CURRENT MISSION

I want to experience the world and then work on changing it.

ABOUT ME

I've just finished college and I'm trying to delay starting my "real life" as an adult. I have a job in Chicago as an Automation Engineer, but before I begin working I'm taking a bit of time to enjoy the things I like to do. Some of the activities I am filling this free time with are: traveling! (obviously), playing trombone and drums in jazz groups, cycling, playing Ultimate Frisbee, reading and learning about things that I didn't have time to study during my traditional education, and spending time with my family. People think that I am currently "taking it easy" before starting my job, but really I've found quite a bit to keep myself busy.

PHILOSOPHY

I'm a pretty positive person. I think I'm the kind of person who could be happy in almost any situation, so I don't stress out about whether I have picked the perfect college to attend or the perfect apartment. Instead, I enjoy what there is to enjoy. I live life to enjoy it, but since I enjoy so many things, it's a pretty easy life!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I just heard about CouchSurfing, so I'm really just starting to participate. I'm leaving for Europe in a few days, so I hope to use CouchSurfing to find places to stay and to meet new people. When I return, I'm sure my good experiences CSing in Italy will make me an enthusiastic host for anyone who wants to visit the Chicago area.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I haven't had any CouchSurfing experiences yet, but I think it's a great concept and I look forward to using the service to meet new people in exciting places.

Interests

Jazz Music - I play trombone and drums, but also love to listen and attend performances in Chicago.

Ultimate Frisbee - It's an intense sport that I try to play as much as I can (usually 1-3 times a week, depending on how many people in my area are interested in a game). I love running around outside and getting dirty and sweaty.

Cycling - I use my bike primarily as a transportation device, but I love racing against cars and tuning my bike(s) so that they remain in good shape.

Robots and Design Engineering - I like to design, build, program, and experiment with robots. I can get pretty nerdy when I try...

Sustainability and Renewable Energy - I've worked on two Engineering projects designing wind turbines, researched fuel cells in Beijing, and I love learning about methods for saving the world. Climate change scares me, but I know that innovation will eventually allow us to slow and stop climate change.

Traveling! - Of course the reason I am on CouchSurfing is that I love traveling to new and interesting destinations. During my education, I have tried to use the resources available to me to send me to places such as China, India, and Nicaragua. I look forward to doing more independent travel as I get older.

• design
• education
• running
• reading
• traveling
• cars
• music
• jazz
• drums
• cycling
• fishing
• sports
• teaching
• engineering
• beaches

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: Star Wars Trilogy (I'm a total dork)

Music: Jazz or anything that grooves

Books: a lot of non-fiction like The Selfish Gene.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I don't know if I would call it amazing, but it was amazingly fun. A buddy and I rented miniature folding bikes and biked up and down the coast of a small town near Dalian, China. We started in a touristy beach area where people from Dalian would take a day off, and ended up biking through tiny fishing villages on dirt roads. We ran into a family on vacation in the area and I managed to use my primitive Chinese (that I had learned during the past two months) to converse with them about where I am from and why we were there. It was awesome to connect with these strangers in a language I barely knew. Combined with biking, it was a great day.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can help you fix your bike.

Countries I’ve Visited

China, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Italy, Nicaragua, Poland, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States