ABOUT ME
My apologies to those guests I cannot accept. I get many, many requests.

I do not summarize well, so let's try this. I'm easy going and happy to meet new people, time permitting (which, alas, is not always).

I'm an engineer, maker, doer, doodler, dabbler, reader and writer, interested in pretty much everything, except maybe sports (though I'll happily take a walk or bike ride).

My native language is English. Puedo comunicarme en español. Jag kan lite svenska också.

PHILOSOPHY

Live and help live.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

My favorite part of traveling is meeting people, and hosting couchsurfers or staying with someone local is a great way to do that.

So far, I've hosted a whole bunch of people (mostly wonderful) and found one pen-pal after his travel plans fell through. I've also hosted visitors from other online communities I've been part of.

Interests

Engineering, science, and technology. Languages, literacy, linguistics, lexicography, etymologies. Bicycle riding, repair, and maintenance. Gardening, especially vegetables and herbs. Composting. Cooking, baking, and bread baking in particular. Reading, writing, teaching, learning. Wikis, particularly Wiktionary and wikiHow. Quora. Handcrafts, crochet, drawing, embroidery, applique, and occasional bits of quilting, mending, and sewing. Frugality, efficiency, life hacking, conservation, recycling. DIY home improvement and maintenance. Smatterings of local history and geology.

• culture
• writing
• diy
• dining
• cooking
• recipes
• baking
• gardening
• technology
• reading
• traveling
• socializing
• crochet
• drawing
• music
• cycling
• teaching
• engineering
• geology
• history
• languages
• science
• volunteering
• quora
• wikihow

Music, Movies, and Books

Books first, definitely. My very favorites are Leaving Microsoft to Change the World and Surely You're Joking Mr. Feynman. I'm also a fan of anything by Bill Bryson or Simon Winchester. My reading list abounds in nerdy nonfiction.

My tastes in music lean toward acoustic and a capella these days. Folk, bluegrass, and classical all figure here somewhere, but so do Eve 6 (if anyone remembers them) and Rise Against. I also make some of my own music, chiefly on flute and (some) piano.

As for movies, I tend to prefer life these days.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Just one?

Teach, Learn, Share

I love to teach, and volunteer as an English literacy tutor in my spare time.
Among the subjects I'm always glad to talk about:
-English
-Languages and linguistics
-Composting and gardening
-Bike riding, maintenance, and repair
-Local history and Silicon Valley culture
-Cooking and baking, especially bread
-Teaching and learning
-Reading and writing
-Making things (with an emphasis, at the moment, on crochet and needlecraft)

What I Can Share with Hosts

Stories, music, recipes, advice. Good humor, high spirits, amusement, too, if I'm doing the first things right. I'm also happy to help out with food, cooking, gardening, and housekeeping.

Countries I’ve Visited

Argentina, Bolivia, Canada, Italy, Norway, Poland, Sweden, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

United States

•