanzania

Countries I’ve Lived In

Rwanda, United States