I live with my wife and two children in Boise, Idaho, USA. Idaho is filled with natural beauty. There are many forests and rivers and deserts, lots of hot springs too! People like to mountain bike, kayak and backpack. Boise has about 250,000 people and is a peaceful, progressive but somewhat provincial capital.

We live close to downtown and enjoy riding our bikes to the parks, or restaurants or to visit friends. Many of our friends are involved in social justice or environmental defense. My wife, Helene, is originally from Montreal. We have two children: Simone who is 14 and Clara who is 11.

I was born in Montana and grew up in the west and in New Orleans. I moved to Boise in 1990 and meet Helene a few years later. We both love travel and appreciate other cultures. We care deeply about our community and the world beyond and are doing what we can to take care of each other and our precious earth.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

Simone and I are currently traveling around the world for 9 months. We left the United States early September 2018 and will return late May 2019. Our goal is to gain a deeper understanding of the world and its people, politics and environment. Our most enriching experiences have been when people opened their homes and their lives to us. By couch surfing we hope to have more of these opportunities.

Interests

• meditation
• rivers
• mountains
• social justice
• deserts
• peace
• hot springs
• enviroment
• 99%

Music, Movies, and Books

Shantaram; Inheritance of Loss; Dr. Shafali; Charles Eisenstein; Yuval Harari;

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

One spring I was soaking in some hot springs by the edge of a cold mountain river that was running very high and turbulent from the melting snow. There were a few other people nearby. A young girl was standing next to her mother, but pulled away and fell into the strong current. The mother, who was somewhat obese, jumped in and reached her daughter but was unable to steady herself and was tumbling end over end towards a canyon where the river became even more violent. Her husband happened to be in a neck brace! So I jumped in. I was able to reach them but was unable to control their combined weight. What to do? I pried the daughter from the mother's embrace and was able to get the daughter back to shore. The mother was still out of control, so I returned to her and was able to get both of us back to shore before the river entered the canyon.

Teach, Learn, Share

I've led men's groups for a number of years and have taught courses on Buddhism. I enjoy understanding life from an archetypal perspective.d

What I Can Share with Hosts

Simone and I can offer stories and experiences from other times and cultures. We are ready for adventure and can also help with any projects. We would like to understand our host's life and culture and the world from their perspective. We want to share all of life - both the good times and the sorrows.

Countries I’ve Visited

Afghanistan, Belgium, Belize, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, China, Egypt, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Iceland, India, Indonesia, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Lesotho, Malawi, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, Pakistan, Romania, Russian Federation, Serbia, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States, Uzbekistan, Viet Nam, Zambia, Zimbabwe

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, Germany, India, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States