CURRENT MISSION

Learning to live

ABOUT ME

I'm not that into zodiac stuff, but I can say that I'm a pretty typical Gemini :) lively, sometimes contradictory, and always trying to get away from anything more or less routine.
I think my friends would say that I'm easy-going and really easy to get along with. I tend not to be hard on people, I realize we all have our weaknesses and should not be blamed for those (doesn't mean that I'd tolerate douchebaggery, though). I guess this makes people more comfortable and willing to share themselves, which is always a good thing :)

PHILOSOPHY

I don't think I have a "personal" philosophy, in the sense of having one that no one else has. Right now I'm really learning who I am, who I think I should be, and whether I really need to be who I think I should be :)

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have yet to surf for the first time, and really looking forward to meeting some great hosts! I'd be also happy to meet fellow surfers here in Minsk, albeit coffee-and-drink only for now

Interests

I'm interested in pretty much everything related to my day job, meaning IT, computer geek/nerd stuff, web/mobile development (namely Android and Ruby/Rails, but not limited to that), etc. I'm a big Mac fan (no pun intended).

Apart from that, my biggest passion is music. I've been in and out of that for some time, learned to play the piano, then a bit of acoustic guitar, then took a rest for a while, then got an electric, then put it underneath the bed again. Then finally I've reconciled myself with the idea that it's here to stay (and being evasive as I am, when an engagement keeps sticking for so long - it really means something), and for the last couple of years I've been really into this.

Another favorite pastime of mine which seems to stick is playing pool/snooker, so if you think you're good at it, I'll be happy to prove you wrong. just kidding :)

• theater
• performing arts
• coffee
• drinking
• billiards
• music
• guitar
• piano
• snooker

Music, Movies, and Books

My main go-to bands are Dream Theater, and, more recently, Thrice. Apart from them, I listen mostly to prog and guitar-oriented stuff. Porcupine Tree, Pain of Salvation, Liquid Tension Experiment, Protest the Hero, Dredg. I really look up to the guitar virtuosos like Paul Gilbert, John Petrucci, Guthrie Govan, Tommy Emmanuel (probably a bit teenage thing to do, but cut the guy some slack). And the keyboard-playing part of me has an idol too, his name is Jordan Rudess.

I don't really watch movies frequently, but there have been some that changed my perception quite a bit, to name a few: Forrest Gump, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, The Green Mile, Don Juan DeMarco, The Pianist, Fight Club

My all-time favorite book (or rather, a series) is a sci-fi opera by Dan Simmons - "Hyperion" / "The Fall of Hyperion" / "Endymion" / "The Rise of Endymion". I will talk your ears off if you ask about it (so do that at your own discretion). Other authors whose work I admire, in no particular order (both fiction and non-fiction): George Orwell, Ernest Hemingway, Herbert Wells, Erich Fromm, Chuck Palahniuk, Walter Isaacson, Stephen Hawking, Carl Sagan.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

As an almost 10-year Dream Theater fan, for me that was certainly seeing them perform live in 2011. Probably not the most extraordinary/wacky thing to do, but to me it was such an arousing experience.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can only teach what I can do myself - so this would include music (playing guitar/piano, even some theory if you like), billiards, and Russian language :)

Countries I’ve Visited

Bulgaria, Romania, Russian Federation, Ukraine

Countries I’ve Lived In

Belarus