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Overview
About Me
CURRENT MISSION
becoming a good writer
ABOUT ME
I was born in Los Angeles, made my home in England, have lived in eight different countries. Was recently in a satellite city of Saigon and then in Tbilisi until the end of December. I'm currently in Bristol, being a vagabond.
PHILOSOPHY
Do what you love. Personally, mine is adventuring about the globe and being with the people I love and staying in touch with the people who matter to me (even when they're not physically present), and enjoying present company. I've gotten through some really difficult times in my life so far, and I've learned it's better to light a candle than curse the darkness. There are plenty of things I dislike, but I refuse to give them my time.
Why I’m on Couchsurfing
HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING
I surf occasionally. I'd like to host surfers but I can't right now. I'm interested in meeting up with other CSers.
COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE
I've couchsurfed in England and met up with other couchsurfers at meetings and parties in LA, Istanbul, Warsaw, and Bath. I've only ever had positive experiences.
I made friends with a couch surfer in Los Angeles, and he took me to a surfers party where I met more surfers, and then I moved to China and became friends with someone who moved to Jinzhou after couchsurfing there. Then I lived with my friend Menno, who was a couch-surfer and often hosted, and I'd help him host when he was doing his pilot thing.
Interests
Reading, writing, cooking, running, drawing, painting, teaching, learning, talking, drinking, people watching, Dungeons and Dragons (but it's been ages), geeking out (Star Wars, Star Trek, Doctor Who, Renaissance Faire-- worked there for four years), exploring cities, camping, the list goes on and on.
- writing
- cooking
- marathon
- running
- drinking
- politics
- movies
- reading
- painting
- drawing
- music
- cycling
- camping
- sports
Music, Movies, and Books
nonfiction; Roxanne Gay, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie T.S. Eliot, Zadie Smith, bell hooks, Audre Lorde, The Phantom Tollbooth, Shakespeare, Austen, About a Boy, High Fidelity, this list also goes on.
As far as music goes, I'm easy and open to new sounds (not into pop music, but I can enjoy it), and what I'm into depends on mood. Mostly some range of blues + rock, folk, classical, Miles Davis, and every now and again: disco. What? It's good to dance to.
Movies: The Kid (Charlie Chaplin), Chicken Run (and everything Wallace and Gromit), anything Hayao Miyazaki, good kung fu, and Sexy Beast. I'm sure there are others, but they're not springing to mind.
One Amazing Thing I’ve Done
Before moving to Georgia, I taught English in small town Jinzhou, in Addis Ababa, Warsaw, Istanbul, Bristol, and Dublin, and Vietnam, and did my MA in Bath.
Another amazing thing I've done is worked at a Renaissance Faire for four years. I was a jester. Telling jokes was not my speciality. I'm a Charlie Chaplin type, more than the verbal wit under pressure.
I ran a half-marathon, though that is not so amazing, and my time was especially unimpressive, but I still did it, post-lobectomy (no, not lobotomy) and with asthma.
Teach, Learn, Share
I have no patience for bigots. There is absolutely nothing I can learn from blind intolerance and an adamant belief in inequality.
What I Can Share with Hosts
I love to cook and talk about travel, music, films, social politics, and sport. I love to explore a city with good company or on my own.
Countries I’ve Visited
Cambodia, China, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Malaysia, Netherlands, Poland, Sri Lanka, Turkey
Countries I’ve Lived In
China, Ireland, Netherlands, Poland, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Viet Nam