CURRENT MISSION: Living life to the FULLEST, and spreading joy!

I want to continually experience new and exciting people, places, events, and challenges! I love to have fun adventures, play sports, cook, and help others. I will always promote open-mindedness, curiosity, and appreciation of others.

I strive to be well rounded and to learn about the world and other cultures first hand. I'm easy going, clean, thoughtful, respectful, empathetic, and appreciative! I love teaching English while living abroad, and I will always yearn to learn.

PHILOSOPHY:
"The more I learn, the more I realize I don't know." Albert Einstein
“People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Theodore Roosevelt
"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness." Mark Twain,
“The best teacher is experience and not through someone's distorted point of view.... Be thankful for your experiences." Jack Kerouac
"A journey is best measured in friends and smile rather than miles." Tim Cahill
"It's always best to leave people better than you found them." Jordan Harbinger

I love the Holstee Manifesto, everyone should read this and everyone should pursue their own unique dreams:
“This is your life. Do what you want and do it often.
If you don't like something, change it.
If you don't have enough time, stop watching TV.
If you are looking for the love of your life, stop; they will be waiting for you when you start doing things you love.
Stop over-analyzing, life is simple.
All emotions are beautiful.
When you eat, appreciate every last bite.
Life is simple.
Open your heart, mind, and arms to new things and people, we are united in our differences.
Ask the next person you see what their passion is and share your inspiring dream with them.
Travel often; getting lost will help you find yourself.
Some opportunities only come once, seize them.
Life is about the people you meet and the things you create with them, so go out and start creating.
Life is short, live your dream and share your passion.”

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have had many wonderful travel experiences with CSers. I like to meet, surf, and host. I currently live in Madison, but in 2017 and 2018 I lived with friends in Hanoi, Vietnam and we used my friends profile to host at our house (Giang Do). I think learning firsthand from locals is the best way to learn about another culture, and I can learn something from everyone I meet. I'm eager to meet more great couch surfers wherever I go.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE
I've met several couchsurfers in Europe, North America, Latin America, and now Asia. Almost all couchsurfers I meet are wonderful people, and many are truly amazing! In my experience they are also wise, open-minded and eager to exchange fun parts of our cultures and backgrounds. Remarkably every couchsurfer I've ever stayed with or hosted has been great, and some have changed my life!

Back in college, I worked at the office of international education and I have stayed in contact with many great friends from around the world. I have stayed with longtime friends and often their families in most countries that I've visited. If it wasn't for those old friends, I'd use Couchsurfing a lot more often. I love to learn about new languages and interesting food, but my favorite reason for traveling is meeting new, interesting and fun people.

Interests

All Sports, outdoor adventures, the environment, reading, movies, cooking, traveling, photography, games (Learning Backgammon, Go, and Catan), and languages. I'm interested in many many things, and I love to listen to other people's stories. In general, I yearn to continually learn.

• books
• photography
• education
• environment
• dining
• cooking
• cheese
• beer
• fitness
• meditation
• movies
• reading
• team sports
• traveling
• juggling
• podcasts
• music
• outdoor activities
• hiking
• kayaking
• sports
• basketball
• rock climbing
• tennis
• volleyball
• table tennis
• badminton
• teaching
• languages
• sharing
• bicycling
• ethnic food
• wellness
• teaching english

Music, Movies, and Books

MUSIC: Beatles, Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton, Led Zeppelin, U2, Manu Chao, Radiohead, Modest Mouse, Franz Ferdinand, White Stripes, Skrillex (for running), Danger Mouse, Coldplay, Muse, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole, Avett Brothers, Norah Jones, Courtney Barnett, Sylvan Esso, Miles Davis, Mozart, and local acoustic music wherever i go (I'm very open-minded)

Non-fiction: Tim Ferriss, Michael Pollan, Michael Lewis, Dale Carnegie, Bill Bryson, Malcolm Gladwell, Seth Godin, John Maxwell, Walter Issaccson, David McCullough. Freakonomics, 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, Sapiens, It's Not About the Bike, Finding Ultra, Born to run, Into Thin Air, Into the Wild, cookbooks, biographies.

