CURRENT MISSION

"To see the world, things dangerous to come to, to see behind walls, draw closer, to find each other, and to feel. That is the purpose of life."

ABOUT ME
American energy professional, solar evangelist, and occasional couch philosopher. Having witnessed the slow death of fossil fuels, I swore allegiance to the kilowatt-hour with an oath tempered by the greater ideal of a decarbonized grid.

Is what I would say if I took myself too seriously...

"My country is the world, and my religion is to do good."
— Thomas Paine

Life hacker by nature. Random, spontaneous, and wired a little differently if polyphasic sleep actually worked long-term, I'd have cracked the code by now.

I thrive in high-energy, dynamic environments: the kind where you're jumping out of planes one weekend and deep in a spreadsheet of utility rate structures the next. Rock climbing, the outdoors, the unconventional, that's my pace.

Cuisine is still the great equalizer for me. Anthony Bourdain had it right: show up somewhere new, sit down with strangers, eat what they eat, and you'll understand more about the world than any textbook could teach you. Ten years later, that hasn't changed.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Ten years away and I came back because nothing has replaced it. Not Airbnb, not Instagram travel, not anything.

I want to be the best host I can and open my home to share a meal, show someone my city the way a local would. And when I'm the one with a bag on my back, I want to be the kind of guest worth remembering. But more than any of that, I want to sit across from someone whose life looks nothing like mine and actually listen.

Couchsurfing gave me some of the most unexpectedly important people in my life. People I met for 48 hours who I'd call family without hesitation. That's not something you stumble into anywhere else.

Interests

• culture
• writing
• cooking
• chocolate
• farmers' market
• movies
• socializing
• music
• drums
• karaoke
• outdoor activities
• fencing
• rock climbing
• lacrosse
• comedy
• energy work

Music, Movies, and Books

Films I return to: Catch Me If You Can, Lord of the Rings, Dune, Idiocracy, Kung Fu Hustle, Project Hail Mary, Kill Bill, The Matrix, Children of Men, The Big Lebowski, Pig, and anything with Nicholas Cage

TV: The Boys, Attack on Titan, Miyazaki, Invincible, Better Call Saul, Black Mirror, Mr. Robot.

Music is all over the map: Rise Against, Oasis, Sam Ryder, Muse, Chris Cornell, Bring Me The Horizon, Spiritbox, Avenged Sevenfold, Slayer, Young the Giant, Frank Sinatra, Pink Floyd, The Beatles, Metallica, Marvin Gaye, The Isley Brothers, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Sleep Token, Breaking Benjamin, In Flames, Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, Beck.

Books that stuck with me: Born to Run, Pillars of the Earth, A Cook's Tour, Fight Club, Sapiens, Man Search for Meaning, Anything by Albert Camus.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I got to cook a dinner for Queens of the Stone Age.

I survived riding passenger on scooter in Rome during rush hour, driven by a Roman.

I got a personal tour of Stockholm by Miss Sweden.

I drove through the entire island of Corfu in a Smart Car.

Teach, Learn, Share

I love the exchange of ideas and skills, always have. People have called me a "renaissance man" my whole life, which I've come to understand is a polite way of saying I can't decide what I want to be when I grow up. Fine by me. I can walk you through a chocolate soufflé or the proper mechanics of breaking someone's arm, and I'm genuinely enthusiastic about both.

These days I spend a lot of my time helping people navigate the energy transition — solar, battery storage, what it actually means for your wallet and the grid. But ask me about anything else and I'll probably have an opinion.

Countries I’ve Visited

Albania, China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Kosovo, Macedonia, Morocco, Norway, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States