Highly accomplished retiree. Married. Especially enjoy the West Coast as well as New York City. Am avid reader and lover of classical music, traditional jazz, and jazz of the 1950s through the 1980s. Am strong believer in living in a space of authenticity and integrity. Am active in a mainstream Protestant church. Do a fair amount of volunteer work. Enjoy nature, hiking, bicycling. Believe in the many benefits of living in a socially and ethnically diverse society. Abhor violence, narrow-mindedness, and tyranny of all kinds.

I love foreign languages and am fluent in German. Have taught German language, literature, and culture both in public school and especially in higher education. Changed careers in mid-stream to become an IT employee (software technical writer and later a software course designer/writer. Also taught system software courses in Europe and Japan.

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

To make contact with people of similar values who are willing to make lodging available to me and my wife. Some solo travel is also very likely in the offing because my wife is considerably younger than I.

Interests

• writing
• movies
• reading
• classical music
• jazz
• hiking
• mountains
• nature
• world politics
• forests
• spirituality
• national parks
• different cultures
• france
• italy
• paris
• london
• bicycling
• europe
• seaside
• austria
• good conversation
• foreign cultures
• utah
• world history
• norway
• germany
• ethnic food
• uk
• biography
• berlin
• vienna
• switzerland
• nature walks
• florida
• san francisco
• sweden
• denmark
• washington
• nature conservation
• european union
• intellectual conversations
• european politics
• american history
• arizona
• munich
• visiting museums

Music, Movies, and Books

Classical music: Bach, Handel, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Mendelssohn, Brahms, Borodin, Mahler, Stravinsky, Shostakovich, Prokoviev, composers of grand opera (especially Verdi and Puccini).

Movies: high-quality drama and comedy. Films about espionage.

Books: mostly nonfiction (biography, European history and American history). I read an occasional novel, too. Favorite book is Thomas Mann's The Magic Mountain.

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

Earned a PhD degree from a major university (German literature, University of Minnesota). My dissertation advisor declared that I had earned the degree "with distinction." Had a couple of refereed articles published in scholarly journals.

Teach, Learn, Share

German language and culture, English as a foreign language,

What I Can Share with Hosts

My Midwestern upbringing.
My educational and career path.
My enjoyment of nature.
My love of having new experiences.
My love of family.
My high regard for education.
My respect for others.
My abhorrence of violence of all kinds.

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Switzerland, United Kingdom

Countries I’ve Lived In

Germany