"Love, and do what you want." -- St. Augustine

"Overcome evil with good, falsehood with truth, and hatred with love." -- Peace Pilgrim

"The world needs dreamers and the world needs doers. But above all, the world needs dreamers who do." -- Sarah Ban Breathnach

I'm trying to imagine a better world, not one based in convenience and pleasure for the privileged, but one that we would all be proud to live in.

Unity through love, vulnerability, awareness, community, and the example of inspired action.

The only things we must sacrifice in order to be happy are our misconceptions and the limits of our imagination. Daily practice and long-term investment are invaluable. Open up and let go. Balance.

My instagram: @urbanstarfield

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Traveling energizes me - experiencing the unexpected... and remembering the beauty of diversity and the universality of kindness restores me. When I'm not travelling, connecting with travelers, who are generally curious and open-minded, is the best way I have found to experience the spirit and energy of travel without being rootless myself.

Also, I want to learn and grow in the way that the challenge of meeting with different people from different places provides. I want to have conversations about Peace, what it is and how we can work toward it.

Interests

Music, meditation, spirituality, practicality, simplicity, community, biking, camping, hiking, education, permaculture, restorative justice, disaster relief, and peace.

• education
• cooking
• running
• meditation
• technology
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• camping
• agriculture
• economics
• teaching
• volunteering
• simplicity

Music, Movies, and Books

WORDS: "Siddhartha", "The Chosen", "Atchafalaya Houseboat", "Peace Pilgrim", The Dalai Lama's "How To Practice", Vonnegut, Wendell Berry, Charles Eisenstein, Buddha, Daniel Quinn, dystopian fiction.

SOUNDS: Drums and brass, folk (cajun, irish, bluegrass, old time), swing, Tom Waits, Noah Gundersen, Fleet Foxes, "All Is Full Of Love", David Bazan, Bonobo, Ratatat, Explosions in the Sky, Beirut, Cake, Iron & Wine, Bon Iver, Beats Antique, Explosions in the Sky, Sigur Ros, Lucius, Otis Redding, Allen Toussaint, drum and bass, live and inspired funk, afrobeat, jazz, dark folk, delta and desert blues, world music, radical street bands, KEXP, KBCS, AM 1260, silence. I discovered dancing when I discovered soul music. The commercial for Monster Ballads. Epic Rap Battles of History.
Jam of the moment: "La Malagueña", Rafael Méndez and Laurindo Almeida

FILM: "Moonrise Kingdom", "Alone in the Wilderness", "12 Monkeys", "This Is the End", "The Legend of 1900", "The Big Lebowski", "O Brother, Where Art Thou", "I Heart Huckabees", "Patch Adams", "Brick", "The Motorcycle Diaries", "The Sound of Noise"

TV: How It's Made, Junkyard Wars, Sherlock Holmes, Black Mirror, Continuum, The 100, dystopian sci-fi.

FOOD: Anything grilled or smoked, bok choy, kale, avocado, watermelon with mint, horseradish, cayenne, fresh fish, chocolate wine, Greek, Indian, Thai, pho.

PODCASTS: This American Life, Radiolab, Science Friday, Snap Judgment, Making Contact, Sustainable Human.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I have completed two 10-day silent retreats for Vipassana meditation in Onalaska, WA, where deer roam casually among the forest and meadows and gravel (Eightfold?) pathways. (dhamma.org)

I have spent a year working as a teacher in a county jail.

I have spent a year working in an elementary school -- tutoring, playing, cooking, serving, crafting, and joking.

I have spent a year working for a technology startup in England.

I once feared for my life when faced by an aggressive flock of sheep on the west coast of Ireland.

I have had the opportunity to travel to Japan and assist in relief efforts by working with a small team of individuals to repair a home for a family of three over bento boxes, banana smoothies, and many cups of tea.

And I have helped build a school out of trash and manure in Guatemala. It's far more amazing than it sounds.

I've spent afternoons with inspiring, uncanny individuals who are sincere in their pursuit of living life better and are patient and kind and loving right down to the core.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can teach IT, music, and basic bike maintenance.

Right now, I'm particularly interested in learning about agriculture/horticulture, economics, and history.

I can make a decent gumbo.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Ideas, mostly. Songs. Meals.

Countries I’ve Visited

Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, England, France, Greece, Guatemala, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, Spain, Turkey

Countries I’ve Lived In

Ireland, United Kingdom, United States

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