CURRENT MISSION

To raise an open-minded and resilient daughter, play outside as much as possible and carve out a long-term home in the Catskill Mountains of Upstate New York.

ABOUT ME

I'm pretty laidback. I like to laugh while learning, and try not to take life too seriously. I have kind of a wacky imagination, which comes out more as I get to know and trust a person. I like adventure and need regular physical activity to stay sane (I know…it sounds like I'm describing a border collie). Almost anything is interesting to me, which is part of being a writer.

PHILOSOPHY

Look, listen, learn.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

By hosting and being hosted, meeting folks and trying to understand them and do whatever I can to help them on their way.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I couchsurfed around the country with my wife Laura for a bit more than half a year. Stayed with ridiculously generous, down-to-earth people on short notice, on holidays, on the edges of canyons, at the base of mountains and shared with them moose borscht, hidden hot springs, deserted beaches, travel stories, personal hardships, quiet hikes, sometimes generous amounts of alcohol, music and life. It was pretty awesome, and I mean "awesome" in the truest sense of the word.

Interests

reading, writing, photography, travel, biking, hiking, running, storytelling, folk history, jumping, squat thrusts and playing the beginning of "La Bamba" on acoustic guitar

• writing
• photography
• picnic
• running
• walking
• reading
• traveling
• music
• guitar
• cycling
• hiking
• history
• beaches
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

A River Runs Through It (book and movie);
The Town and the City (Kerouac);
America and Americans (Steinbeck);
About This Life (Barry Lopez);
The Hard Way (Mark Jenkins);
Into the Wild (Jon Krakauer);
Hell's Angels (Hunter S. Thompson);
Tons of music: Scott Miller & The Commonwealth, The Roots, Ryan Adams & The Cardinals, Fred Eaglesmith, Gordon Lightfoot, The Arctic Monkeys, Flogging Molly, Tokyo Police Club, Patrick Sweany Band, The Weakerthans, Jeff Buckley and Jack Johnson to name a very few.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I went on a short pilgrimmage from the small, central-Mexican town of Amatlan in 2002. After walking for a couple hours through the countryside, we arrived at a hillside clearing, where I witnessed an amazing Aztec ceremony welcoming the sunrise and honoring the god Quetzlcoatl. It was the farthest I've ever felt from home.

Teach, Learn, Share

I can show someone how to build a spiffy picnic table or teach them the true importance of one's bellybutton (as taught me by my grandmother). I would like to learn what drives you…but maybe you could keep it to ten words or less ;-)

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Guatemala, Iceland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom, United States

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