My name is Lawrence Frederick Kauffman and I am a guy who loves to meet new friends and learn about the world, especially different cultures and languages. I love to make new friends and live to learn, and especially want to make the world a much better place. Helping people is one of my cherished values and I am really trying to leave this world a better place than I found it. I believe that we can all do so much more to help each other, individually and collectively, and that all of us will benefit from it in the short-term as well as the long run. And really, what else are we here on earth for if not to enjoy what the late RFK (Robert F. Kennedy) called "this same short moment of life" and "to make gentle the life of this world," as our mission? At least, it works for me. I hope to meet lots of others who may agree with this, or keep an open mind about it.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I read about Couchsurfing.com online and it seemed like a great way to travel the world and meet new friends, and a way to give back something to good people who share with each other. This website is filled with kind and generous people who love to share experiences and knowledge with each other in a friendly, informal setting and it just seemed like the place for me. I look forward to traveling around the world in the next year or two and wanted to introduce myself to the couch-surfing community beforehand. Please forgive me for not being able to host you, as I live in a high-security environment owned by my employers in the rare coin/gold/silver business and the insurance and security companies forbid guests--so very sorry!

Interests

I love animals, especially dogs: my dog was my very best friend growing up and I have never forgotten him. I love meeting new people, especially those from different cultures and speaking different languages, and making friends all over the globe. I am very sorry not to be able to host you because I live in a high-security place owned by my employers (rare coins, gold, silver,etc.), but I would if I could! Making new friends, reading, traveling, drinking, and learning new languages are my favorite hobbies. I also love politics and political campaigning, and also the history of political campaigns; unfortunately, however, politics is not all that nice usually. I am a huge fan of the Kennedys because they brought out the very best in people and tried so very hard to bring people together instead of force them apart by playing groups and individuals against each other. If I could invite all of the good people of the world to one big party and make it last forever, that is what I would do. I also do credit repair as a second job, and this makes a very big difference in people's lives: if you knew how much interest you could save by repairing your credit report and raising your score, you would do it now! I work seven days a week now and look forward to paying off all of my own debts and then opening my own store, and expanding my credit-repair business. In another couple of years I intend to go to law school and fight the good fight for many good people, especially in election law and politics. Another very important goal is to start my own third political party in America that will reach out to all people and bring them together in a spirit of goodwill, uniting together for absolutely incorruptible government, peace at home and around the world, and for the benefit of humanity. I especially want to ensure that vaccinations for existing diseases are made available at affordable rates for all citizens of humanity around the globe and to develop new ones for emerging diseases as well as existing diseases for which there are currently not (yet) vaccines. Finally, I am going to start my own free university for all nice people that want to learn, make new friends, and make this difficult world a much better place for good people. For myself, I just want to be appreciated while I am alive, have a great and fun time, do a tremendous amount of good for the good people of the world, and hopefully, be remembered after I am no longer alive, and not be forgotten.

• animals
• dogs
• books
• environment
• running
• partying
• drinking
• clothing
• politics
• reading
• tv
• traveling
• surfing
• soccer
• biology
• business
• history
• languages
• law

Music, Movies, and Books

Meatloaf, David Bowie, The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Live, Talking Heads, Pat Benatar, Duran Duran, and generally, classic rock 'n roll are my favorites. Books that I love include the Bible (I won the National Bible Contest as a youth and just participated in the International Bible Contest for Adults this past year, but lost!), The Leader and the Damned (WWII spy thriller), The Fifth Horseman (modern Middle Eastern spy thriller), How to Win Friends and Influence People, The 48 Laws of Power, and lots of historical works, including historical fiction. I devour anything related to the Kennedys, as they are my favorite political and cultural figures in modern America. Ancient history is one of my favorite historical areas, and also WWII and the modern Middle East. My favorite films are JFK, Schindler's List, Michael Collins, Nixon, The Eagle Has Landed, Where Eagles Dare, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica (the original movie and the original TV series), Masada, and so many others...My favorite TV shows are Batman (the original 1960s series), Star Trek, 24, The West Wing, House of Cards, Borgia, and House. I love getting drunk with good friends and watching movies and TV shows.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Getting naked during a speech as student president: When I was Student President at the University at Albany, New York, I was giving a speech standing on top of a truck at a football tailgate party and the crowd started cheering me and demanding that I take off all of my clothes. So I gave the people what they wanted and finished my speech, becoming the campus hero for years afterward! (I couldn't buy my drinks at the bars ever again--they all let me drink for free or bought it for me...what a great bunch of friends and compatriots, really! It was the best time of my life, and I owe it all to the students of Albany.) Then I defended myself at my resulting impeachment trial, and won! (This is even after they presented a video of the entire incident. BTW, it was a cold day and the shrinkage factor may not have done me justice...) This was the craziest thing that I have ever done (probably) and it made campus history, as well as the local TV and newspaper accounts. People still talk about it!!!

Teach, Learn, Share

I absolutely love to learn and to teach others what I know, from history and foreign languages to politics (especially political history and actual real-life campaign tactics and strategies) to just enjoying life. My friends and employers will tell you that I always try to deliver more than I accept, and that if I like you, I simply cannot do enough for you--I am amazing with helping friends in college or any other educational setting (including grade school, high school, even law school and medical school--I read everything so I can help you with almost anything). My ideal experience is sitting back with some good friends and a glass of Scotch or Irish whiskey (preferably Jameson or Tullamore Dew) on the rocks with a book in my hand, a dog at my feet (or on my lap), and a good film on the screen.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I have a wealth of knowledge in various subjects that I am very happy to share (e.g., history, politics, English conversation and composition, foreign languages, archaeology, biology, algebra) and also a very valuable professional skill in this difficult economic crisis--credit repair. I can teach you how to repair your own credit report by using existing laws to challenge negative information on your record (even if it is accurate, I can frequently get some or all of it removed) or even do it for you, if you prefer. Of course I can provide numerous solid professional references, as sensitive personal information privacy is of paramount importance. Above all, I can be a good friend and listener and share fun times and great learning experiences. I am also great at networking, connecting good people with each other: everybody has something to offer and I can frequently connect people in touch with others with similar interests and corresponding needs. If you need help with schoolwork I am usually the go-to guy: in college my fraternity brothers and plenty of others would always come to me for help because I have been a perpetual student, a certified genius IQ (forgive the boast, please!), and a guy who just likes to help others in time of need.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Greece, Israel, Sweden

Countries I’ve Lived In

Greece