****hey folks! i'm not accepting guests till after august 25th because i'm traveling till then*****

I grew up on the east coast of the USA in Virginia. I've lived in Oakland, California since 2010. I work here as a substitute teacher but my passion lies in poetry.

In some ways I'm a little bit boring: I spend most of my time reading, writing, and studying. But I'm also funny and goofy once I get to know people a little bit. I organize poetry readings and events in the area here. I really like bringing people together. I make an effort to connect with people who are really different from me. I love to chat with people. I love to go out in nature for walks and swims.

I guess I'm a pretty spiritually minded agnostic. I'm fascinated by a lot of aspects of religions and think about the big picture constantly. Ultimately though, I feel like I have no idea what's going on. We could talk about this more if you'd like.

I think people, as much as possible, should really be able to do what they want as long as it doesn't harm others. I'm skeptical of authority and have a pretty socialist / anarchist / communist way of looking at things. I don't go to protests as much as when I was younger but I am still pretty politically minded. I'm accepting of gay / queer / trans folk. I have a pretty low tolerance for racism and sexism. We get way too much of that in the states.

I enjoy cooking a lot. I'm a vegetarian. I'm lucky to live in a place where there is fresh locally grown food available from small farms that's not too expensive. (Hopefully the drought in this area doesn't change that soon.) If you visit Oakland, you can eat well!

I tend to be very friendly with my neighbors, with poets in the area, and with young people in the area. Outside of everything I've mentioned so far, I'm also very interested in basketball, Jazz, and biking. I don't have a car and bike almost everywhere I need to go.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

The reasons I'm here are pretty simple. It's nice to meet local people when I travel. It's nice to help people out when they come to town. I've been fortunate enough to make some really deep friendships with a few people I've met on this site. And that's been a blessing.

Interests

I think I covered this pretty well in the "About Me" section.

• writing
• books
• poetry
• dining
• cooking
• vegetarian
• reading
• traveling
• jazz
• cycling
• basketball
• teaching
• religion

Music, Movies, and Books

this changes a lot, but as of june 2015 i'd say...

books and authors: emily dickinson, james baldwin, gwendolyn brooks, emma goldman's biography, nikolai berdyaev, william blake, robert duncan, there are really too many contemporary poets to name, i also read a lot of radical history, religious texts, books about race and gender.

Music: I love Jazz! Thelonious Monk, Charles Mingus, John Coltrane, Art Blakey, Elmo Hope. A few rock bands I like: Destroyer and Ween. Solo artists I can dig: Nina Simone, Grimes, Frank Zappa.

Films: I watch a lot of films. I've really been enjoying Gregg Araki, Richard Linklater and Spike Lee films lately.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I'll list a few things:

I've written two poetry books. One is called "if you want to be one of them playing in the streets..." and that got published in 2014. The other is called "The Echoes" and I just finished it and am looking for a publisher. I'm proud of the work that went into these books.

One time I almost got beat up and robbed, but then, I claimed to see god and started screaming and poured an entire bottle of water on my head. The guy got confused and I walked away peacefully. I was happy I could divert the energy of the situation and didn't get beat up, and didn't have to fight either!

It's been pretty amazing setting up some of the poetry readings and events I've been involved in. I helped organize poetry event called The Hundy in 2015 where we had 100 poets give readings over a 15 day period.

Teach, Learn, Share

i'd love to learn more spanish. i'd love to talk to people about the communities where i grew up, and where I live now. i'd love to hear and learn about the cultures of the places that I visit, and people that visit me.

What I Can Share with Hosts

friendship. conversation. cooking.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Germany, Ireland, Mexico, Nepal

Countries I’ve Lived In

India, United States

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