Last updated: 6 AUG 2023
FINALLY we're back on Couchsurfing! But, during the pandemic we moved! We still have our residence in Seattle and may occasionally accept guests there but it is no longer our primary address. We now are 3 hours due East in the beautiful town of Lake Chelan in North Central Washington state.

Here is the important small print stuff to discuss first:

1. If you are unverified with 0 friends and 0 references, please consider getting verified. It supports the CS community and allows us to accept your request with more confidence. At least, please make an effort to fill out as much of your profile as you can and include pictures. This gives us some idea of who you are even if you're a newbie. Some of our favorite guests were unverified with 0 references, but they took the time to fill out as much info as they could about themselves.

2. We prefer requests for 1-3 nights. Longer stays are possible but that requires more planning and since we are busy, it's more likely we will accept your request if it's only for a few nights. Please let us know if your dates are flexible when you put in your request.

3. We don't respond to impersonal copy-and-pasted mass emails. We also don't accept requests from non-travelers. (For example, if you're here for a work conference or are between apartment rentals.)

4. If you do not CONFIRM your stay, other travelers can still book your dates. So please confirm promptly if we accept.

5. Please tell us your real names, first and last, and tell us how you plan to arrive (plane, train, drive, parachute, etc) and what time you arrive. Then I can send you the correct directions to our house. We can pick up from train station in Wenatchee WA or you can take the bus from the train station 35 minutes to Chelan. The bus stops 2 blocks from our house. Amtrak travels from Seattle to Chelan and back once a day.

Now, on to the fun stuff!...

Ian and I are passionate about art and art collecting. I owned a gallery in Seattle in the 90s and Ian started collecting art in the 1980s. Together we have hundreds of paintings, photographs, works on paper, and sculptures. We recently opened a pop-up brick-and-mortar art gallery, a dream come true. We also eloped after ten years together as a couple and have been married now for 7 years. (And we were "just friends" for 25 years before that, we are the When Harry Met Sally couple!)

We are atheists, extremely liberal, news junkies, 420 friendly (marijuana is legal in our state). Linda is a non-drinker and Ian has the occasional beer. We are an LBGTQ-friendly home. If you're very young or this is your first trip on your own, you'll be safe with us. Your parents can relax because we will take good care of you and make sure you call home. Linda was an exchange student when she was 15 for a year and we know that family contact is critical for your safety and enjoyment.

Linda is a Program Manager in an Engineering group at Microsoft. She works full-time 100% remotely since COVID. Ian's schedule is more flexible: he buys/sells art, does all the research, and in the winter he coaches ski racing.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

We get such a huge kick from hosting! At first, it sounded so strange, but now it's a huge part of our lives. It's so much fun making friends with people from all over the world. We love showing off our town and helping you get the most out of your days here. Ian is an awesome tour guide and is happy to spend a day giving you the overview, with our Scottie dog Bode as co-pilot. We love meeting people who we would never have met otherwise. It's like having the world come to our door.

Interests

Our interests: art, art collecting, museums, galleries, Scottish Terriers, alpine skiing, soccer, frogs, cats, tennis, gardening, bookstores, antique malls, going to yard sales and estate sales, visiting artist studios, hiking, and exploring. Linda loves to cook and has over 300 cookbooks--she tries to cook from scratch every night. We love sports and both of us are USSA-certified alpine ski racing coaches. We watch a lot of TV during World Cup Soccer, Wimbledon, and Tour de France! Ian is a former restaurateur and makes a mean Teriyaki. We also love having dinner parties with our friends and if we are having one while you're here, you're invited!

• arts
• books
• architecture
• contemporary art
• photography
• italian food
• cooking
• crafts
• gardening
• politics
• technology
• garage sales
• reggae music
• hiking
• skiing
• soccer
• olympics
• tennis
• world cup
• tour de france
• wimbledon tennis
• art history
• computer science
• sightseeing
• mountains
• museums
• social media
• good conversation
• choral music
• asian food
• jewelry making
• alpine skiing
• art galleries
• medieval
• thrift stores
• beading
• frogs
• teriyaki
• scotties
• p-patch

Music, Movies, and Books

MOVIES: Ian likes documentaries and biopics. Linda LOVES movies: Elf, Harry Potter, Black Panther, Chronicles of Narnia, Greatest Showman, The Godfather, Star Wars, Casino Royale, Fight Club, Signs, Lord of the Rings, Life of Brian, American Psycho, Forrest Gump, Caberet, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Donnie Darko, Moonstruck, Thelma and Louise, Moulin Rouge, Fargo, Amadeus, O Brother Where Art Though, Stranger Than Paradise, Catch Me If You Can, The Sixth Sense, Raising Arizona, Cold Comfort Farm, Babe, Barfly, the latest Oscar pics... etc.

TV shows: We are currently watching Ted Lasso, Poker Face, Dateline, and Will Trent. We love Sopranos, Six Feet Under, Dexter, Californication, Call the Midwife, Lady Parts, only Murder in the building, Masterpiece Mystery, The Tudors, The Borgias, White Lotus, Succession, Weeds, Homeland, MASH, HIMYM, Friends, Sherlock, House, ST:TNG, Rachel Maddow, Game of Thrones, Outlander, Ray Donovan, Shameless, Breaking Bad, Twin Peaks, Ancient Aliens, Downton Abbey, Mad Men, Antique Roadshow, Absolutely Fabulous, Law and Order, Poldark, Victoria, The Crown, The Killing, Better Call Saul, Cold Case, CSI, Botched, Lost, EPL Sports: Soccer, Sounders, Seahawks, Huskies, World Cup alpine skiing, tennis, tennis, tennis....

Books: Ian collects art books, you'll see our walls are completely full of bookshelves. Linda (when she has time to read an actual novel) likes mysteries; P.D. James, Ruth Rendall, Patricia Highsmith, Willa Cather, Mark Twain, Flannery O'Connor, John Irving, Anne Tyler, Charles Dickens, Anne Rice, Roald Dahl, Iain Banks, Katherine Dunn

Music: Linda likes 80s music, medieval music (she sings with the Seattle Medieval Women's choir, Latin music, and jazz standards. Ian likes ska, reggae, and post-punk.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Just one? Linda jumped out of a plane once on a first date with a billionaire. (She dated Gabe Newell) Ian used to be an elite alpine ski racer in Europe. Together, we opened our art gallery, that's pretty amazing!

Teach, Learn, Share

Things we do that we can share knowledge:
**Tour guide** We can take our guests around in our car for an overview or custom tour depending on your interests.
**Art** Going to art galleries and museums, we're happy to guide you and make suggestions regarding current exhibitions if you stay while we're in Seattle.
**Cooking** If it's nice, we do a teriyaki dinner for our guests outside. We do like to cook and share at least one meal together.
**Frogs** We have 5 Northern red-legged frogs (Rana aurora) in a gorgeous terrarium that Ian created.
**Outdoors! The great NW!** Chelan speaks for itself (please Google Lake Chelan and Stehekin) and in Seattle, we live 2 blocks from the largest park in Seattle, Discovery Park. There is plenty of hiking nearby. We also live just a few blocks from Puget Sound and you can easily walk to the beach.

What I Can Share with Hosts

We have yet to be surfers ourselves and we hope when the time comes, we will be good guests! We can share our delightful little Scottie dog, Bode, who is a wonder to behold! We go everywhere with him. We are responsible adults, and we love good conversation and making friends. Since it's usually us that's hosting, if we do ever find ourselves in need of a host, we will be the kind of guests that we'd love to have!

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Austria, Canada, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Greece, India, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Spain, Switzerland

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Italy, United States

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