CURRENT MISSION

To live the best life I can, to help others, to be open to the guidance of the spirit, to appreciate every day and its gifts.

ABOUT ME

I'm 71 and have been married for 46 years to the same wonderful guy. We have had nine children and they're all grown up, many with families of their own. Fortunately, many of them still live within the state of Maine, so it's easy to maintain family ties. Family is very important to us, but we aren't insular. We like to meet new people and have friends who range across the spectrum of race, religion, politics and class.

PHILOSOPHY

I am a religious person and my religion teaches me that we are all brothers and sisters and that we have come from common spiritual heritage. I try to respect all people and treat them as I would like to be treated. The truth is that I really like people and enjoy being a sociable person, though I do like to be alone as well.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

After being on couchsurfing for several years, we have had the opportunity to host a few times, and have had positive experiences. I have stayed with two couchsurfing families and they were both positive experiences. One of our hosting experiences led to my being hosted in Israel by these same couchsurfers. Two of my children are members of couchsurfing and they have hosted frequently.

Interests

Photography, reading, cooking, travel, studying things I don't know enough about so that I can be a better and more interesting person.

• photography
• cooking
• motorcycles
• politics
• reading
• traveling
• piano
• religion

Music, Movies, and Books

I don't watch many movies, but I really loved "As Good As It Gets" with Jack Nicolson.
Music is important to me and my top favorites (vocalist, composer and performer) are Aretha Franklin and Chopin, followed by Ray Charles and Itzak Perlman. I think Bob Dylan, Paul Simon and Bill Evans are brilliant!
My favorite books are "Independent People" by Haldor Laxness and "My Antonia" by Willa Cather.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Raised nine children to be good people. This is the best thing I have ever done!! Walked down Paris streets I'd never seen before, at dawn, watching the city wake up. Climbed a mountain in Wales at age 59 with a son who (good-naturedly) ran circles around me as we hiked. Traveled on an ocean liner and slept in a Pullman car when I was young.

Teach, Learn, Share

Because I have raised nine children in humble circumstances, (even though I came from privilege), I know how to budget money, stretch a dollar, make bread and soup and other cheap and filling foods. I know how to sew and write. I can play the piano, though I'm not very good at teaching others how to.

What I Can Share with Hosts

This comment doesn't fit into this category, but it's the only place I can find on this profile template where I can insert this information. We live in a rural area with no public transportation options. Therefore, it is essential that guests provide their own transportation, either a car or bicycles or motorcycles. It is about 30 minutes drive by car to get to the coastal locations (Camden, Rockland, Rockport, etc.) where people usually want to go for activities. We might be able to help with transportation from time to time, but generally only if we are already going to the same place as the guest wants to go. A round trip for us is one hour, and as we don't work away from home we don't do that regularly.