CURRENT MISSION

Making people laugh and eating good food.

ABOUT ME

Howdy! Goodness, where do I even begin?
My names is Tiffany, Tiff, Tiffy or for the non-English speakers who can't pronounce my name, Stephanie :)

I've been living in Texas for the last year and a half. Before that, I lived in California where I worked as a journalist for a local newspaper. I was in the military (Marines) for six years, I interned for Arnold Schwarzenegger during college (and to this day I still have trouble spelling his name right), and have been involved with several community projects.

Right now, I've returned to school to become a nurse with hopes to go on humanitarian missions and opening a clinic. I currently work at a retirement home.

PHILOSOPHY

I know it sounds cliche, but to live life with passion and meaning. Last year there was a car accident in my family, and I spent about 6-months taking care of my family member in the hospital. Since then, I vowed to live life to its fullest potential.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Attending CS events, responding to visitors, recommending places to visit/eat, being active in my local group.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Has always been positive. Because of this site, I've made some really good lifelong friends <3

Interests

Piano and snowboarding. But since I've moved to Texas where there is no snow other than what's in my freezer, then my new hobby is trying different craft beers.

I also LOVE hula hooping. It's my ultimate stress-relief to dance with this hoop. And yes, there are plenty of tricks besides hooping around your waist. I'll teach you sometime! :)

I love photography and own a Nikon SLR. Nikon>Canon...haha! :) Being a former journalist and meeting all types of people, has cultivated my photography skills. I love capturing various images of human emotion on my camera.

• photography
• dancing
• dining
• wine
• beer
• drinking
• billiards
• piano
• snowboarding
• journalism
• nursing

Music, Movies, and Books

I don't really watch movies anymore because of school work! But whenever I get into my extremely girly moods, I'll watch "Gone With the Wind." It's a 4-hour movie so that means I've disappeared from society for 4 hours! :D

Music is my passion! I've been playing the piano since I was 8-years-old. I was trained to play classical music, but can also play by ear. Whenever I see a piano, I MUST put my hands on it. It's like test-driving a new car for me. (Even if the piano is old and has missing keys)

Books: Books? More like TEXTBOOKS. School has consumed my life so much that this is all I'm reading. But my absolute favorite author is John Steinbeck. I love learning about California's agricultural history. The language he uses is so poetic.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Vietnam - Went to a Buddhist monastery and watched a group of young men and women getting their heads shaved so that they can become monks and nuns. It was very touching to witness.

Vietnam - Taught city orphans how to surf through my friend's non-profit organization called, "Spread the Aloha to Kids." We took them to the public pool and had them stand on an inflatable surf board.

Slovakia - Found a central market where I was invited by a group of World War 2 vets to drink wine with them. None of them spoke English and I certainly didn't speak Slovak. But by the end of the afternoon, we were both crying about the loss of war.

Teach, Learn, Share

I work at a retirement home and have learned SO MUCH from seniors. Thus, I thoroughly enjoy the conversations of old people. Word of advice: seek out a HAPPY senior and you can learn so much about how they deal with stress. Seek out an UNHAPPY senior and you can see their inability to accept the inevitable. There is always something to complain about, but why waste your energy on it? (Unless you want to end up as a grouchy senior).

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Cambodia, China, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Poland, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, South Korea, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

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