Hi! I am currently getting my PhD in Sociocultural Anthropology at the University of Arizona in Tucson. I'm married to an awesome guy who is a welder and artist, and we have a dog named Meatball and a cat named Nueve. I was born and raised in Tucson, and lived briefly in New York City before realizing I needed a lot of sunshine in my life! I was lucky enough to spend every summer of my childhood in Italy (my dad works there), so I began traveling at a young age. Being an anthropologist is great because I am able to visit many places and spend a lot of time getting to know different people and cultures. I have done fieldwork in Guatemala, Louisiana, and all over Arizona. My dissertation research is on the meanings of work for incarcerated individuals - I study individual experiences of prison labor. It's an intense topic but the people I work with make it worth it!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Because I travel a lot for graduate school (either doing fieldwork or attending conferences), I happen to be in a lot of new places. I much prefer to spend time with local folks who know the area and offer great conversations as opposed to spending time in hotels. Although my house isn't big enough to host guests, as I travel I hope to meet as many friends out there as possible -- if you're ever in the beautiful desert I call home, I am more than happy to give out recommendations of what to do!

Interests

I take a lot of pictures - I supplement a small grad student income by shooting weddings and other portrait events.

I like reading, hiking, camping, exploring cities on foot, and eating dessert!

• cats
• dogs
• photography
• reading
• traveling
• hiking
• camping
• hunting
• anthropology
• emergency services
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: I listen to anything, really, but prefer music with a good bass line.

Movies: I use movies as a form of escape, so I tend to like movies that are silly and funny.

Books: My three favorite authors are Ursula K. LeGuin, Margaret Atwood, and Kurt Vonnegut. I make time for fiction books even though I'm in grad school and spend the majority of my time reading philosophy.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I became a certified wildland firefighter for my dissertation fieldwork. I study the meanings of prison labor for incarcerated individuals, and I am using the inmate wildfire fighting crews as a case study (I can tell you more about it if you want). In order to do what anthropologists do - participant observation - I had to become a firefighter to hang out with the guys and collect data. So far I've fought 8 wildfires, and will add more to that list by the time I'm done with data collection!

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach photography tips and tricks, and how to bake really delicious cookies and pies.

I want to learn about people's lives! Also how to say fun words in other languages.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belize, France, Germany, Guatemala, Iceland, Italy, Mexico, Spain, Switzerland, Virgin Islands, British

Countries I’ve Lived In

Italy, United States