CURRENT MISSION

To make the most of life and relationships.

ABOUT ME

I live alone in a small home on the Manatee River, east of downtown Bradenton. I have a guestroom with bath that is usually available; however, I will be traveling June through Nov 2021.

Guests must be non-smokers and animal lovers ... I share my home with two wonderful Rhodesian Ridgebacks: Carson and Sasha, whom I have certified as Therapy Dogs. We used to do Reading Programs for kids until COVID shut us down but we hope to resume soon. We also adopted two cats, Scooter and Skittles, who are affectionate and slightly crazy.

I love to travel and have done a fair bit (inc 13 years on St Croix) but my funds are limited now and I'm hoping that CS will enable me (and my guests) to do more traveling on less money, LOL!

PHILOSOPHY

Try to leave the world a better place than you find it!

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I've previously hosted and just recently had my second full couch surfing experience as a guest.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I was hosted for the day in Dublin, Ireland, in April 2012, and I have hosted CS'ers many times in my home plus "hung out".

Upon my return from Ireland, I hosted Jacqui Ford from England. We became friends and she returned a year later for an extended visit.

In October of 2015, I spent a week as a guest in Barcelona, Spain. David Gimenez was a great host! He posted a very nice reference but it showed up as Personal not Host.

In Jan 2016, I hosted a young couple from Thailand for 8 days. Unfortunately, their reference posted as Personal, not Surfer.

Then, in Aug 2016, while traveling in Scotland, I was hosted to "hang out" by Abis, who took me and my traveling roommate out for ice cream in Edinburgh. I later spent 3 days as a guest in Beckermet, Cumbria, England, where I was hosted by John who took me hiking and sightseeing.

In early Sept 2016, I hosted Georgia Reash from Cleveland. She stayed with me 5 days and we had a ball! She gave me a Reiki session before she left and is welcome back anytime. She wrote a wonderful reference which took forever to post ... There seems to be a problem getting these to post properly on CS!

Interests

Reading, sailing, kayaking, camping, travel, kids and animals, volunteer work. In addition to the Reading Programs I do with my Therapy Dog, Carson, I am also a Guardian ad Litem, working with children who've been removed from the family home for various reasons.

Art, music, plays and movies, museums, adventure and exploration.

• animals
• cats
• dogs
• arts
• movies
• reading
• traveling
• volunteer work
• music
• kayaking
• camping
• surfing
• sailing
• history
• volunteering

Music, Movies, and Books

Music: Zydeco, Irish Folk Music, Blues, Dixieland Jazz, Classical;

Movies: Out of Africa, Dirty Dancing, Get Low, Butch Cassidy and The Sundance Kid, Winter's Bone, Bull Durham, Youth, The Big Short, The Old Man and the Gun, Beautiful Boy, Mamma Mia, The Return of Mary Poppins

Books: Anything by Carl Hiassen, Claire Matturro, James Patterson, Elizabeth Berg, Ken Follett, Kate Morton, Diana Gabaldon

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Survived Hurricane Hugo alone in my home on St Croix.

Sailed to Cuba with friends.

Went back to school at age 60.

Raised an amazing son!

Teach, Learn, Share

See above. I enjoy experiencing new cultures and sharing what I have learned.

What I Can Share with Hosts

A spirit of adventure and a sense of humor. An interest in history, the arts, nature and exploring new cultures.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Bahamas, Canada, Cayman Islands, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Czech Republic, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Morocco, Norway, Peru, Poland, Puerto Rico, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Scotland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, Venezuela, Virgin Islands, British

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States, Virgin Islands, U.S.