CouchSurfing

Cindy and Andy Blair

Current Mission: Planning for the amazing future while remaining in the moment.

Personal Designations

Community Designations

CS Team Member Traveling Ambassador
Pioneer
United States
Colorado
Denver


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General Information
Cindy and Andy Blair is a Traveling CS Ambassador!
Cindy and Andy Blair has been vouched for
Couch availableNo
CouchSurf requests replied to100%
member sinceJuly 31st, 2005
profile views12,378
age33
genderSeveral people
membernameCINDIGO
occupationI am an ex corporate design slave turned slacker when THE MAN burned my brain. Andy my husband is a professional gambler.
educationTraditionally, a BFA for me, and a BS in Engineering for my husband. Both of us have PHD's from The School of Hard Knocks.
grew up inWe both grew up in Arlington Heights, IL a suburb of Chicago
ethnicityBacically American mutts of hodge podge backrounds
Direct Profile URL

Languages

  • EnglishExpert
  • SpanishBeginner
  • GermanBeginner

Groups I Belong To

Housing Austin 376:971
Why: I'm here!
Austin 6026:33286
Why: I'm here!
San Diego County 6038:16040
Why: We'll be moving there in October for six months
Denver, Colorado 3465:13273
Why: denver is awesome!
Active in 70 more groups.

Couch Information


No couch currently available for surfing.

Couch picture

We made it 850 miles of the 2650 of the Pacific Crest trail. After that, the desire to stay in one place was strong. We left the trail and bought a house in Denver. You should come over, it's nice here.

You can see a journal of our hike here: www.walk2650.com

We live in Lakewood, but it's one street away from Wheat Ridge. I know, you're not from here, so that doesn't mean much.

It's about 45 minutes from the airport but there are shuttle buses that will take you a few minutes from our house. It's unfortunate, but everywhere is far away from the airport in Denver.

We have a guest room with a futon, pillows, blankets and possibly a separate room with foster kittens. I work with a local shelter and socialize the kittens until they are old enough to be fixed and then they get adopted. The are only in one bedroom and don't roam the house so if you have allergies, you'll probably be okay.

We also just got a goat. He's pretty cool. Don't worry, he stays outside. We board a horse also. We don't ride him but you can feed him all the carrots you want and pet him. He's pretty cool also.

We don't smoke cigarettes but if you do, you can on the porch.

Downtown is about ten minutes from us by car.

I don't work, and Andy's schedule is pretty flexible so it's possible we could show you around.

If it's not freezing, you can borrow our bikes.

If we can't show you around, we can point you in the right direction. The bus stop is at the end of our street, and although to far to walk, you can see the Denver skyline.

Friends (131)

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Map of friends
Alma VillalobosAlma Villalobos
32, Female
Detroit, Michigan
United States
Friends since January 1940
"dude.... it's Cindigo...doesn't everyone know Cindigo? I mean, you have heard of Cindigo, right?"
Friendship Type: Best Friend
Met in person  
Troy SwezeyTroy Swezey
44, Several people
Las Vegas, Nevada
United States
Friends since November 2004
"We met at a party in 11/04 and have been hanging out ever since"
Friendship Type: Best Friend
Met in person  
Lainie EpsteinLainie Epstein
28, Female
Royal Oak, Michigan
United States
Friends since July 1999
"former roommate and current adventure partner!"
Friendship Type: Best Friend
Met in person   Hosted30+   Traveled10  
Helene LidgeHelene Lidge
74, Female
Arlington Heights, Illinois
United States
Friends since May 1971
"Cynthia is my daughter"
Friendship Type: Close Friend
Met in person   Hosted30+   Surfed30+   Traveled30+  
TANGERINE GAL TANGERINE GAL
102, Female
Los Angeles, California
United States
Friends since August 2007
"2 x Baja, Sequoia camping, hosted and other random stuff"
Friendship Type: Good Friend
I vouched for Cindy and Andy Blair
Met in person   Hosted6   Traveled6  
Nathan MaloneyNathan Maloney
34, Male
Bang Sak, Trang
Thailand
Friends since December 2003
"We have been hockey teammates and good friends for many years now."
Friendship Type: Good Friend
Met in person   Traveled10  
Alex SmithAlex Smith
27, Female
Minneapolis, Minnesota
United States
Friends since June 1984
"I looked up to Cindy as a teenager for many reasons, three being her red eyeglasses, nose ring, and dedication to graphic design and a non-corporate lifestyle."
Friendship Type: Good Friend
Met in person   Surfed4  
ECTOPLASM88 ECTOPLASM88
42, Male
San Francisco, California
United States
Friends since July 2007
"Met through mutual friends"
Friendship Type: Good Friend
I vouched for Cindy and Andy Blair
Met in person   Traveled5  
Zane KreiderZane Kreider
26, Male
Harrisonburg, Virginia
United States
Friends since August 2007
"CS'd with them, and they are close friends of my friends."
Friendship Type: Good Friend
Met in person   Surfed2  
MY FAVORITE COUCH MY FAVORITE COUCH
62, Several people
Norman, Oklahoma
United States
Friends since October 2008
"My Las Vegas children!"
Friendship Type: Good Friend
I vouched for Cindy and Andy Blair
Met in person   Traveled2  

