CURRENT MISSION

We must listen to those whose world we intend to change

ABOUT ME

We got married in 2010 and were reminded after a year of personal loss in 2011 that life's too short not to explore this big wide world. We embarked on a long-term dream trip in July, 2012 with no specific itinerary or timeline and returned home at the beginning of March, 2014. We surfed for the first time on the trip after hosting for years, and we sure have some damn good stories as a result!

Over the last few years we've added a fixer-upper house, a son, and a dog to our responsibilities. And although the traveling has changed, it hasn't stopped.

Leah has been fortunate to see a great deal of the world through work and personal travel, including her time as a Community Health Volunteer with the Peace Corps in Gabon, Africa. She's passionate about books, camping, HIV/AIDS and youth development (but cockroaches, eyeballs and claymation freak her out). Steve is a born and bred Southern California boy and he plays electric guitar, volunteers with dogs, and schemes about DIY house projects.

PHILOSOPHY

Remember to breathe, take one day at a time, pay it forward, never turn down a new food or experience, and enjoy the ride.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

We're constantly telling our friends and family about the sheer genius of CS and how it's been such an amazing experience since we joined. Having been both hosts and surfers, we understand the expectations on either end and always try to pay the kindnesses forward that we've benefited from.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

We've hosted for years in San Diego and started surfing in the summer of 2012. In fact, our very first CS experience was during our honeymoon in Aruba when a local CSer took us to a friend's BBQ and another friend of his gifted us a rental car for the day (free of charge!) to explore the island. Since then we've never looked back and the constant generosity in this community never ceases to amaze us.

Interests

We're both voracious readers, into travel, family, hiking, camping, British pubs, dogs and food of every shape, color and size. Leah loves the color green, women's/GLBTQ issues, a good gin and tonic, hummingbirds and documentaries. Steve loves watching and playing live music, trail running, true crime shows, spy novels and landscaping.

• dogs
• fish
• documentaries
• coloring
• dining
• cooking
• running
• traveling
• music
• live music
• guitar
• outdoor activities
• fishing
• hiking
• camping
• surfing
• trail running
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: Lord of the Rings, Fight Club,The Departed, No Country for Old Men, Babel, anything directed by Pedro Almodovar, Indiana Jones, Bollywood, James Bond (the Sean Connery and Pierce Brosnan years), foreign films, documentaries, Casablanca (and most old black and white movies), Bourne Trilogy, comedies.

Music: Guster, all Oldies, Indian pop/Bollywood, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Incubus, Soundgarden, Deftones, Mastodon, Pantera (that's Steve's for sure), some country, Stone Temple Pilots, Paul Simon, India Arie, Beatles, Steve's metal bands (Lead Burns Red and Rev)...we'll give pretty much anything a listen.

Books: J.R.R. Tolkien, Harry Potter, The Alchemist, The Help, Half the Sky, 44 Scotland Street Series, Bill Bryson, Stephen King, Charles Cumming, George R.R. Martin, Stephen Fry, Paulo Coelho, Shakespeare, Stieg Larson, And the Band Played On...Leah's biased toward non fiction and Steve prefers fiction, but we'll both read pretty much anything we can get our hands on.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Leah: Traveled around the world on a ship for 4 months in college while studying, engaging in community service, home stays and trips when we docked in 9 different countries. Semester at Sea is a part of my soul.

Steve: Playing in a band is the most amazing thing I've done...some shows were bigger than others but it's an experience of a lifetime. I urge everyone to try something out of their comfort zone...

Both: Sleeping in an outdoor "human nest" in Big Sur, California overlooking the ocean and falling asleep to the sounds of elephant seals was pretty surreal. But then again, so was working on a husky sled dog farm in Finnish Lapland for almost 3 months high in the Arctic Circle...

Teach, Learn, Share

Leah likes cooking and Steve's a self-taught musician, so between us we're sure we could find some knowledge to share. We'd even be happy to make fish tacos for you-a San Diego food staple.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Armenia, Aruba, Bolivia, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ecuador, El Salvador, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Georgia, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Northern Ireland, Panama, Peru, Poland, Romania, Seychelles, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Gabon, United Kingdom, United States

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