People can be so great! My dad’s been telling me my whole life that everyone is out to screw me (the bad kind), and yet, I keep seeing people do great things for each other! Since my journey has relied heavily on building networks of people, connecting with people, and even the kindness of people, I thought I would go and meet (and get a couch invite from) Keith Ferrazzi, the man who (literally) wrote the book on connecting with people: Never Eat Alone.

Keith’s presentation was great, and he talks about how people connect with people, and everyone wins.  Here’s the ultimate proof.  While signing books (his new book, Who’s Got Your Back, is already a New York Times #1 Bestseller), one attendee, David Goodrich, mentioned to Keith that he would like to someday sing the national anthemn in front of a large crowd at a sports event. The following is what happened immediately after!

If you have a sporting event, and would like to hire David, or send him fan mail, e-mail him at: goodrich9@gmail.com or call him at 972.470.0332

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I caught a clam!

I like clam chowder… but I never knew where clams came from (I knew it was something water-related), and I didn’t even know that clam chowder was a potato based soup!  I learned a lot in Oregon!  Turns out that in Coos Bay, Oregon there’s plenty of clamming to be had… you just need a license, to know your (legal) limits, have a shovel, your own bucket, and if you’re smart (unlike me), then you bring some friggin boots to warm you up, and prevent hypothermia :). Kat (the uber awesome lady I was staying with) introduced me to Marty Giles… a nature guide.  Marty has a business called Wave Crest Discoveries, where she’ll take you out clamming, kayaking, whale watching, etc….  I got to go clamming for the 1st time, and I videotaped it for you! Read the rest of this entry »

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I thought that my interview skills improved because I’ve been doing so many of them… It turns out that part of it is the chemistry that you have with the interviewer!

Meet Ingrid Vanderveldt: she’s hot, she races motorcycles, she starts companies, she jumps out of planes, she interviews famous entrepreneurs (like me :)  ), she laughs at my jokes!  What else can you ask for?  I got it– she gives great interview!  I learned that when you get along with your interviewer, you have a fun interview!  This is my most fun (set of) interview(s) thus far. Read the rest of this entry »

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Meet my friend Allison Nazarian.  I met her back in the day… before Twitter… Before I couchsurfed!  But, we became buddies over the last year.  Now, she’s like a sister. This is a fun video we shot while I was couchsurfing at her place (instead of my parents’) when I came to visit my bro for his graduation in May.

Click to play

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I drove 23.5 hours from Las Vegas, NV to Austin, TX. I discovered a few things in the process.
1)Pay attention to time zones when calculating a journey!  The 2 hours I thought I’d have to nap along the drive did not exist… as Vegas is 2 time-zones behind Austin. I made it right on time to go tubing, but had absolutely 0 sleep.
2)Caffeine Pills (from Walgreens) work better than coffee!  You don’t know how strong your coffee (at gas stations) will be, you don’t need to worry about burning yourself or making your car sticky with spilled caffeine pills, and… best of all… they seem to last longer without making you crash.  Why is that?  Because gas station cappuccinos are nothing more than a lot of sugar, and a splash of caffeine.  I love them, and there’s a new flavor even!! Bannana Foster…. mmmm… but… again, all sugar, so.. there’s a crash later.

So… what did I do in Vegas? Read the rest of this entry »

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Bull Poker at its best

I admit, this started out as a conversation where Katherine Hoppe (My incredible host in Coos Bay, Oregon) said to her friend Julie Miller (My incredible host in Bandon, Oregon) over dinner (I had Elk Burger… a mini-adventure, trying something new), “So… what kind of an idiot would get involved in this thing called Bull Poker?”  and she described it a little….. So, I raise my hand, and say “Gosh! That sounds like fun!”  Yet, when I decided to do it, I thought it’d be a great adventure…. something rare enough, to where I never hear of  it… a rush that’s cheaper than flying to Spain, and a new experience to share with you, dear reader.  I assure you that this was one of those things that I didn’t tell Mom & Dad until after I lived through it. Read the rest of this entry »

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