Okay, here's how we're gonna do this. I asked a bunch of people who know me to tell me who I am because I was intensely struggling, and they were all way better at it than me. So we're gonna start with those up top, because they're way more pleasant to read than what I've typed (since I type the way I talk and the way I talk is a mess.)

------------------------------PART 1: AND NOW, A WORD FROM OUR FRIENDS------------------------------

◘ "Extremely cool memelord. 10/10 would friend again. Hates cops which is a plus."

◘ "Ianthe is the kind of person who you will become your best friend so fast that you’ll forget that you’ve known her for 3 hours and not 3 years. [Also kind of like] the witch that tried to eat hansel and gretel, minus the trying to eat you part"

◘ "Pink, opinionated, bright, open minded and accepting of diversity. Forward thinking and soft hearted."

◘ "Ianthe is a social justice globetrotter. I deeply admire their bravery and their advocacy work. The world is better because of who they are and what they do."

◘ "Penchant for tangents."

◘ "The human impersonation of the best rave you've ever been to but the lasers are mostly pink"

◘ "Ianthe is a hard-working goofy soul who makes my heart skip beats. The only bit of her more vibrant than her beautiful pink hair is her sparkling personality. Also, she's really good at sitting on the floor watching CSI and eating soup and making beaded bracelets. Knows all the words to I'll Make A Man Out Of You from Mulan and 11/10 recommend her blanket forts."

◘ "Pink haired, nerdy, excited about things that interest them?"

◘ "I find you to be creative and funny and welcoming and capable but requires reassurance and healthy companionship to create a positive environment. Also loves Joaquin Phoenix."

◘ "WELL. I think you are creative, accommodating, honest, high knowledge of what's currently trendy with pop culture, great taste in music/movies, passionate!"

◘ "Your humor is super obscure . You're like a beacon for people with any kind of issue. Like I feel like literally any emotional problem I could have, you've probably posted about at some point, and when I found out my daughter is autistic, you were just a wealth if knowledge and like the only person who wasn't "I'm so sorry!"

◘ "Be aware of what the boundaries are, stay within the lines n all is good. Cross the lines n then the most unexpected shit will happen. Funny only to those on the right side of whatever the boundary was you just crossed.

Ianthe you would give your shirt off your back to a person in need. You can drink n get high. At. The. Same. Time. Any conversation is great because you're educated and opinionated and can express yourself.... When you feel like it.

You do the artsy crafts stuff when you have the inspiration. But you also got a job n do that shit too.
I'm not sure what we're looking to say exactly. Are we warning ppl or encouraging them lolololololol"

------------------------------PART 2: ME, ACCORDING TO ME------------------------------

I'm autistic, have ADHD, anxiety, PTSD, and some other nonsense going on. I'm mixed, I ID as Belizean Kriol, and gender is a mystery to me. I have a full-time job at a disability rights organization. I own a Bluetooth waterbottle. My social clique has always been like, large circle of nerdy white dudes who LAN Halo 2 or play Magic (I have TOO MANY Magic cards) so I watch a lot of dumb Let's Plays and ugly laugh to the point of tears and I figured I should just own up to that.

I talk kinda weird because I think syntax is too much work and I've accidentally begun to rely on like, quotes from Vines as a way to communicate without even realizing it so if I'm saying something that sounds like nonsense I will not be offended if you tell me can you repeat that so I can understand it (I do Plain Language writing at work, so, no worries.) If I reference something and you don't get it, my immediate inclination will be to show you the thing because communicating via pop culture references is a sizeable chunk of how I express any thoughts.

I have eight fewer teeth than the average human being, and at least seven of those teeth have cavities; for those of you playing along at home, statistically speaking, I fucked up.

If you read this far, congrats, you can have a small souvenir of your choosing from my apartment.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm an extrovert with social anxiety which is incredibly infuriating because I want to be friends with everyone but like, everyone is... outside, being not autistic and it's a lot of work to go outside and pretend that I definitely know all the hip societal social cues and haven't just learned them by acting like Goodall among the apes.

Also, my fiance was recently denied entry to the US because of some nonsense, so my apartment is like... hella empty and it's taking a toll on me. I like having people around, and I've got a couch and a big ol' TV and just about all the things you need. Or at least I WILL have all the things by the time you're here.

I love people. I've been traveling for a while and meeting amazing people but never been a host. Now's as good a time as ever!

Interests

I'm way obsessed with Harry Potter. I've got a full Ravenclaw student uniform and wand and I'm working on making book covers to disguise some books as Hogwarts textbooks. I'm just REALLY into canonical accuracy and it makes me happy, whatever.

I have an entire room dedicated to crafting! I make magnetic poetry sets, 1" buttons, themed multi-color crayons shaped like gems, and potentially more stuff if I just sit down and get organized.

I can pretty much MacGuyver a solution to anything and I looove doing that. Cardboard has SO many uses if you try hard enough.

Otherwise, I cycle through obsessions, but the one that will never cease is brainstorming incredible plans and doing massive worldbuilding that never gets used for anything. And I write angsty poetry sometimes.

• graphic design
• diy
• crafts
• harry potter
• dc comics

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: https://www.last.fm/user/ephydria
Movies: https://letterboxd.com/ianthe/

Books:

I like stuff that REALLY utilizes the medium, that's kinda the only fiction I'll read is stuff that doesn't just tell a story, but really pushes the bounds of what is capable only in the book format. (like Raw Shark Texts, Infinite Jest).

Vast majority of what I read is nonfiction though, because like I said earlier, I'm only really into fiction that does more than just deliver on a narrative arc. If I just wanted a fictional story, there are media I prefer to consume it in. If the book could be easily transposed to a screenplay, I'm out of there.

I don't come away from most fiction feeling like I gained anything. But I love narrative nonfiction like Sin in the Second City, Devil in the White City, Confederates in the Attic. Also social psych like Buyology or Nudge, just books that are like "humans do things. but why? HERE IS WHY." Malcolm Gladwell's good for that, too.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I've met Tommy Wiseau twice and he signed my copy of the original script of The Room

Teach, Learn, Share

I don't know what this section means but I can teach you how to make some sick crafts that involve melting stuff and using gloves that can withstand 900 degrees F

(...it's for making crayons.)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Like, when I'm surfing? I can share my infinite knowledge of every app and lifehack you'll ever need - for example, the reason punks like me sew with waxed dental floss is because it's 3x stronger than regular thread, and you can heat the ends of it with a lighter to melt the wax together so it'll never come unraveled.

I'm full of useful stuff. And useless trivia.

Countries I’ve Visited

Belize, Canada, Iceland, Mexico, Poland, Portugal, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States