ABOUT ME

I am free-spirited yet disciplined in the practices that give my life purpose and fill my soul with sustenance. I like to be challenged and inspired every day. I am a fiery opinionated redhead who talks before she thinks probably too frequently, but I have a big, big heart and an open mind that tones that down a bit.

PHILOSOPHY

As Thoreau puts it, I choose to "live deep and suck out all the marrow of life." Everything I do in my life I do as fully and with as much as my being as I can. I am a seeker of the truth within myself, and I follow this to sometimes dark, scary, very human places that constantly humble me. I don't have a choice in running from my imperfections-I either have to embrace all of life's vast mysteries or live in a secure, dull private world occupied only by me. Couch surfing is one way i hope to embrace them.

Interests

Yoga, meeting new people, reading!

• culture
• yoga
• running
• meditation
• reading
• surfing
• scuba diving

Music, Movies, and Books

Atlas Shrugged is my favorite book of all time, closely followed by the Fountainhead. I am an insane reader and love any form of art that touches that raw place of aliveness within myself.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Breaking anonymity here-the most amazing thing I have ever done was gone through the Twelve Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. I heard recently in some review that the Western world's biggest gift to humanity in the 20th century was the 12 steps and I'd have to agree and also add it has been and continues to be the biggest gift in my life. I have been clean and sober for almost three years and that is still the most important fact of who I am and how I live my life every day. God is so good to me.

Teach, Learn, Share

I stay grounded with daily yoga and am diving deep into the world of ashtanga yoga, Sanskrit, and meditation. "Oneness exists simultaneously with differentiation." There are universal principles and truths connecting us all, but different external conditions allowing us to arrive at these truths from different paths. I hope to learn about someone else's path through couch surfing-their culture, insights, and lifestyle. Would love to share my own insights and the practices like yoga enabling me to reach them.