CURRENT MISSION

General awesomeness

ABOUT ME

I am a man of multiple passions, but what occupies most of my time is music and science, particularly the science of the environment. I enjoy my work as an engineer because I know it makes a difference and a positive contribution to the world. In my spare time I dabble in electronic music, sound design, rockin' the klezmer flute and generally boogieing on down.

I want to learn about the world, about different people and different cultures. That's why I'm leaving the comfort of my home in Melbourne to embark on an adventure! And that's why I'm here on CouchSurfing!

PHILOSOPHY

Live in the now! (Garth, Wayne's World, 1992).

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've had endless people stay on my couches wherever I've lived - often friends, often random tourists who I meet in random places. Since embarking on my global mission I've met a bunch of amazing people through couchsurfing. I'm sure I will repay the universe when I get back home.

Interests

Cooking (vegie food), drinking coffee, hiking, saunas, cycling (off-road and on-road), sounds, world music, non-world music, reading good books, not reading bad books, yoga (when I can get motivated), sitting on the porch with friends drinking scotch (or tea) and listening to Tom Waits.

• books
• performing arts
• design
• concerts
• environment
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• coffee
• yoga
• drinking
• off-roading
• reading
• music
• electronic music
• world music
• cycling
• hiking
• engineering
• science

Music, Movies, and Books

An extremely tough ask, but here goes:

MUSIC [Bands]: Amsterdam Klezmer Band, Andrew bird, Bailterspace, Balkan Beat Box, Beastie Boys, Bill Callahan, Blockhead, Bon Iver, Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Cut Chemist, Daniel Zamir, Dead Prez, Devo, Dirty Three, DJ Food, DJ Shadow, Dosh, Fima Ephron, Frank London, Funkadelic/Parliament, Gill Scott-Heron, Grinderman/Nick Cave & Bad Seeds, the two Herbies (Herbie Hancock & Herbick Mann), Jack Dejohnette, James Brown, Jeff Buckley, Joanna Newsom, Jolie Holland, Joy Division, Oy Division [no that's not a typo], Keith Jarrett, Laurie Anderson, John Zorn, Prince, Shantel, Sly & Family Stone, Smiths, Smog, Socalled, Sonic Youth, Pavement, Tiger Lillies..........Phillip Glass, Steve Reich.......I could go on but I choose to stop here.

MUSIC [Genres]: Klezmer, Gypsy, hip-hop, jazz, classical, cabaret, alternative/noise, IDM, indie...basically anything remotely interesting

BOOKS: For the Relief of Unbearable Urges, Unbearable Lightness of Being [seems there's a lot of unbearable things in my life...hmm.....], The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay, all manner of Salman Rushdie (he's, like, the king), Yehuda Amichai, Sam Hunt.....I'll stop here because my memory for books I've read is extremely poor.

TV SHOWS: Curb Your Enthusiasm, Breaking Bad, Six Feet Under, True Blood...

MOVIES: Annie Hall. That says it all, doesn't it?

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

India = wow, especially Varanasi. Insane city. Seeing the Pinnacles on the Coromandel Penninsula sticks in my mind as one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen. And I've been to many concerts that have been life-changing (Sonic Youth, Nick Cave et al, performance of George Crumb's "Eleven Echoes of Autumn").
Berlining it. Oh yes.

Teach, Learn, Share

I used to tell people I could teach them to roll cigarettes, but everyone in Europe knows that already, so I need something else to teach people... I can share bits and bobs from my vast music collection, or I can teach you some good recipes. Maybe you can teach me the saxophone, or just indulge me in your general awesomeness of being.

Countries I’ve Visited

China, France, Germany, Gibraltar, Hungary, India, Italy, Morocco, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Germany, Israel, New Zealand

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