CURRENT MISSION

travel, learn, share, laugh & make music; sometimes simultaneously

ABOUT ME

I graduated two years ago and joined the rat-race, for want of something better to do. The absolute soul-destroying tedium of the 9-5 compelled me to take my lazy, cynical self to the other side of the world in search of whatever it was I was looking for. I think I'm getting close!

I've been travelling for 6 months now and it's teaching me, above all things, to be happy and that the best way to achieve this is by doing good things for others. Couchsurfing is a perfect example of this philosophy in practice! I joined so that I can meet like-minded people, talk, listen and learn, and hopefully give something in return - even if it's just doing the dishes :) Life is a learning experience and I want to learn as much as I can.

PHILOSOPHY

Justify your existence; be good; live to learn; don't cry because it's over - smile because it happened.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Only surfing for now, but when I have a couch again it will be surfable! :)

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Auckland, Hamilton, Palmerston North, Lochmara Bay, Nelson, Wellington, Dunedin, Invercargill, Christchurch, Taupo, Queenstown, Wanaka. Good (and great) times all round thus far!

Interests

Music, music, music, travel, linguistics and languages, general knowledge and pointless information, photography, perambulations, musicals, Scrabble, origami, film, puzzles, comedy, food, people, singing (badly, when nobody's listening), art, reading - most things except science fiction and instruction manuals, museums, poetry, piano, tv (in moderation), documentaries, gardening, making things, cleaning things, fixing things... the list goes on

• arts
• poetry
• singing
• photography
• documentaries
• dining
• gardening
• boating
• reading
• tv
• traveling
• puzzles
• origami
• music
• guitar
• piano
• surfing
• languages
• science
• sign language
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

I'll read, watch or listen to just about anything, though I try to avoid vacuous rubbage. Some particular favourites in no particular order of preference...

FILMS: Pan's Labyrinth, Little Miss Sunshine, American Beauty, Synecdoche N.Y., Can't Hardly Wait, Atonement, Pride & Prejudice (book & film!), Labyrinth, Wallace & Gromit, Kill Bill, Gone In 60 Seconds, Cinema Paradiso, Amelie

TV: old school children's tv, Ray Mears, Louis Theroux, Black Books, Ross Noble, anything involving/written/produced/performed by Stephen Fry,

RADIO: Mark & Lard, Adam & Joe, Terry Wogan, Shaun Keaveny, Radio 4

BOOKS: anything to do with language, Harry Potter, His Dark Materials, Birdsong, Atonement, Pride & Prejudice, The Chronicles of Narnia, Perfume, Terry Pratchett, just getting into poetry too

MUSIC: Tom McRae, Imogen Heap, MGMT, Studio C, Queen, David Bowie, Bon Iver, Coldplay,

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I participated in The Great Clydesdale Migration - a whole day riding a Shire horse through the mountains of Glencoe, accompanied by 12 Clydesdales. It was the most indescribably wonderful experience of my life.

http://www.cumbrianheavyhorses.com/

Life is amazing!

Teach, Learn, Share

A salween is a soupcon of vestigial washing-up liquid in your cup of tea.

A giant squid's brain is doughnut-shaped and its oesophagus passes through the middle. Thus, if it eats something that's too big to fit through the hole, it could give itself brain damage.

Aye-ayes are gross and adorable in equal measure.

I'm always interested to learn new words either in English or any other languages. Or a new tune on the guitar! I'll be *thrilled* to learn anything new - skills, knowledge or otherwise.

I can teach you how to count to ten in Italian, French, German, Gaelic or Swedish! If that doesn't float your boat, I can teach you Blackbird on the guitar, or how to play a round on the piano, or how to make an origami crane, or how to make a traditional Scottish clootie dumpling (if you've got all the ingredients and 4 hours to spare) or the British Sign Language alphabet, or any number of Scottish Country Dances!

Countries I’ve Visited

Belgium

Countries I’ve Lived In

France, New Zealand, United Kingdom