CURRENT MISSION

Juggling the sundries of life, while experiencing those meaningful moments with some consistency.

ABOUT ME

This profile was last updated on June 17, 2019.

Welcome to my profile! Before we get to the good stuff, there are a few things you should know; how important you find eithe ro fthese things will largely depend on you. No judgments whatsoever, I just want everyone to know.
So, number one. I am completely blind. This really shouldn't affect you personally, and I think you can tell from this profile that I've hosted and surfed extensively just fine, but it is something you should know nonetheless. Side effects may include me following you around in certain situations instead of the other way around. :)
And perhaps someone related, number two. I own a dog. A rambunctuous golden retriever who loves people, playing, and cuddling. If you are allergic, for sure do not apply for a place here; you'll just end up hurting yourself. If dogs scare you, I applaud you for trying, but my dog might just be a bit too large and crazy for you. He's slowly getting his crazy kinks worked out, but he thinks everybody loves him. Which is almost true. :) Just keep this in mind, and all will be peachy.

Now, if you're still here, let's dive right in. Who am I? I''m a man in my early thirties, which in practice means that I have normalized some of my dubious social behavior: I laugh too loud, I am an open book (or oversharer to some), and I sometimes do funny voices. I do not expect any interlocutor to do the same.That's just the freak flag I fly. I currently don't have a full-time job and thinking about going back to school for massage therapy. In the meantime, I try to DJ whenever I can, I dabble in salsa,and I take care of my dog (and he takes care of me). When I'm not doing those things, I am usually found hosting, reading books, listening to music (comes with the job), attending concerts, and - eveyr so often - dancing until sunrise.

I don't live life to the fullest and I don't have a bucketlist. I don't think travel is the end-all be-all, even though I love doing it. What I do try to live for is diverse knowledge or impulses, which is as simple as hearing as many stories from as many people as my system can handle (I do have to bring it in for maintenance every so often, my system). I am a pretty boring, normal fellow in many ways, and don't expect that to change drastically, but I love to understand what I don't or can't embody, coming to grips with people's joy and distress over what is important to them. It helps me chisel away at my jagged edges, not to mention it is supremely interesting.

In the next year or so, my aim is to bring myself into a new living and working experience. I would like to learn massage therapy, and hopefully practice it one day. I see it as the necessary antecedent to my DJ life, which is certainly fun, but also filled with a lot of tiring negative energy (it is nightlife, after all). I would like to help myself and others at the same time, and this seems like it might be a way to do so.

PHILOSOPHY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M5THXa_H_N8

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I love hosting, it's my way of giving back to a world that has shown me an inordinate amount of kindness. I also try to meet and hang out with travelers if I can.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've hosted since early 2010, as much as I had time for. It has been a wonderful experience, meeting wonderful person after terrific individual. I plan on continuing to be active as a host, or failing that, participate in events when possible. This network has been very good to me, has inspired me, and I'm extremely grateful to all the people I've had the pleasure to meet over the years.
In 2013, I've had the chance to travel across the United States and couchsurf with over 20 people, meeting old friends and making new ones. An experience like no other, I can assure you. I hope to repeat this adventure at some point. For now, I content myself with smaller trips, never straying too far from Belgium, though my frequent visits to Barcelona and Portugal have been very memorable.

Interests

Music (concerts and general listening), literature, more music, more literature, translation, the obscure recesses of popular culture. Most importantly, I love learning through meeting others.

Music, Movies, and Books

Not sure where else to put this, but if you're interested in checking out what kind of stuff I tend to DJ, feel free to drop by my Mixcloud page: http://mixcloud.com/djkruisbestuiving
or keep track of me on Facebook: https://facebook.com/djkruisbestuiving
Music: Why?, Animal Collective, Stars of the Lid, Deerhoof, Sonic Youth, Aesop Rock, cLOUDDEAD, Broken Social Scene, Broadcast, Mark Kozelek (Sun Kil Moon / Red House Painters), etc. For the full list, see: http://www.last.fm/user/murderousmoped
Movies: Most of what I watch is of the "B-movie persuasion". I am not very knowledgeable when it comes to movies; I sink too much time in other areas and have thus snubbed the medium. A shame, yes, but choices need to be made.
Books: Samuel Beckett, Franz Kafka, Laszlo Krasznahorkai, Don DeLillo, Eduardo Galeano, Joan Didion, Helen Oyeyemi, Julio Cortázar, Gert Jonke, Ali Smith, David Foster Walace, Robert Coover, etc etc etc. My Pretention convention is here: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/22191619-didier-vanoverbeke

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Well, I am a big music nerd, so some of my most cherished experiences relate to concerts I've attended. Apart from that, spending 30 minutes in the Integratron in the Mojave desert, sitting in a kayak navigating our way through sea lions and sea otters near the Pacific Ocean, and meeting the myriad fantastic individuals through this network over the years, all count as wonderful moments in recent years.

Teach, Learn, Share

I'll teach you to bang your head against cupboard doors in the most amusing of ways.
If you are absolutely terrible at cooking, I can improve your skill to the point where you are slightly less terrible.
I'm always happy to share ideas on writing (my experience is mostly related to music criticism).

What I Can Share with Hosts

I love sharing stories, they're what make my tiny inner globe spin. Apart from that, I hope that, on the road at least, I have a fairly flexible attitude, being ready to go along with your (somewhat) insane plan. I'm all for moderate insanity.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Czech Republic, France, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Belgium, Netherlands

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