CURRENT MISSION

To see the world and figure out my place within it.

ABOUT ME

I'm that kid in grade school who would rush to the front of the line for recess and calmly explain to anyone who tried to cut me that it didn't matter what order we stood in because we were all going to the same place.

That's kind of the philosophy I still hold today. I take silent, meaningless pride in being the first person to experience something. More typically I find myself among the few who can say that they have done a certain activity at a specific location that most people who have visited that place did not do or did not even fathom doing in the first place.

I want to make the most out every situation. I approach everything I do with a positive attitude. For me, everything is "not a problem," a phrase I increasingly hear the more I travel outside of America. My main travel philosophy is if you're there, why not do it? Tell me when you're going to come back, and then I'll tell you it's a good idea to wait.

I also believe that one of the best ways to learn about another culture is through the cuisine, and I love trying out new foods and flavors when I travel in order to have the most authentic experience possible.

I lead my friends on adventures around New York. A few years ago, we visited all five boroughs in one night. More recently, my adventures take us to neighborhoods with high populations of people of foreign descent, and we sample as much local food as we can to learn about those cultures.

PHILOSOPHY

The meaning of life is the never-ending search for beauty in all of its forms.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I am able to meet for coffee or drinks or to show someone around the city so we can share our experiences and learn from each other.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

My only CS experience is a CS party I attended here in Dublin. It was a blast!

Interests

filmmaking, piano, traveling, exploring, adventuring, hiking, good food, cooking, staying up all night, long conversations, wandering around cities (especially at night--there's really no better way to get to know a location in my opinion)

• culture
• theater
• film making
• beauty
• festivals
• dining
• cooking
• coffee
• partying
• drinking
• movies
• traveling
• piano
• hiking

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: anything P. T. Anderson (Boogie Nights, Magnolia, Punch-Drunk Love, There Will Be Blood), anything Quentin Tarantino (Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill, Vol. 1 and 2, Death Proof, Inglourious Basterds), anything Wes Anderson (Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic, The Darjeeling Limited, Fantastic Mr. Fox), Fight Club, The Big Lebowski, It's a Mad Mad Mad Mad World, Singin' in the Rain, Amelie, Superbad, Snatch, Lock, Stock, and Two Smoking Barrels, A Clockwork Orange, Eyes Wide Shut, Thirst

Music: Ben Folds, classic rock, anything funky or that has soul. Recently I've been into Sam Sparro, Mika, Elbow, Squirrel Nut Zippers, Car Stereo Wars. Also I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks, especially from the 3 directors I mentioned above.

Books: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Jurassic Park, Angels and Deamons, all 7 Harry Potter books

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I sneaked into the 2007 New York Film Festival on three separate occasions. If you dress in a suit and tie, no one questions you. The first night I was there after attempting to buy tickets to a "sold out" show, I discovered one unlocked door near the front of the theater. I saw the Bob Dylan biopic "I'm Not There" and listened to a Q & A with the actors and director afterward. The theater had at least 50 empty seats, and I sat unnoticed on the side.

The next night I went back with 3 friends. We all dressed up, and one by one we filed through the open, unmonitored door. We all saw the New York premiere of No Country for Old Men followed by a talkback with the Coen brothers and many of the actors. Two nights later I went back again, this time with my girlfriend, to see Margot at the Wedding, again with the Q & A.

I got to see three great films and hear about the process that went into all of them from the filmmakers themselves, a great experience for any film student or anyone! All of this was made possible by my initial accidental discovery of a flaw in the system.

Teach, Learn, Share

Off the top of my head, I know how to load a 16 mm camera. But I love sharing what I know with others. Most knowledge is useless if I keep it to myself, but if I can teach someone else, then that person can share that tidbit of information as well. We're all just trying to make the world a better place.

Countries I’ve Visited

Bahamas, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, Morocco, Sweden, Taiwan, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Czech Republic, Ireland, United States