CURRENT MISSION

Exploring South East Asia and enjoying life in Bali

ABOUT ME

After becoming disillusioned with a "career" lifestyle in the US-- I quit my job and moved to Bali, looking for an adventure. I was super fortunate to be put in touch with the right people and was quickly hired as an English teacher in a national school. After the laws changed at the end of my first year, I was no longer eligible to teach (as I had gone to school for chemistry and now an English degree was a requirement).

This turned into a great blessing as I was free to join a team of parents and educators looking to start a new school with a unique approach to learning. This August we are excited to begin a new school year with a curriculum that emphasizes creative and experimental learning as well as cultural exploration by travel.

I was also fortunate enough to find excellent ticket deals thanks to Air Asia and Expedia-- so I'm traveling SE Asia, Bali-Vietnam-Bali-Thailand-Abu Dhabi-Berlin- New York for under 1000 USD. I never thought of myself as a traveler, rather more of a homebody, but through this experience I am learning so much about the world and how fun adventures can be.

PHILOSOPHY

Agorism. I believe in voluntary, peaceful exchange of goods and ideas. I absolutely reject the use of aggression (except in appropriate defense of one's own self and belongings). I believe in self-determination and individualism but not in an isolationist sense. Individualism in that if one perceives an idea or action as right (so long as it does not aggress against other) then that action or philosophy should be tolerated. I celebrate this type of self-determination as a major contributor to human diversity.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have only just become aware of the awesome couch surfing community so I have not had much experience other than joining the local Chiang Mai group for a cliff jumping expedition-- but I'm excited to get right in. While I am currently traveling back to the US for my brother's wedding, I am looking forward to hosting at my home in Bali and continuing to meet exciting adventurers this coming September.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Met up with some Chiang Mai couch surfers last weekend to go cliff jumping. I met amazing people with super cool stories and they gave me the courage to jump!

Interests

I am super interested in political philosophy, specifically libertarianism and anarchy. I took some time and did a self study of Austrian economics which I really enjoyed.

I love learning about the history of different cultures and seeing how people all around the world have overcome oppressive imperialists. I'm fascinated by the resolve of so many different people groups and how resilient human kind is.

• culture
• dining
• cooking
• traveling
• surfing
• cliff jumping
• chemistry
• economics
• teaching
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: Jason Bourne, LOTR, Ocean's trilogy
Books: The Little Prince, ASOFAI, Man Economy and State, Power and Market
Music: Electronic, Folk, and sometimes some hard rap beats.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I snuck away from the group I was in an climbed to the watch tower at the Hue Citadel in Central Vietnam. It was strictly forbidden so its cool that I'm one of a very few people that have seen the world from that perspective in over a century.

Teach, Learn, Share

I am a great lab technician, I taught organic chemistry labs to uni students. I love cooking Vietnamese food-- that's where my dad is from and the culture I grew up in, so its something I am very familiar with.

I love learning. More or less about anything, if someone is engaging and excited, I am like a sponge trying to take in all in.