*~*I am currently backpacking around southeast Asia right now! So if you're in San Francisco and want to meet up, I won't be able to. Sorry, y'all, have fun in the City by the Bay!*~*

ABOUT ME

I can be very shy and very awkward. I can also be very outgoing and very funny. It depends on how well our personalities match.

Half Filipino and half white, born and raised in America (specifically San Francisco, CA) Lived in the deep South for three years and absolutely loved it. Lived in Chicago for one year and...kind of really didn't like it.

I want to be a more worldly person. I want to read more books and listen to more music and eat more food and meet more people. I hope to meet you soon!

PHILOSOPHY

There's the idea that life is meaningless. That the universe is so vast and empty, and we are a tiny, microscopic, insignificant speck. That even if we become hugely famous and history books talk about us for centuries to come, we will all one day be forgotten.

A lot of people find despair in these ideas. I find freedom and liberation. No one is going to remember us, so do whatever you want. Life is meaningless, so give it meaning. It's so cliche, but it's cliche for a reason! We have this one life to live, SO GO OUT THERE AND LIVE.

A few other personal philosophies of mine:

What do I have to lose if I push myself?

Life begins at the end of my comfort zone.

Bravery is not the absence of fear. Bravery is what I do in spite of it.

Oh, and of course: DFTBA (Don't Forget To Be Awesome)!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

I'm starting to realize I'm a much bigger extrovert than I originally thought. In the last few years, meeting new people and getting to know them has gone from an anxiety inducing ordeal to one of my favorite things to do. And getting to know new people while you're getting to know a new place is just a fun, exciting, wonderful thing.

Plus, staying with someone for free is, you know...kinda awesome. Frees up money to actually go out and spend money on experiences instead of places to sleep.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

When I moved from Chicago to San Francisco, I couchsurfed as much as possible. I stayed with hosts in Des Moines, Denver, and Reno. Not as many as I would have liked, but I am grateful to those who let me stay with them.

I've also been couchsurfing as I backpacked across Asia. So far, I've couchsurfed in Japan, Korea, and the Philippines.

I would love to be able to host, but I've only ever lived with my parents, or with roommates who weren't comfortable with having Couchsurfers stay with us. I dream of the day I have my own place and can let people stay with me.

Interests

I love the ocean. I love swimming in it. I love feeling the sand beneath my toes.

I love animals. I love dogs and cats, but I especially love ocean animals.

I love to cook and bake.

I love going for long drives and listening to music.

I love doing body weight exercises. I love being strong.

I love being alone with a hot cup of tea and a good TV show to watch.

I love watching cartoons and reading comics.

I love talking about portrayal of women, Asian people, and mixed raced people in mainstream American media (although be warned, I can get angry and ranty about this).

I love making people laugh.

I love my friends and my family. I love being there for them and caring for them. I love hugging them and cuddling with them. And I am fiercely protective of them, especially my friends.

• animals
• cats
• dogs
• fish
• books
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• vegetarian
• vegan
• drinking
• comics
• cartoons
• reading
• tv
• music
• fishing
• hiking
• backpacking
• scuba diving
• swimming
• communications
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

MOVIES
Kung Fu Hustle
Spirited Away
Shaun of the Dead

MUSIC
Gorillaz
The Beatles
Gogol Bordello

BOOKS AND AUTHORS
Gail Tsukiyama
Dan Savage
JK Rowling

American Born Chinese
World War Z
Round Ireland with a Fridge

TV SHOWS
Avatar: The Last Airbender and Legend of Korra
Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul
Parks and Recreation

FOOD
Ice cream
Ice cream
Ice cream!

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

HOW CAN I PICK JUST OOOOOONE?

Hiking through the desert in Moab, Utah, where the sky was so blue and the rocks were so red.

Seeing the glow worms in Waitomo, New Zealand, where the ceiling looked like it was covered in bright green stars.

SCUBA diving with manta rays in Komodo, Indonesia, where we rode a current to see the giant, amazing animals, most of which were hovering in the water like there was no current at all.

Visiting an abandoned insane asylum in Korea.

Teach, Learn, Share

This is going to sound random, but I know a ton of stuff about keeping a fish tank, particularly a saltwater fish tank.

I'd also be happy to teach people how to cook and bake.

I'm also into bodyweight training, so I can teach you how to get strong using nothing but your body. No weights, no gym. Just you, your body, and maybe a chair.

Also, I can ramble off a huge amount of scientific factoids.

What I Can Share with Hosts

If I stay with you for longer than a night, I will make you a meal. I have some recipes that are vegetarian, vegan, and gluten-free friendly. However, I am an omnivore, so my best recipes tend to contain animal products.

I have been told I am a very "easy" person to host. Need me out of your place for a few hours? Done. Can't let me into your home until late at night? That's fine. Need me to leave at 5AM? You got it. Wanna go hit the bars until they close? Sounds fun. Feeling like staying in and going to bed around 10pm? I'm down. Do you smoke and drink? Rock on, bro. Stone cold sober? I can dig it. Whatever makes my host happy makes me happy. I'm just grateful you're letting me stay with you.

I love exploring new cities, so you can show me around, or I can find us stuff to do together that maybe you've never done before.

I also used to be a zookeeper, so I can entertain you with all my wacky animal-related adventures.

Countries I’ve Visited

France, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, North Korea, Philippines, South Korea, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

•