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Personal Description

The short form or...


www.cindigo.com
My blog has about three books worth of information about us. It's more day to day info. I'm always surprised when people read this and know everything about our lives when we meet face to face.


more photos on flickr

Interests

We are perpetual travelers. I (Cindy) like to dance, but I don't go as much as I would like. We like to go out and have a drink or two, but unfortunately and fortunately, (most of the time) we don't party like rockstars anymore. We like to hike, and do just about anything outdoors. We have our own climbing gear and would be interested in taking travelers climbing. It doesn't matter if you're a novice or an expert. I'm a novice, Andy's an expert (like Spiderman).

Philosophy

I always try to be mindful that my words and actions have an effect on things. Being spontaneous, having fun and going off the beaten path doesn't mean being reckless, especially with people and their sensibilities.

Music, Movies, Books

This is one of our favorite radio shows. It's called This American Life. You can listen to it for free via podcast or download.


www.thislife.org


I had trouble trying to describe it. Apparently, they did too. Here's a link to a description of it:


www.thislife.org/About_Radio.aspx


Bands in no particular order (from Cindy). All links either go to myspace pages or youtube videos:

The Gossip, Sia, Cat Power, Tegan and Sara, Le Tigre, Pink Floyd, Electric Six, Tricky, The Crystal Method, Peter Gabriel, Cake, Dolly, and one more Dolly . Colin Hay front man from Men at Work. The Postal Service and judge me if you will, but I (guiltily) like the hot mess that is Britney.

I've almost never met a book I didn't like. Andy is a especially big Vonnegut fan. I can't think of any one writer that is my favorite, but I did just finish World War Z and really liked it. I loved Atlas Shrugged even though it was painfully dense at times. I think the entire book could have been summed up in a pamphlet. I probably didn't even like the book that much. I think I just like the whole idea of a Utopian world of smart people living in harmony raising chickens.

What is the What is a beautiful, funny, tragic moving account of refugee of the Sudanese civil war. I think this one is going on my top ten.

Teach, Learn, Share

Andy will teach you how to climb things and the best things to gamble on. Baseball handicapping and poker are his specialties.


I'm a great cook and like to throw things together that never get created the same twice.

I would love to learn how to swing dance, wilderness survival skills.

One Amazing Thing I've Seen or Done

Driving from Vegas to Kansas just behind or in front of a tornado the whole way. The sky looking like something that belonged over the gates of hell. The quiet, green and electric air. Pulling into Kansas to the sound of air raid sirens.


In the middle of the night, Andy and I hiking alone a total of nine hours in Volcano's National Park. We struggled through sharp and rugged lava rock in Hawaii to stand feet from flowing, splashing lava and burning falling trees.



Alas, we didn't plan and only had a camera phone.



Made it 850 miles of the PCT (a 2600 mile hike from Mexico to Canada).

Opinion on the CouchSurfing.org Project

BEST. THING. EVER.

We've met made so many interesting and adventurous people and had so much fun. It wouldn't have been possible without this site. My experience on this planet has definitely been enhanced. Thanks couchsurfing.com!

Locations Traveled

TRAVELED: China, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, United States
LIVED: United States
WANTS TO GO: Australia


What do these numbers mean?

This summary is not a replacement for reading references; it's a quick summary to help you get started. At a glance, you can see how many references a member has, and how many of them are positive, neutral, and negative.

In the second line, you'll see how many references came from people who hosted this member, surfed with them, and traveled with them. These numbers won't always add up to the total: some references are not categorized, and some may be categorized as more than one thing.

When viewing this summary, don't jump to conclusions! Things that are negative for one person may be positive for another, and vice versa. It's important to read references carefully and evaluate what that information means to you.

References (129)

  • 123Positive
  • 6Neutral
  • 0Negative
  • 29From Hosts
  • 47From Surfers
  • 18Traveling
    Leave a Reference >>    
Augustin_ATX 
From Augustin_ATX
 Austin, United States
 Sep 21, 2011
Met in person Hosted 2 days  
Positive

Leaving another one of many, many glowing references for Cindy - was happy to host her after all the prodigious hosting she's done! We had a very much needed chill two days after Burning Man decompressing in Austin over some great conversation and wine she brought! Thumbs up and gentle winds to ya.

