CURRENT MISSION

Uplifting the Consciousness of Humanity

ABOUT ME

I am a curious, creative and compassionate human seeking meaningful meetings, engaging ideas and outrageous adventures as I wander around and wonder about our improbable and endlessly fascinating Earth.

PHILOSOPHY

While I cannot being to articulate my philosophies in the limited space of this caption box, here are a few pearls that others have imparted to me and have proved quite influential on my thinking:An Australian Aboriginal elder once told me what she believes is the key to a better future - the Three R's: Respect for yourself, respect for other and respect for the Earth. This is not to be confused with Captain Planet's three R's: reduce, reuse, recycle; which while certainly valuable lack the transcendental quality of the first Three R's. Besides, the seem to fit under the banner of the third R... And as my mother is fond of saying: 'Open heart, open mind'.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I have participated in CouchSurfing as a host, a surfer and a travelling partner. I have meet a lots of wonderful people and had some great experiences thanks to this marvellous network, and thus I fully support and endorse the project. This support has led to my convincing a number of other of the merits of CouchSurfing.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have not CouchSurfed anywhere near enough as yet, which raises the question - can one CouchSurf enough? Regardless, I have Surfed in Morocco and Thailand, been a host in South Korea and Spain, and travelled with CouchSurfers in many places in between.

During my travels I have had many memorable encounters with other world citizens and have learnt much from the time I've shared with fellow travellers. Through CouchSurfing I have been to places and experiencing things that I could not have otherwise.

Interests

Time for a list. In no particular order I'm interested in:

politics and culture,
music and film,
talking about music and film,
gardening and sailing,
narratives and philosophy,
history and geography,
eating and drinking,
cooking and sharing,
ecological and nature,
society and justice,
concerts and performances,
creating and ingesting art,
relaxing and laughing,
critical theory and food sovereignty,
speaking and listening,
reading and writing,
fiction and non-fiction,
space and time...

Also, a long term hobby of mine has been 'photo bombing'. This involves getting into the background of other peoples photographs while making a ridiculous face. Endlessly amusing.

• arts
• culture
• writing
• concerts
• dining
• cooking
• drinking
• gardening
• boating
• politics
• reading
• traveling
• music
• cycling
• sailing
• boxing
• martial arts
• communications
• teaching
• geography
• history

Music, Movies, and Books

A difficult but crucially important question. I very much love a large and diverse range of music, films and books, so this fleeting entry cannot do it justice. Here is a sprinkle of each category that I've recently ingested and enjoyed: Music:The Mars Volta, God Speed You! Black Emperor, Opeth, Pink Floyd, Mike Patton's many projects, Wolves In The Throne Room, Johann Sebastian Bach, Pat Methney, Shpongle, Isis, Calexico, Propagandhi, Tool, Saul Williams, Primus, The Melvins, Wild Marmalade, Red Sparrows ... and many many more. Films:Deadman, Akira Kurosawa's Dreams, Waking Life, Pan's Labyrinth, The Thin Red Line, 2001: A Space Odyssey, The Road, Amelie, Cowboy Bebop, Lost Highway, Old Boy, There Will Be Blood, Down By Law, Metropolis, The Fountain, The Big Lebowski, A Scanner Darkly ... and many many more. Also, respect to anyone who has seen and no doubt enjoyed 'Kin Dza Dza'. Books:Umberto Eco, William Gibson, Noam Chompsky, Haruki Murakami, Arthur C Clark, Eric Hobsbawn, Kurt Vonnegut, Eduardo Galearno, Alan Moore, Douglas R. Hofstadter, Naomi Klein, George Orwell, Christian Parenti, China Mieville, Phillip K Dick, Jared Diamond, Edward Said ... and many more.

Teach, Learn, Share

I have spent a significant portion of my life living on a sailing boat, so perhaps sailing or sailing related activities. Have a two black belts in Tae Kwon Do and have instructed a classes in martial arts and self defence.

I have studied culture, politics, media and film at university and more broadly in life. There are many subjects that I love to rant about, sometimes for hours on end ...

I was an English teacher in South Korea for almost two years.

We learn our whole lives, that's one of the best things about being human - our endless curiosity. That's the thing that keeps me burrowing into the seemingly endless amount of reading I continually try to ingest.

I would attempt to teach anything I is within my abilities to teach, and conversely learn anything I can from anyone else. And may this beautiful cycle spiral onwards.

Sharing is caring.

Countries I’ve Visited

Cambodia, China, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Laos, Malaysia, Morocco, Netherlands, North Korea, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Thailand, United Kingdom, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, South Korea, Spain