I like to think of myself as part artist/intellectual and part caveman lumberjack.

I'm a botany wilderness ranger in the north woods during the summer, and in the winters I've done a variety of things, including teaching downhill skiing to kids, volunteering on an ecology project in Central America, and a job in New Zealand that involved the holy trinity of chainsaws, mountains, and helicopters.

I love spending time with family and friends, and I also love traveling all over the place with new people.
Quintessential middle child about pretty much everything, and master of none.

People and wilderness are the most important things in my life.
Baby bunnies are my kryptonite.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm here because my travel ambitions extend far beyond sitting in a hotel watching tv or taking stock photos of famous monuments.

I'm here because I have loved cooking food in kitchens and playing music on porches and finding not only suggestions for what I should check out while I'm here, but meaningful connections, new friendships, and memorable experiences.

And I'm here because I love paying that forward and having great conversations and adventures with people passing through my neck of the woods.

Interests

Obviously traveling (roadtrips, backpacking, exploring),
writing and reading,
taking pictures,
people, always,
wilderness, camping, hiking, river trips,
all sorts of art, music and instruments,
biology and philosophy and the entire world,
cooking and grocery shopping and food,
social norms and breaking from them.

• writing
• photography
• cooking
• yoga
• guitar
• hiking
• backpacking
• camping
• whitewater rafting
• biology
• philosophy
• psychology
• wilderness
• people
• exploring
• museums
• climbing
• kids
• caving
• whitewater kayaking
• roadtrips
• dancing (i am terrible)

Music, Movies, and Books

movies: Spirited Away, Boyhood, Amelie, Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Chasing Amy, American Beauty, The Emperor's New Groove, Garden State, Leroy and Vlad, Wizard People Dear Readers, Lion King, Waking Life, Up, The Fall, Waltz with Bashir, High Fidelity, Moonlight, old Disney cartoons.

books:
The Rubaiyat, Born to Run, A Handmaid's Tale, Wild (Strayed), anything by Palahniuk or Vonnegut, The Diary of Anne Frank, HitchHiker's Guide, The Crucible, Spoon River, Madeleine L'engle, Ten Days in a Madhouse, poetry by Ginsberg, Tony Hoagland, Pablo Neruda, and Mary Oliver,
plays by Shakespeare and Tom Stoppard,
short stories by Boze, and, predictably enough, Harry Potter.

music: Joanna Newsom, Dessa, Tom Waits, Rainbow Kitten Surprise, Fiona Apple, Jason Isbell, The Dresden Dolls (Amanda Palmer), Johnny Flynn, Josh Ritter, Tash Sultana, Todd Snider, Glass Animals, Trampled by Turtles, Charlie Parr, Radiohead, Bob Marley, Bright Eyes, Led Zeppelin, Regina Spektor, Bob Dylan, Townes Van Zandt, AC/DC, Neutral Milk Hotel, Modest Mouse, Fleet Foxes, SRV, Kimya Dawson, Sublime.

games:scrabble (becca scrabble!), take (bananagrams?), pictionary, isketch, egyptian rat screw, peanut butter, kickball, articulate/catchphrase, mariokart/mario party, lode runner, lego wizard people, "the drawing game" (for lack of a better title?)

shows: I don't watch a lot of TV, but I have a soft spot for South Park and the Planet Earth series, and I enjoy the occasional SNL episode.

other: Radiolab, TED, The Moth, and This American Life! Pretty much any educational podcasts.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I floated the Grand Canyon section of the Colorado River a few years ago!

What I Can Share with Hosts

I usually buy or make dinner for the people I stay with, but I can also help with chores or cleaning, and I can sometimes help fix broken things.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Italy, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Panama, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

New Zealand, United Kingdom, United States