I grew up in the Pacific Northwest, worked my way through college, studied and travelled abroad, moved to Silicon Valley, and along the way had enough adventures to be ready to settle down.

I'm a sweet, thoughtful girl-next-door type, with a dark wild streak underneath. I spend a lot of time with my family (sister and parents) and a circle of close friends. I spend more time creating things than consuming them. I don't end up caring deeply about everyone I meet, but when I do, it tends to last a long time.

I work as a social media product designer/manager, which means I spend a lot of time analyzing "fun" and "social" and looking for insights about human nature through our technology usage patterns.

I enjoy hiking and backcountry camping. I like to get to secluded spots and sleep under the stars. This summer I took long road trips through the country to visit Arches, Moab, and Mesa Verde and the Oregon coast. I feel due for another trip to Yosemite soon.

I'm willing to try any new hobby, but the only 2 that have stuck with me are meditation and guitar. Both help me relax and touch base with something deeper than my runaround thoughts. I actually only started learning guitar because I like to sing, and practicing guitar is really the only excuse for sitting around my living room singing on a regular basis.

Also, I'll be honest: what I'm *not* doing is spending a lot of energy on dating sites, so, please do message me, and I'll message you back if it seems like there might be potential, but I'm not, like, checking every day, so it may take a while. I apologize in advance, I know these sites can be kind of brutal.

Trying new things
Staying level-headed
Laughing at myself
Telling the truth
Sensuality

I get "intelligent" a lot (I credit the eyes); and "confident" (I credit the smile)

Lets start with whats most important here, shall we?

Food & drink: I like to cook when there is someone to cook with otherwise I'll go out and find
- Really good whatever-is-good-locally ( in Austin its breakfast tacos and BBQ, in SF burritos and pan-asian, in Seattle seafood and sushi...)
- Belgian Beers
- Artisan Ice Cream

Music:
-90s bands. All of them. Too many to list, really. If you were into the pixies, pavement, built to spill and elliott smith we might be soul mates.
-bands involving anyone I know or have met. I like supporting people who are real people.
-singer songwriter stuff

Books/movies/shows:
I honestly don't read all that much anymore, and only watch what can get for free on the Internet. But, you know, I'd love to hear what I *should* be spending my time on if I did these things....

OK, I admit, I tune in for the Borgias, Game of Thrones, Girls, TED talks, and the Hunger Games.

Sleep
Guitar
Ice cream
Shakespeare
Sunshine
Zen

just being my happy self. and what's distracting me from it.

So glad to be at home and have so much time in front of me.

I have that fantasy too.

You're a catch ;)

By the way, user name has nothing to do with my real name (it's not Kate). All it means is that I typed in random things when I registered and don't want to pay to change it. Any of the other fine words that rhyme can be a much better ice breaker. This is, in fact, a useful filter for PEOPLE WHO READ! thanks for reading!