CURRENT MISSION

To be open to anything and everything; to explore and expand my mind; to see and do as much as possible in my lifetime. And to achieve all this through travel...new people and new places.

ABOUT ME

How can you describe yourself in one paragraph? Or even in an entire book? We are all such complex people it would be nearly impossible to include all the details that make up "me". Besides, analyzing is for shrinks :-).

PHILOSOPHY

I've never been particularly religious (though I do consider myself to be spiritual - much different, in my opinion) and hence don't really believe in life after death. For that reason, I believe that everything I want to accomplish must be done within this lifetime. I strive to see and do as much as possible within the little time I have available.

I also believe in the ripple effect of my life. Every person I come into contact with leaves an impression on me, and me on them. Therefore it is up to me to make the best of that impression so that person takes something positive away from the interaction. This is how I live my life: as a good person striving always to be better.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've only ever couch surfed informally before (i.e. not through a service such as this one), usually crashing with people I've met on previous travels. But I've always loved the interactions that come from staying in the house of a "local". Exploring a place through the eyes of someone who lives there is usually a much more rewarding experience than anything gleaned from a guidebook, however complete it is.

Interests

Hmm, learning, all the time, everyday. Seeing new places, meeting new people, the usual. It's hard to narrow down to just a few things.

I also have a particular interest in bringing clean water solutions to people in need. I began this work in Uganda and am now continuing in Indonesia.

• books
• make up
• traveling

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: anything that doesn't make me feel stupider for having watched it.

Music, changes all the time. Depends on the mood, time of day, location. My most favourite thing is to get mixed CDs from friends because inevitably it exposes me to several new artists that I wouldn't have heard of otherwise.

Right now I read anything I can get my hands on that is in English! But recent good ones have included Karen Armstrong's "Holy Wars", Jostein Gaardner's "Sophie's World", Paulo Coelho's "By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept", Rita Golden Geldman's "Tales of a Female Nomad", James Clavell's "Shogun", and Ann Vanderhoof's "An Embarrassment of Mangoes". I love travel literature (of course!) but also anything with a good point and that makes me think.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Sat out a Category 5 Hurricane in the Caribbean. The most interesting/terrifying thing I've ever witnessed. Of course, it's also the reason I don't live there anymore...

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Costa Rica, Cuba, Fiji, France, Germany, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Laos, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Mozambique, Netherlands, New Zealand, Philippines, Rwanda, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States, Vatican City State, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada, Cayman Islands, Germany, Indonesia, New Zealand, Uganda