CURRENT MISSION

My mission is to teach others German and Latin, so they are more open to new language experiences and open to exploring other cultures. I also love 350.org, a new organization advocated by Bill McKibben, who is an active environmentalist.

ABOUT ME

I love to study and to travel. I also get a kick out of teaching; the most fun has been teaching in college and teaching graduate students German during the summer. I have lived overseas for 10 years and aspired to spend a fourth of my adult career in other countries. This I have not done, but now I am dating a beautiful woman orginally from Germany who speaks several languages and also loves to travel, which is fantastic. I love sailing, which I taught for four summers in California. I also dig tennis, which I taught in Germany to earn some bread. I am passionate about peace making and find the expenditures for the military insane in face of such ecological crises.

PHILOSOPHY

I love wisdom traditions and have found treasures in CG Jung, in Goethe, Schopenhauer, and Plato, among others, as well as in biblical wisdom literature, and especially in sacred texts of the Buddhist, Hindu, Taoist and Confucian traditions. I believe in karma and think we either suffer or are rewarded for our actions each day. My credo is found in Dante's Divine Comedy.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

My parents and I have been involved for many years in house exchanges, both domestically and overseas. My mother was a travel writer for 10 yrs and instilled our family with travel fever. Our family has also hosted many exchange students in our home for longer stays. I am looking forward to welcoming persons from other countries into my home.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

With my new fiancee, we stayed with a couch surfer for two days in Freiburg, Germany in April of 2010. It was marvelous to have meals with her friends, to share our journeys and stories; it was just as fun as being in youth hostels, even better!

Interests

I like Baroque and classical music; I play the piano poorly and the soprano block flute better. I sang in a Bach choir for two years while studying in Germany for 6 years, which was a higlight of my life. I love tennis and play basketball regularly. I like reading poetry and imagine myself writing a novel or a poetic sequence on experiences in other countries. Volunteer work projects is a way to identify with other cultures, grow spiritually, and give back to the earth.

• writing
• books
• literature
• poetry
• reading
• traveling
• volunteer work
• music
• classical music
• piano
• sailing
• hinduism
• basketball
• tennis
• anthropology
• languages
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

2001 Space Odyssey is a favorite as well as many new Native American Indian movies. Bach and Vivaldi are some favorites as well as Van Gogh and Cezanne in painting...I am now beginning to read the books of Bill McKibben.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I climbed to the top of Mount Kilimanjaro in northeastern Tanzania. I met a college friend by chance in Nairobi, Kenya (where I had dinner with the anthropologist Richard Leakey) who said, "Hey, do you want to climb up that mountain with me?" It is no special physical accomplishment to get to the top (only 4 days walk up from a base at 5,000 ft. approx) but the view at 19,565 ft. at sunrise was stunning.

Teach, Learn, Share

I like encounters where one is opened up to a new idea. Perhaps I can teach others how to compost vegetable waste, or point out some etymologies of words which might turn into adventures, or explore sacred texts they have not heard about before.

Countries I’ve Visited

Afghanistan, Austria, Bahamas, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Costa Rica, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Iceland, India, Iran, Ireland, Israel, Kenya, Lebanon, Luxembourg, Mexico, Nepal, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Pakistan, Palestine, Panama, Romania, Seychelles, Spain, Syrian Arab Republic, Tanzania, Turkey, Uganda, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany, Guatemala, Israel, United States

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