CURRENT MISSION

Discovery and sharing

ABOUT ME

Living the adventure, cultivating compassion. I love this world and am enjoying traveling & exploring it! I finally made it to Myanmar, Singapore, Hong Kong, Bali, and Taiwan--I'd only been as far as Israel and Turkey before, and I really wanted to see some of Asia! I'm in CA now but Chicago was home for a while; after getting my Masters there I worked for a bunch of research centers, taught children's music, worked at a yoga studio & a farmer's market and did a lot of salsa dancing until the west coast called me back. Ultimate frisbee, gardening, biking, hiking, singing, cooking, drawing/painting, soccer, and almost any kind of dance occupies my time & interest.

PHILOSOPHY

Cultivate the mind *and* the heart.
Live the adventure--learn, laugh, love.
You'll always have what you chose to do.
You'll receive what you give to the world.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I love hosting and surfing; I haven't made it to the get-together events but I can't turn around without inviting a new friend (usually from salsa dancing!) to check out this amazing organization.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've been hosting and surfing since 2008, mostly in the US (hosting in Chicago, San Francisco-area, and Seattle-area; surfing all over)--though I did get to stay with a host in Istanbul, Turkey this summer & meet a lot of other CSers there; it was awesome! I love the opportunity to experience a slice of someone else's life, and see what unfolds, and what I can learn. For example, once, I was hesitant to host a surfer who didn't have any references. I decided to go for it, and he turned out to be a designer for men's fashionwear, coming to Chicago to do summer "trend-spotting" before he went to Milan. Though menswear was his specialty, he took photos of my entire wardrobe...after making me Hmong-style eggs! What a cool experience. Another time, in SF, I hosted a young lady from China who just getting started on CS. She taught me how to make awesome Chinese food and even how to pronounce some of the dishes in Mandarin. It was so exciting to learn something new and different! The cultural exchange on CS is the best.

Interests

Yoga, all types of music, all types of dancing, soccer and ultimate frisbee, swimming, hiking, biking; gardening (flowers especially), cooking & baking, drawing and painting, reading, exploring the world, meeting new people, sharing.

• singing
• performing arts
• design
• dancing
• salsa dancing
• dining
• cooking
• baking
• yoga
• gardening
• flowers
• reading
• traveling
• painting
• drawing
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• surfing
• soccer
• swimming

Music, Movies, and Books

Books for pleasure: Anything by Tamora Pierce or Robin McKinley; what can I say, I love lots of different types of books...Books for study: (ask me in person)There are so many musics for so many contexts! for laughter: I like nearly any parody by Barely Productions: The Key of Awesome, DYAC gets me in stiches; for dancing: Salsa & bachata, "classical" music (ballet), minimalistic music (for modern), hip-hop etc.; I love all types and am up for listening to/dancing to/playing something new!There are many types of films I enjoy, especially ones that focus on a historical/cultural/social issue (like Schindler's List, or The Help) & are artistically done (i.e. Days of Heaven); but I also like to kick back with something fun & light once and a while. I go dancing a lot more than I watch films...

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Slathered myself in black mud at the eerie, aptly named Dead Sea in Israel.

Chased a mugger across a busy freeway in Chicago (I was barefoot, in a dress) and got my purse back.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'd love to share a thing or two about cooking--from chefs giving demos at the farmer's market & tips from the kitchen of the french restaurant in Chicago where I worked, it'd be a pleasure! I've done some landscaping, house remodeling, and my two academic degrees are in music, so I'm happy to share music theory, philosophy, and a bit of performance if you're up for it. And I'm *always* happy to share yoga... join me for a few sun salutations?

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Myanmar, Singapore, Spain, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ireland, United States

•