CURRENT MISSION

To ride some lonely, curvy roads by day, and to write and socialize by night.

ABOUT ME

I'm a lover of people, nature, ideas, philosophy, conversation and art. I'm introverted and extroverted; calm and rash; creative, spontaneous, independent and inquisitive. I think that between listening and speaking, the former is the more beneficial skill, though in speech, articulateness is king.

PHILOSOPHY

Life is an illusion, but it's a powerful and necessary one that gives consciousness a chance to observe itself. It's an impenetrable mystery (that we can't help but try and penetrate) and therefore wisdom is knowing that you really don't know anything.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

Well, I'm brand new to this, and I'm hoping for the time being (on this moto road trip) to meet some new folks in interesting places. I have no real idea at the time of this writing where exactly I'm going, but that's the best kind of road trip. Later in the year I'll be going back to Korea and Vietnam for a visit, where I hope to meet new people through CouchSurfing, and then, when I'm settled again, wherever that may be, I hope to host travelers from far, wide and near.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Once, some time ago, while living in Seattle, I found myself at a park not too far from my home just enjoying a walk and a rare, beautiful afternoon. As I turned from the silver sound and snow capped mountains to head home, I met a hobo. He was a young chap, a bit haggard and in need of a shower, shave and a good meal. We chatted for a bit during the course of which I discovered that he was train-hopping from Michigan to Seattle in hopes of catching a fishing boat to Alaska. He was desperate for work, and having no money, the only thing he could think to do was to don a backpack and ride the rails West. Having read Ted Conover's 'Rolling Nowhere' (an undercover journalist's account of the real lives of rail-riding hobos) I had a certain sympathy for this man; so I fed him and put him up for the night. In the morning, after breakfast, I gave him my Northface sleeping bag ("you'll need this in Alaska!"), took him to Fisherman's Terminal and wished him luck on his journey. It's in this spirit that I join this community, knowing not only how sweet it is to meet kindness in strangers, but to reinforce that which is truly sacred in this strange world of ours: the fundamental connectedness of humans.

Interests

Music, literature, movies, cooking and eating, beer and wine, dancing, motorcycles, philosophy, meta-physics, brain chemistry, hypnosis, hiking, backpacking, beauty, tai chi, meditation, traveling, friends, laughter, insight, sunshine, talent, honesty and porch time on a warm, quiet night.

• arts
• writing
• literature
• beauty
• dancing
• cooking
• breakfast
• wine
• beer
• meditation
• motorcycles
• boating
• movies
• traveling
• socializing
• music
• guitar
• fishing
• hiking
• backpacking
• chemistry
• journalism
• physics
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Movies: The Visitor; V for Vendetta; Pan's Labyrinth. Authors: Kim Stanley Robinson; Ursula Le Guin; Cormac McCarty. Music: Blues; Jazz; Flamenco; wizards of the acoustic steel string guitar; The Beatles and Zeppelin.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Once I was in the checkout line of my neighborhood market. There was a little girl with her impatient mother in front of me. The little girl dropped a toy and it rolled behind the counter, past the checkout clerk and under the cigarette display: lost for good was what her mother told the very upset girl. The girl was crestfallen. So, without thinking -- just a moment of non-action really -- I went behind the checker, got on my belly, reached under the display and retrieved the toy. When I gave it to the girl her whole being lit up like a comet. That fleeting yet riveting connection was the simplest and most enlightened moment I've ever had.

Teach, Learn, Share

Well, if you don't speak it well, I could teach you English. I could also teach you how to fix things around the house as well as how to make cool sounds on a guitar. As for learning: well I just keep my mind open.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, France, Greece, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

South Korea, United States