CURRENT MISSION

Leave the planet a better place than I found it

ABOUT ME

I like to help others; prefer reading to TV; listening to NPR & BBC on the radio; raising my teen daughters; love cooking, entertaining, hosting a party; hiking, camping, the outdoors; cat person; value and spend time with my friends and with my aging parents; and finding time for prayer and meditation when I can.

PHILOSOPHY

Be kind, abstain from harming others, stop and listen, pray and meditate, appreciate, and remember to laugh.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

When I'm not working or raising my daughters (half time), I'm often involved in union activities.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Have hosted a couple of nice guys from Holland, a brother and sister from Singapore, and a sweet man from Germany. All good experiences.

Interests

I'm very concerned about our environment, the failure of the American political and economic system, the threat to democracy posed by the over concentration of wealth in too few hands. Want to help create a healthier direction in this country and the world. Also interested in growing my spiritual side.

• cats
• environment
• cooking
• meditation
• partying
• boating
• reading
• tv
• outdoor activities
• hiking
• camping

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: Coup de Torchon, Wages of Fear, Last Picture Show, Total Recall. Music: Spanish Guitar, old Rock & Roll. Books: Heaven's My Destination by Thorton Wilder, short stories by Saki, Winner Take All Politics.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Sitting on the peak of Mt Agassiz in the Desolation Wilderness I feel like I am on top of the world. It is the place I want my ashes scattered when I die.

Attending the 40 day puja for Jamgon Kongtrul at Rumtek Monestary in Sikkim 1992. Some of those chants will always be with me.

The 10 day river boat ride from Kisangani to Kinshasa down the Congo River, 1986. Zaire was like a third world version of George Orwell's 1984, a horrifying security state, but the ride down the Congo was sublime.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Democratic Republic of Congo, France, India, Kenya, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Uganda, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

United Kingdom, United States