CURRENT MISSION

I am about to travel to Europe for seven weeks. I am a professor of philospohy and am taking 37 studnets to Austria, Germany Italy and France. I have a place to stay in Austria but I have a Eurail pass for Germany, Italy and France.

ABOUT ME

I am a divorced mother of two teenage daughters. I like to travel a lot and look forward to meeting people through Couch Surfing. I had a student tell me about it and it sounds awesome. I don't have a lot of money and I love the idea of getting to know the Couch Surfing Commmunity. I feel like I am very knowledgeable about Western Civilization and would make for a great guest or host.

If you were staying in my home, I have two couches, one in the living room and one in the sun room. The sum room would best be used for warm nights however. I am close to the university and the lake. I have two baths and full utilities so I can assure you a comfortable stay in the foothills of Appalaichia.

PHILOSOPHY

This may be my most difficult thing to write given my profession. I guess what you mean is how I view the world. To me, the world is generally a good place and real love does exist. I look for the positive because I feel we are obligated to live that way. I am constantly trying to improve my knowledge, I never feel like I know enough which is part of the reason why I find others so interesting. But don't feel like I would pick your brain if you spent the night on the couch, if you want peace, you can have it.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

I am just beginning but I am hoping to participate by being a guest at a few people's homes this summer while I am travelling through Europe and then I was hoping to host others CouchSurfers at my home. I would appreciate the opportunity to meet various people from all over the world and would like to welcome them into my home.

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I have one beautiful soft leather couch in the living area of the house and one cabin style couch out in the sun room for warm nights. All the amenities of home are available. I am a warm and knowledgeable person and would look forward to getting to know others.

We have a large screen LCD tv in a 4 bedroom 2 bath house. I live with my very large boyfriend however (6'5", ex-military). But he shouldn't be a problem.

Interests

Philosophy is my main interest, followed by my duaghters and then travelling, hikes, boats, bird watching, gardening. I also enjoy camping when I can get to it. This area is wonderful for outdoors activities. There's even several pairs of nesting American Eagles near the lake.

• birds
• dining
• gardening
• politics
• tv
• traveling
• socializing
• outdoor activities
• hiking
• camping
• surfing
• scuba diving
• teaching
• history
• philosophy

Music, Movies, and Books

Casablanca is still my favorite movie. Recently I really liked Avatar despite it's obvious moral overtones. I don't get a chance to listen to music anymore but I like music of most kinds. I read a lot of non-fiction books, for example right now I am reading 'The Dream of Reason'.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Probably the most amazing moment in my life so far was riding down the river Seine at night with my daughters and passing the Tour Eiffel all lit up and having them jump up and down they were so excited. It was a truly awesome experience.

We also went scuba diving with some wild dolphins down off of Key West a couple of summers ago. That was lots of fun.

Lots of memories come back from college days, both participating and teaching.

Teach, Learn, Share

The exchange talked about below is what interests me the most. As a philosopher, I want to talk to people from all walks of life and see what their views are on everything from food to god to politics, but I won't pry.

I myself am very knowledgeable about the history and philosophy of western civilization, but I lecture about this stuff all the time. I will discuss it more if you want me to, but I won't if you don't.