CURRENT MISSION

Nullius in verba

ABOUT ME

I often start laughing for no reason, or at least not one I could easily explain to anyone including myself. I think I'm confused a lot of the time, though probably not as confused as I think I might be, but more confused than I think other people think I am.

I like spring training (MLB) more than the post season, and the winter solstice more than the summer solstice.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

I've hosted friends, family and CSers.
I've surfed the US, some of Canada and a bit of Europe while staying with friends, friends of friends, parents (and step parents) of friends, a godson of the husband of my mother's friend, the parents of a guy my dad worked with, and CSers.
Pittsburgh Weekenders '08 '09.

Interests

baseball in a thinking, see-on-the-radio, nostalgic way; trees and mountains in a comforting way; good beer in a not pretentious way; travel in a somewhere-else sort of way; ...

Books, movies, music, sports, the environment and being outdoors and stuff, driving, tech stuff, good conversation, and just hanging out. I'm sometimes a bit of a news/politics junkie. I like to build/create things sometimes. I enjoy beer but wish I could articulate flavors better. I've helped several folks brew and it is/was great fun. I like food too. I will eat most anything and will try anything once, though I may ask you to eat it first. I definitely like spicy dishes but really everything from vegan smoothies to steak, frog legs or fermented shark (maybe with Brennivín?).

• books
• environment
• dining
• beer
• vegan
• politics
• technology
• news
• trivia
• movies
• traveling
• music
• outdoor activities
• sports
• baseball
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

For books and movies, I generally go for Humor, Sci-fi, and Classics. Sometimes fantasy and documentaries.

-Books: My favorites are the "Hitchhiker's Guide" series, "The Sun Also Rises" and "A Clean Well Lighted Place", but really all Douglas Adams and all Hemingway. Jasper Fforde is cool, so is Mark Twain. Frank Herbert's "Dune" series is great. A lot of Terry Pratchett's "Disc World" books are as well. George Orwell is scary because it could be true, along with Ray Bradbury. I've been more non-fiction recently.

-Movies: Lucky Number Slevin, Clue, Monty Python, Mel Brooks, Clint Eastwood, O'Brother Where Art Thou, Office Space, Dr. Strangelove Or: How I Learned To Stop Worrying And Love The Bomb, Kung Fu Hustle, Eddie Izzard Dress To Kill, Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels, The Fifth Element, Supertroopers, Shaun of the Dead, Arsenic and Old Lace, The Thin Man, and so many more. -People should see 'Songcatcher' if they have any interest in Celtic, folk or bluegrass music etc. It describes some of the heritage in Appalachia (sorta where I'm from) as well.

From alternative, ska and punk (Catch-22, Goldfinger), to more jamband and bluegrass (Yonder Mountain String Band, Leftover Salmon), to more blues, jazz and 'classic' rock sometimes.
Many podcasts (Thrilling Adventure Hour, Men In Blazers, Tony Kornheiser Show, EconTalk).

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I tried to explain gravity (Newton's version since it's simpler) to a five-year-old. 'The Earth is really big, you're small. When you jump up, the Earth pulls you back down.' He just said 'OK'

Teach, Learn, Share

I could probably teach someone how to drive a standard shift car, do a reasonable job of describing Mountain Top Removal type coal mining in Appalachia and explain a bit of how beer is made. I am sometimes full of other useless info, but it doesn't come out on demand which is really disappointing on trivia night..

"million-to-one chances happen 9 times out of 10" Terry Pratchett

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Guam, Hungary, Iceland, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, Micronesia, Federated States of, Monaco, Netherlands, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States

Countries I’ve Lived In

Guam, Japan, United States

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