CURRENT MISSION

To see, smell, touch, taste, hear and learn as much as I can in this brave new world, that has such people in it!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I'm new to couchsurfing and originally made my profile to help me find kind hosts and interesting people during my upcoming year-long study abroad experience in Versailles, France.

Interests

Equal rights, travel, indie rock, dystopian sci-fi, design, humor, winged liner, oil painting, world music, atheism, the Chicago Bulls, people watching, surreality, sea creatures, brain teasers, deep conversations with interesting people.

• design
• traveling
• painting
• music
• world music
• religion
• study abroad

Music, Movies, and Books

Is it sad that I had to consult my own facebook page to fill this out? One would think that it's easy enough to keep track of the things you like, but I guess not. Anyways, my favorite books are Lolita, Brave New World, Animal Farm, Little Women, The Handmaid's Tale, Atonement, Freakonomics, The Hours, Slaughterhouse-Five, and A Clockwork Orange.

When it comes to music, my favorite bands are Radiohead, The Black Keys, Doves, The Beatles, Royksopp, Foals, BRMC, The Flaming Lips, Andrew Bird, Band of Horses, and The Strokes. I also enjoy world music (spanish guitar is just so beautiful) from the likes of Rachid Taha and Paco de Lucia.

TV rots my brain but that doesn't really stop me from consuming a steady stream of British shows like Skins and Misfits, in addition to my love for The Colbert Report, 30 Rock and Weeds.

Teach, Learn, Share

"We can reject everything else: religion, ideology, all received wisdom… but we cannot escape the necessity of love and compassion. This, then, is my true religion, my simple faith. In this sense, there is no need for temple or church, for mosque or synagogue, no need for complicated philosophy, doctrine or dogma. Our own heart, our own mind, is the temple. The doctrine is compassion. Love for others and respect for their rights and dignity, no matter who or what they are: ultimately these are all we need. So long as we practice these in our daily lives, then no matter if we are learned or unlearned, whether we believe in Buddha or God, or follow some other religion or none at all, as long as we have compassion for others and conduct ourselves with restraint out of a sense of responsibility, there is no doubt we will be happy."
— Tenzin Gyatso