ABOUT ME

I've been roaming through different homes globally for several years and am passionate about the arts, culture, and the outdoors. I like to complement life with good company, interesting stories, and exotic food. I enjoy conversations and activities with others who are also curious and open-minded.

PHILOSOPHY

Let us not make art of our lives, but life our art.

Ask questions and listen.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

By letting you sleep on my couch and sometimes sleeping on yours ;)

I was much more active on this site in previous years but have started grad school and a new business which are in different states, so it's been a lot to juggle!

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Making connections around the world happens through individual, first-hand experiences. This community has been a very positive vehicle for meeting people who are actively making our planet a friendlier, more understanding place. The experiences have been incredible, and I hope to continue them for the rest of my life.

Interests

visual art, foreign films, performance, history, mythology, photo albums, environment, dance, cooking, piano, electronic music, theatre, nature + conservation, languages, tennis, climbing, hiking, tramping, swimming, surfing, yoga

• arts
• culture
• performing arts
• dancing
• environment
• dining
• cooking
• yoga
• movies
• tv
• traveling
• socializing
• drawing
• music
• electronic music
• piano
• outdoor activities
• hiking
• surfing
• rock climbing
• tennis
• swimming
• business
• history
• languages

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Bjork, Sia, CSS, Fiona Apple, Grace Jones, Kraftwerk, Massive Attack, Outkast, Missy Elliott, David Bowie, Freddie Mercury, Ladyhawke, Erykah Badu, Tori Amos, Goldfrapp, Radiohead, Roisin Murphy

Writers: Haruki Murakami, Philip Ridley, Vladimir Nabokov, Susan Sontag, Roland Barthes, Tom Robbins, Tim O'Brien, Kurt Vonnegut, Camille Paglia, Vikram Seth

Artists: Tehching Hsieh, Jacob Holdt, Doh Ho Suh, David Wojnarowicz, Rachel Whiteread, Olafur Eliasson, Terrence Koh, Pierre et Gilles, Thomas Demand, Wolfgang Tillmans

Movies/Directors: Peter Greenaway (A Zed and Two Noughts; The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover; Pillowbook Diaries), Gregg Araki (Nowhere; Mysterious Skin; Doom Generation), Wong-Kar Wai (In the Mood for Love), Lars von Trier (Dancer in the Dark), Stanley Kubrick (Dr. Strangelove; Full Metal Jacket), Wim Wenders (Paris, Texas; Wings of Desire), Ang Lee (Lust, Caution), Larry Clark (Kids; Bully)

The Lives of Others; The Diving-bell and the Butterfly; A State of Mind; Blade Runner; Brazil; The Host; Secret Sunshine; The Piano Teacher; It's a Wonderful Life; Poetry

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Hugged a stranger for an uninterrupted 24 hours.
Survived a reality TV show.

Teach, Learn, Share

Something for artists quoted from Mark Staff Brandl: "Follow your own individual dreams and visions. God has given you something to do as an artist. Only you can listen to the voice and find out what it is. Learn about all the ins and outs of the "art business" but don’t take them to be engraved in stone. Just know your enemy. Be smart. Be smarter than those who would control us, work harder, and be of higher quality. Stop kissing ass, and stop viewing kissing-ass as simply "correct career management." Change whatever you can get your hands on. There are no rules. Rules are for mannerist academic sycophants and are used to control you, the artist.

Find ways to build scenes based upon artistic imperatives, support other artists. We are encouraged to compete with one another, yet most other "artworldians" stick together in their individual fields. Make high quality work. Get technically competent. If you don’t know something, or how to do something (like draw), go learn it instead of explaining it away in silly artist statements. Push yourself, intellectually, technically, creatively, morally. Yes, this is an ethical activity, but not in the ways it is usually preached. Attack racism, sexism, ageism (both directions), classism. If you have no enemies, you have never spoken clearly enough. Stop kissing ass."

What I Can Share with Hosts

Cooking meals, photography skills, fundraising and organizing, Scrabble tricks

Countries I’ve Visited

Australia, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Canada, Costa Rica, Croatia, Czech Republic, Ecuador, France, Greece, Hong Kong, Iceland, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Netherlands, Poland, Russian Federation, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany, New Zealand, South Korea, United Kingdom, United States

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