Fiction: Lee Child, John Sandford, Robert Crais, Robert Ludlum, Stieg Larsson, and many classics

MOVIES: Pulp Fiction, Godfather, Caddy Shack, Braveheart, Good Will Hunting, Matrix, Amelie, Hero, Cidade de Deus, Bourne Identity, James Bond, American Gangster, Avatar, Catch Me If You Can, The Departed

Podcasts: Tim Ferriss Show, Americas Test Kitchen, TED Radio hour, Stuff you should know, Freakonomics radio, NPR all songs considered, BBC global news, The Economist, Motley Fool, Revisionist History, Trailblazers, The $100 MBA, Ben GreenField Fitness, The Daily Show

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Jumped off a cliff with a parachute in the Slovenian Alps, and in San Gil, Colombia
"Blackwater" kayaking thru caves in New Zealand and Belize.
Shark feed dive sans cage in the Coral Sea.
Teaching English and climbing Mt. Fuji in Japan.
Teaching/tutoring independently in Vietnam for 2 years.

Teach, Learn, Share

Life is what you make of it so be proactive, have a positive attitude, keep an open-mind, share your passion, and live your dream!

"The things you do for yourself die with you, but the things that you do for others and the world live on forever." Ken Robinson

If you are going to travel to a new area it's obviously smart to find out if there are areas to avoid for safety sake. However sometimes you just don't know, so i think it can be a wise idea to carry a small spare wallet. This is advice from an FBI investigator and world traveler... If you sense danger and someone wants to mug you, you can CONSIDER throwing the wallet in the opposite direction of your best escape route. Include a few notes of local currency so a would be thief doesn't feel screwed over and vengeful. Most would be muggers don't want to hurt you, they just want your valuables. This can buy a person enough time to get back to a safe public place. Obviously it's best to avoid dangerous neighborhoods, and this isn't applicable to every situation, but its an idea worth considering.

Travel light -- one carryon bag and one "personal item" (smaller daypack) is the way to go whenever possible.
I also have a tiny 10 liter backpack that when empty can be stuffed inside its own stuff suck and becomes smaller than a tennis ball. Its a Quechua brand from the International Decathlon store, and cost me about $5usd, but I use this often once i get to a location. It's super lightweight, and then i can say no thanks when a vendor wants to give me a plastic bag. This is also a great gift idea in some situations.

"Our lives are not determined by what happens to us, but how we react to what happens; not by what life brings to us, but by the attitude we bring to life." Wade Boggs

“The best moments in our lives are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times… The best moments usually occur if a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile.” Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi (Me-hi CHEEK-sent-me-hi-ee)

Hmm, I likely can't teach how to have a great concise profile.

What I Can Share with Hosts

This depends on how long I've been away from home, but I always try to bring a taste of Wisconsin with me. I love to share great beer in moderation, and yummy cheese.

If I'm visiting a host outside of the USA and they are not one of my first destinations, I always love going to local markets and trying new and interesting foods and drinks. If i can use your kitchen, I'd enjoy cooking a meal for you. I will do my best to fulfill requests and in general, I love to share.

I was previously a phy-ed teacher and if you have any interest in juggling or spinning poi I'd be thrilled to teach the basics of those fun activities or other sports.

Lastly, I love music, books, audio books, e-books, podcasts, and a list of thoughtful quotes. I like to share these too if you are interested!

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Austria, Belgium, Belize, Cambodia, Canada, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, Denmark, El Salvador, Fiji, France, Germany, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Mexico, Monaco, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nicaragua, Poland, Singapore, Slovenia, South Korea, Switzerland, Taiwan, Thailand, United Kingdom, Vatican City State, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Japan, United States, Viet Nam