CURRENT MISSION

Connect with the Seattle Couchsurifng group and learn more about CouchSurifng in general

ABOUT ME

I cultivate kindness and generosity in my relationships with other people. My hobbies include cooking, reading, playing guitar, playing with my cat, and hanging out with my boyfriend, Sam. I looove camping and getting out of the city, but grad school has me tied pretty tightly to Seattle these days.

PHILOSOPHY

Be kind, try very hard to love people and meet them where they are at, and remember that being alive is a gift. Lest you get the wrong impression, my "philosophy" as described here doesn't necessarily come easily to me every single day, but I try.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Initially I joined couchsurfing.org as part of a research project about computer mediated communication. A friend told me that CS is not just for traveling--there's an active Seattle group that regularly gets together. I'm in the process of moving right now, but I've begun meeting CouchSurfers in the Seattle group and it's been enlightening!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I'm new to the site and just moved to a new apartment, so I'm doing academic research on couchsurfing, meeting people in the Seattle community, and preparing to start hosting. I couchsurfed in Portland a few times through friends of friends (not CS). I love hosting people in general (though I have not hosted anyone through CS yet) and most recently had a cross-country-biking friend of a friend crash in our den for a few days.

Interests

Meeting people, traveling, camping, cooking, cats, children, nature, painting, art, writing, reading, communication, pottery (buying, not making).

• animals
• cats
• birds
• arts
• writing
• cooking
• recipes
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• pottery
• painting
• guitar
• cycling
• backpacking
• camping

Music, Movies, and Books

I love movies in general--I studied film in undergrad and was exposed to a lot of great stuff. Post-school, I tend to be less discriminating and take it all in. I veer away from anything that involves gratuitous violence towards women in particular (sorry, but Lars von Trier is a no-go). I love poetry (Charles Simic is my favorite), short stories (there's a great collection from a writer in Arizona called "My Date with Satan"). I like Dirty Projectors, Grizzly Bear, Neko Case and PJ Harvey. and I tend to acquire music just by listening to what my friends play. I'm not an active, Pitchfork-reading music seeker, but I deeply appreciate those of you who are.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I spent a month backpacking in Thailand with a friend. We went to Kao Suk national forest, and hiked through the jungle. We saw many animals, and we heard some kind of wild cat in the brush (it might have been a tiger) growling at two huge horn-billed birds. It doesn't like a big deal, but it was an amazing moment for us, and I'll always remember the sound of that growl.

Teach, Learn, Share

If you stay with me, I can show you some chords or give you tips on training cats to do tricks. We can trade recipes--I love to cook.