I am a semi retired artistic human, CURRENTLY WITHOUT A FIXED ADDRESS, so I can't host people (unless it's at a State Park Campground). But when I find myself housed again, probably in Spring 2026, I hope to offer a warm welcome to other Couch Surfers.
I traveled around the US of A for a few years in my youth, working mostly temporary jobs (often through manpower, inc).
I enjoy drawing, painting, and making crafts, and have sold the things I make at galleries, fairs and on the street.
At age 24 I stopped traveling and started raising babies.
I now have 3 perfectly charming grown sons.
I'm single by choice, having separated amicably from the father of my children about ten years ago.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

1) In 2025, when my housing lease ended, I stopped paying rent and have been pet and house-sitting, couch surfing in friends' homes, and I am planning a train adventure in August. I picked couch surfing because I am on a fixed income and want to travel frugally, and also I love meeting people, making new friends and acquaintances
My destination will be Los Angeles, after attending a festival in Bellingham WA, but I want to make several stops on the way west, so I look forward to meeting couchsurfing hosts along the way. I love train travel and far prefer it to flying, but unfortunately traveling by rail is not generally more affordable than flying (particularly when you consider the cost of meals, and the additional time it takes)
The USA Rail-pass is reasonably priced and flexible; but sadly, route options for railroad travel are extremely limited. It is a tragedy, imho, that the US of A doesn't have a stellar passenger trai n system. :^(
2) It's now August and I've been on the road (railroad) for a week.
In this past week I have reconnected with friends I knew decades ago, and also made some new friends through couch surfing as well as through riding together on Amtrak.
So far I'm having a wonderful trip!

Interests

• visual arts
• farming
• trains
• crafting
• bicycle riding

Music, Movies, and Books

I enjoy fiction books, favorite authors include Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Louise Erdrich, Cormac McCarthy, Carolyn Chute (off the top of my head)
I like jazz and folk music, enjoy going to Music Open Mic nights and small local live music venues.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I dk about "amazing", but I like to tell this story:
In 2000, I owned no motorized vehicle, so I was commuting the five miles from home by bicycle to my job as sexton (aka custodian) of an Episcopal church, working flexible hours when my kids were at school (day) and when their father was home (night).
My duties included emptying trash, clean the lavs, office and sacristy and keeping the parish hall tidy before and after the food pantry and various 12-step groups used it, and most important, cleaning the sanctuary before Sunday worship (my favorite time was when the organist was practicing her chops on the small, lovely pipe organ).
Also, I'd make small repairs or notify Building and Grounds of larger problems, and tell the secretary to order custodial supplies as needed.
There was a stone bell tower, with a big brass bell that sounded on the hour and half hour and could also be rung with a rope at the bottom of the tower.
That spring it rained for days, and water was pouring into the vestibule at the base of the tower, where parishioners entered the sanctuary.
I climbed up the ladder to the open, topmost level, (where the bell is) and realized that the water was meant to drain through a small pipe which was clogged with debris.
I brought a plumber's snake up there in the rain and worked at it.
I carried up small buckets of very hot water, I tried baking soda and vinegar.
Nothing would budge that clog.
I managed to drag a large trash barrel up the ladder to the second level, and positioned it to catch most of the water - but I had to empty it at least once, daily.
I did this by positioning another trash barrel below and using a small bucket to bail the water, pouring it down the trap door, bucket by bucket, into the lower barrel.
This was inelegant and time consuming, and everything was still so wet - but anyhow, parishioners didn't need rain gear inside the entryway.
Still the rain just wouldn't stop.
So, on the third level (where the mechanical workings of the clock were housed) I saw that the elbow was smaller diameter than the straight pipe it connected to, creating a lip that twigs, leaves and other organic material had been catching on for years, until they'd finally and completely filled the pipe.
I rode my bicycle to the hardware store in the rain, and purchased a length of straight pvc pipe and a new elbow.
Then I used the hack saw I'd carried from home to remove the elbow that was clogged.
I measured and cut the new straight pipe, affixed the new elbow et voila! Problem solved.
I climbed down the ladder and removed all the trash barrels.
I left my hardware store receipts on the secretary's desk and left the offending clogged elbow in the Parish Hall as exhibit A.
The next day was Sunday. After services the congregants always enjoyed coffee hour in the Parish Hall, and that morning my phone rang. It was George, the head of B and G.
He had seen the bucket (holding the clogged elbow) by the exit door when he came in for coffee and was alarmed, so he'd climbed up into the tower, expecting, I suppose, to find a gaping hole.
"Did you do that?" George asked me, on the telephone.
"It looks like a plumber fixed the drain!"
I felt satisfied with my labors, and continued to work there for 10 more years.
Having never in my life been a church-goer, it was very nice to be an honorary member of that vibrant faith community. I made many friends, got recommended for other (more lucrative) cleaning jobs and engaged in lively discussions with the minister, who became a good friend to me.

Teach, Learn, Share

I enjoy doing crafts with others, such as papier mache.
I make masks and puppets, but hope to learn how to make better puppets than the ones I have been creating.
(one of my life-long weaknesses is the tendency to start art projects that I never (or rarely) quite get completed)
I'm a very good cook, if I may claim that talent.
I've worked in many various restaurants and cafes, in many capacities (from dishwasher to Brunch Cook), and it gives me great pleasure to create inspired dishes at home for friends and family as well as just for li'l old me myelf and I.

What I Can Share with Hosts

I am happy to help with anything around the host's abode; yard work, cleaning and maintenance, cooking.

Countries I’ve Visited

Canada, Mexico, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Canada