Christina L. Korpik 
From Christina L. Korpik
 San Marcos, United States
 Aug 5, 2011
Met in person Surfed 5 days  
Positive

Cindy and Andy are absolutely incredible people, I couldn't say that with more confidence. I am truly happy I got to spend time with them briefly, stay with them, and welcome the New Year with them by their fireplace and a smorgasbord of Chinese takeout. They were more gracious, welcoming, and generous than I have ever known strangers to be -- allowing us to take their car, taking us for the best sweet potato masala this side of the moon. It was such an honor and joy getting to know them in that time. Before they knew they would be in town for our stay, they offered my friends and I their home regardless of them not being there: if that's not ridiculously awesome hospitality, I don't know what is. I think I am speaking for the entire group of friends I was traveling when I say, these two are not just wonderful hosts, they are wonderful people to know. I will never forget my Couchsurfing experience with them and the memories we made in a short time. Short story: HIGHLY RECOMMEND!

Russell Bernstein 
From Russell Bernstein
 Hoboken, United States
 Aug 3, 2011
Met in person Surfed 3 days  
Positive

It was truly a treat and honor to stay with Cindy & Andy. Unfortunately, Cindy was out of town, so I didn't have a chance to meet her, but Andy was a great guy with really great CS stories to share. It was really nice to be able to play with his goat and to meet his horse as well. They live in a very comfortable home really close to Sloans Lake, which just so happened to be perfect for me since I was attending the Dragon Boat Festival that weekend. I wish I could write more, but I somehow feel the other special surprises that you'll experience should be left as surprises (especially because the level of hospitality I received shouldn't be expected by others). It was a very comfortable experience for me, and I feel grateful to have been a part of their lives.

Emily Zwarka
From Emily Zwarka
 Northville, United States
 Aug 3, 2011
Met in person Surfed 3 days  
Positive

I had the chance to surf Andy's couch. His wife Cindy was out of town the weekend we stayed at their house so I did not get the opportunity to meet her. They have a great house and an amazing space to put up couch surfers. We had some longs hours at work that weekend so I did not get to spend much time with Andy but I look forward to when I am able to come back to the Denver area and hopefully stay with them again!!!

Tommy Danger
From Tommy Danger
 Flatonia, United States
 Aug 3, 2011
Met in person Surfed 3 days  
Positive

Andy was a stellar dude that had a crazy awesome place. Cindy was out of town so we chilled with the horse, kitties, and goatface the goat. He is a very chill dude and has a great place in a great area, if you get a chance definitely surf with them!!!

Octavia and Casper Clarke
From Octavia and Casper Clarke
 Vashon, United States
 Jul 9, 2011
Met in person Surfed 4 days  
Positive

Besides the gorgeous house, perfect location, and friendly pets, Cindy and Andy are incredibly laid back, friendly people. We needed a place to rest up for a few days and they let us do just that. Fantastic hosts and good people.

Elise Coutu
From Elise Coutu
 Toulouse, France
 Jul 8, 2011
Met in person Surfed 1 days  
Positive

Andy and Cindy are really great and funny. They are truly generous and will make everything to help you, and oh, their house is so beautiful !! I really appreciated my stay with them :)
thanks a lot

Tyler De Jong
From Tyler De Jong
 Saint Petersburg, United States
 Jun 7, 2011
Met in person Friend, Surfed 2 days  
Positive

Ah, well... let me tell you about Cindy and Andy. This wonderful couple hosted me for 2 days and I very much enjoyed them. Andy took me rock climbing, he is an excellent climber and taught me a lot within a few hours. Cindy is just as adventurous, she is preparing for a cross country motorcycle ride. They are both very generous and pleasant hosts, I also enjoyed sharing couchsurfing stories which they have a good amount of. I hope to see this couple again in my life, maybe in Denver, maybe somewhere else.

Brad Mann
From Brad Mann
 Denver, United States
 Apr 25, 2011
Met in person CouchSurfing Friend,  
Positive

Cindy and Andy are awesome folks! Never had the pleasure of staying with them but they are hilarious and well-informed and don't have kids which I think is just incredible. Good peeps!

Sean Mcfly
From Sean Mcfly
 Gainesville, United States
 Mar 23, 2011
Met in person Good Friend, Hosted 3 days  
Positive

so, there isn't much to say other than I almost cried when cindibot left. It was probably faulty wiring that caused such emotion but nevertheless, it happened.
Please come visit us wherever we are!


    Leave a Reference >>