I grew up in Michigan, in rural towns where half the population was related and every year, without fail, someone rode to prom on a tractor. The humidity and the snow, not to mention the dogma of the people there, never really agreed with me. So when a friend from my high school debate team suggested I move to a small island on the west coast, it was as easy as giving notice and purchasing a one way ticket, and moved to an island that I continue to learn so much from and will forever be a big part of my life. But I can't sit still. After a year and a half, I went to New Zealand on a working holiday visa, arriving just days before the 2011 Christchurch earthquake. A bad time to be a foreigner on a work visa, that's for certain. I had a wonderful 6 month stay before returning to my lovely island. I now work for a company based out of Seattle, and I'll be spending the bulk of my year working in Alaska, returning every couple of months to my lovely island. After the summer season, I hope to get an Australia working visa, as the clock is ticking on that opportunity. I love storytelling, in particular filmmaking, and swapping stories over drinks is, to me, the height of human experience. We live for ourselves and others.