CURRENT MISSION:

Breathing life into one of the first houses built along the Otonabee River, circa 1875. Don't worry it has heat, plumbing and a comfortable guest bedroom!

PASSIONS and PASTIMES:

These past few years I've been enjoying building things with wood and other forest related material. Projects include a car-mounted kitchen box, a self-contained camper trailer, a garage door, a various wood furniture and home decor items. I am also undergoing my third major home makeover. So I've inevitably gained some experience working with other materials, electricity and water (plumbing). I worked as an Electronics Technologist for over 10 years, and an educator for two. I like to hike and explore the outdoors, my neighbourhood and far off countries on occasion. My favourite way to get from A to B are via long trail walks and mountain biking. In the spring of 2018 I hiked the Chilkoot Trail at the Alaska-Yukon border while visiting friends in the Yukon, a highly recommended 3-5 day hike, or apparently you can run it in a day (nutters).

ABOUT ME:

I'm a 40+ year old student of building, science and technology. Like many of my friends and family I enjoy adventure, travel, exploring new places, meeting new people, sharing great food and participating in creative building projects. I believe there is power in finding creative ways to make the most of available resources, and simplifying things. I find it a worthwhile challenge to streamline my life by giving away or selling things that I'm not going to use. I'm a little bit better organized these days perhaps.

I am grateful for all the interactions and experiences life throws my way. I value the relationships I have with my family and friends. I like getting to know people from other places and cultures. I still enjoy learning directly and experimentally, rather than taking someone's word for it.

BUILDING/TRAVEL PHILOSOPHY:

When something inspires or motivates me, to build something or go somewhere, I'll make the typical preparations and head out with some destination or goal in mind. I try my best to stay the course, but I like to keep open and make time for creative and spontaneous side adventures. Being the most efficient and productive is not the most important thing to me. My focus is more "making good times" and enjoy what I'm doing, more than "making good time" because I would rather be somewhere else. I do however appreciate accomplishment, but sometimes it's just not worth sacrificing fun. I like general itineraries and maps, but travelling by feel can be good too.

I find being 60 percent optimistic and 40 percent realistic works well for me.

IDEOLOGY:

I believe in causing as little suffering as possible to other people and lifeforms that I can somehow relate to. I also believe everyone owns their own experience, perspective, values and morality. I respect the life paths of others, but I will speak up if another's path risks the life, health and well being of others.

We are all connected in many ways and thrive when we care and cooperate. Even though we may be born and raised in different countries, cultures with different languages, and look exotic to each other, we are similar in many ways. We are definitely all part of the human family, and if we're not, that's OK too. Whatever Nature is, we are definitely part of it. We rely on many things that we don't fully understand, so it makes sense that we at least try to take care of the environment that supports us, and each other.

I seriously doubt that canoeing is just a recreational activity.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCH SURFING:

I was introduced to Couch Surfing a few summers ago when I spent my vacation working on several organic farms organized through the WWOOF program (World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms) while visiting the largest freshwater island in the world, Manitoulin Island. I really enjoyed the "Wwoofing" experience. Over the years, I have hosted international and regional travelers, which has been a positive experience every time. I joined Couch Surfing to make travelling more enjoyable and more economical or myself and to help others do the same. Spending time with dynamic people who are from strange-far-way lands or strange-near-by lands definitely helps me cut though the media bull-shit that often misrepresents them.

COUCH SURFING EXPERIENCE:

I am fairly new to couch-surfing and in my travels I have typically stayed in hostels, with friends, in a tent camping, or in my truck when I travel. I might just exclusively couch-surf during my next travel adventure.

Interests

I'm a bit of a generalist, and wish to be more of a specialist someday but right now I have diverse set of interests that include travel, design, building, carpentry, wood-working, electricity, writing, meditation, sound/music, art, science, and growing/gardening.

• animals
• writing
• design
• photography
• dining
• gardening
• technology
• traveling
• music
• fishing
• camping
• surfing
• languages
• science
• wwoof

Music, Movies, and Books

I like a variety of music mostly folk and rock and the sort. Several people in my family play guitar, and we like to play guitar and sing around a camp fire on occasion. Live music at a pub or on a concert stage can also be a good time.

I enjoyed reading books by Coelho, Hesse, Steinbeck, Vonnegut, Jared Diamond, Tolle, Sam Harris, Thomson Highway, Yuval Harari, Wade Davis, and Robert Pirsig. My most recent read was "Travels with Charley" by John Steinbeck.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I was having a coffee at a cafe near Skidegate, Haida Gwaii, when the owner said I should borrow one of his kayaks and head out out to the island since it was such a nice day. After paddling through hundreds of jelly fish I reached the shore of the small yet tall island that has great historical significance to the local Haida. l explored the island and shared my lunch of fish with a family of bald eagles at the top of a cliff. This was an amazing experience for this main lander.

Teach, Learn, Share

I am fairly knowledgeable and skilled at fixing things, especially those powered by electricity and electronics. I've been focusing on carpentry lately, during house renovations and while building a custom camping trailer. I know a bit about building and sustainable design. I have received formal and informal lessons in electronics, physics, chemistry, electricity, permaculture design, education and building construction. I also know a little bit about computers, photography and mycology.

What I Can Share with Hosts

Stories, food, smiles, and a bit of helpful advice.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Canada, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Spain, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada