CURRENT MISSION

project become worldly: cultural immersion

ABOUT ME

i'm a bit of a cultural explorer and i am convinced it is the people that define a culture. these same people make it beautiful. you might just call me a lover of people. my background is in engineering / optical science. i've spent the past few summers as an intern at a few different NASA centers working with space technology / imaging systems. i strive to be unique and i love self expression. i like to be put in situations where i'm forced to adjust to unfamiliarity. i don't always know how i'll react to certain situations. this process tells me a bit about myself and it helps me grow. this might explain wanting to sleep on a strangers couch half way across the world. this is why i travel. plus, a drunk scottish man at a greyhound station told me i needed to see the world. this one's for you thomas a. king.

PHILOSOPHY

i'm at the point in my life where i want to put myself into a ridiculous situation and see what my fate has in store for me. testing my fate...that sounds about right.

i'm also a bit hooked on the idea of creating a story. new chapter, new characters, new lessons learned. bring. it. on.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

mi casa es su casa. i also spent a wonderful few days with a family i met through CS in Canada. now that i'm back to some out of country traveling, i hope to crash a few more couches.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

as mentioned, i spent a few nights with a canadian family in Ottawa. they were incredible people and were more than hospitable. looking back on it, the mother of the family, though we only met on a few occasions during our stay, single handedly altered the course of my life.

Interests

great whales and sea turtles, space exploration, piano, meeting people that bring to light new questions, culture, searching the world for bizarro mike.

• culture
• technology
• traveling
• socializing
• music
• piano
• engineering
• science
• cultural immersion

Music, Movies, and Books

i'm a big fan of spiritual and philosophical literature. the celestine prophecy tops that list. as far as music, i'm constantly in search of music that can represent my emotions in that moment. usually it's something that makes me feel good. michael franti is a good example. the fleet foxes are also near the top of that list right now.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

i became a NASA employee at 20 years old. last fall over the south pacific ocean, i imaged the reentry of a flaming space vehicle from the window of a government plane. i was on the front page of the twin cities newspaper the day after i was born. i took music lessons from a homeless man. i've spent more than 30 hours straight traveling greyhound. i recently spent 2 weeks living in a Mars research station located in the desert of Utah.

Teach, Learn, Share

i come from a technical background mainly focused on space technology. i'm pretty savvy in that department. the best thing that i can share...good energy and a good hug.

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