CURRENT MISSION

Been teaching university English in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia for three years. The best thing about my life here is I have the time and money to travel. But even when I'm in Saudi I find a way to have fun. One thing this country has taught me (besides patience) is that there is path around every obstacle. You just need the patience and intelligence to find it.

This summer I'm planning a great adventure. I'll fly from Saudi to Lisboa, then train to Porto, where I will join some friends on the Camino de Santiago, and walk to Compostela de Santiago in Spain. After that, I'm gonna wander around with my backpack. I'm thinking Barcelona, Sardegna, Corsica, then the love of my life, Napoli. I should probably end it all 4 weeks later by spending a few days in Amsterdam, to just really appreciate the green (What? We don't have a lot of trees in the desert!) before flying back to the Magic Kingdom.

ABOUT ME

I'm a poet and a teacher and a wandering soul. I've lived all around the US and the world since leaving Nebraska in 1986. The city I would call my own is Washington, DC. However, I ended up living in New Orleans by chance, and I thought this may have become my home, but I only lasted there two years. My home is my suitcase, which has four wheels that are constantly spinning.

I am responsible, but fun and enjoy spreading my wings to get the most out of life.

PHILOSOPHY

Original sin is a mistake.

Instead, we were all born with a seed of goodness. Some of the seeds are closer to germination than others, but we were all born with some seeds in our hearts. The mission of life is to nurture those seeds so we can be of service to others.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

When I have a couch, I offer a couch. When I need a couch, I request a couch. I also offer friendship here as it seems most people who access this site are kindred spirits.

I do have a couch now, in a non-gender segregated ex-pat compound, but Saudi Arabia has only recently begun issuing tourist visas, so up til now, I haven't bother offering it.

I participate best by engaging in meaningful conversation. I play well with others. I'm pretty experienced at crossing cultures. I love people, all people. I think there is intrinsic goodness in each one of us.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Been a guest twice. Met several people whom I did not stay with. Hosted 5 times.

Interests

Pfft! Too many! Dancing, swimming in pools, lakes, rivers, the sea, cooking, hiking, camping, traveling, going to museums, reading, writing, doing ikebana flower arranging, discovering new music, serving tea Chinese gung fu style, hula hooping, cycling, dying and being reborn again on the beach and in the sea.... shall I go on?

• writing
• dancing
• cooking
• beer
• flowers
• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• hiking
• camping
• swimming
• teaching
• beaches
• lakes
• rivers

Music, Movies, and Books

Latcho Drom, Almodovar films, Fellini films, Balkan music, African dance music, salsa, samba, reggae, Ethiopian jazz, straightahead jazz, techno music. Trentemoller, Iron & Wine, Glen Hansard, Travis, Cesare Cremonini, Fabi, Brunori Sas. I love all music but post-1970s US country.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Found the courage as a single woman to move to Saudi Arabia, where I have given up certain social freedoms in order to gain financial independence.

Teach, Learn, Share

I've been a student of Zen for the past 25 years. I teach English as a foreign language for a living. I'm not bad at editing, either, especially for people translating things to English, especially if it's a Latin langauge.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I'm a pretty damned good cook. And if you put a beer or two into me, you'll find I am a decent conversationalist as well.

Countries I’ve Visited

Bahamas, Bahrain, England, France, India, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, Peru, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates

Countries I’ve Lived In

India, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, United States, United States Minor Outlying Islands