I live in the Santa Cruz mountains with my wife, two boys, and beloved dachshund mix we adopted from the SPCA (animal shelter) last year. Our house is small, but is located in a beautiful spot on the river, under the redwoods. We usually host guests in our finished garage.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

My wife and I enjoy meeting new people and learning about other cultures and languages. Our kids enjoy it too!

Couchsurfing has led us to some pretty amazing experiences. In 2015, we hosted a musical duo, and they were kind enough to play some songs for us in our living room. That was amazing enough, but one of the musicians was playing the ukulele, and she showed it to my wife who was really taken with it. A couple of weeks later, we had a ukulele of our own. I picked it up also and pretty soon my wife and I were fighting over it, and a few weeks after that we owned quite a few ukuleles.

It's hard to put into words how great it is for me to find out that I enjoy playing music. I have a new hobby, but it's something more than that too. I was 47 years old before I started playing a musical instrument, and now I'm trying to make up for lost time.

We enjoy new experiences and enjoy it when guests like to spend time with us. Any activities or meals we can share, we are happy to! We like hosting folks who are looking for more than just a place to stay.

Interests

Acoustic guitar, ukulele, weiner dogs, boardgames, the internet and computer stuff. I'm a nerd. Also, progressive politics.

We like to go hiking, especially under the redwoods. It's fun to take our couchsurfing guests hiking when we can! In the spring and summer, the river that runs right by our house is great for swimming, so we can offer that too (in season). Of course also playing music with our guests if they are musically inclined!

Music, Movies, and Books

As far as books go, I like science fiction (John Scalzi, Iain M. Banks for example), but also enjoy reading history and nonfiction. Recently, I really enjoyed "Ready Player One" by Ernest Clines. I'm a fan of the Game of Thrones books but have yet to watch most of the shows. I also like nonfiction and poetry.

I don't have time for a lot of movies these days, besides what I see with my kids. I do like challenging films (Primer, for example, I loved) although I don't get a chance to see them often.

Musically, I like to play folk music best but I also enjoy playing music from the 70's and 80's quite a bit. There's no one thing I listen to, and I am always open to new musical experiences, but I gravitate towards folk, folk-rock, and music from the 70's and 80's.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I was a high school English teacher until I taught myself programming. Now I work in web application development and I love it. I enjoy learning new things.

Teach, Learn, Share

I know a lot about website development and computer programming, and I can talk about that until your eyes glaze over, although I promise not to unless you ask me to three times. I'm a good writer and editor. I can teach a little bit about the guitar or ukulele now too (if you are an absolute beginner)!

What I Can Share with Hosts

Music, computer/website help or advice, writing and editing, along with any other way I can be helpful. We don't really surf now, but I hope to one day when my kids are a little older (I know people surf with kids, but with my kids it might not be such a great idea).

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, England, Hungary, Serbia, Slovakia

Countries I’ve Lived In

Slovakia, United States