Hiya, i'm brand new to all of this. Recently finished a long, torturous PhD so i'm looking to blow the cobwebs away and have an adventure.

I'm currently living on the most beautiful farm in Vermont. Here for a good few weeks and then moving onto British Columbia.

I'm hoping to return the favour when i get back. I love the idea of couchsurfing and i'm hoping it will be as good a way to meet new, interesting people.

PHILOSOPHY:

In terms of my life philosophy - i turn to my single favourite paragraph in literature!

"Trust your heart they say. But what if one happens to be possessed of a heart that can't be trusted? What if the heart, for its own unfashionable reasons, leads one wilfully and in a cloud of unspeakable radiance away from health, domesticity, civic responsibility and strong social connection and all the blandly held common virtues and instead straight towards a beautiful flare of ruin, self immolation and disaster. If your deepest self is coaxing you straight towards the bonfire is it better to turn away? Stop your ears with wax? Ignore all the perverse glory your heart is screaming at you? Or is it better to throw yourself head first and laughing into the holy rage calling your name?"

Why I’m on Couchsurfing

See above - adventure, socialising, new experiences and stories to tell. I love meeting new people (before they get a chance to go off me) and I am become entranced by the pay-it-forward mutually supportive nature of couchsurfing.

As soon as i get back from my trip in the US i'd be more than happy to host anyone in need of a place to crash, and show them a good old Manchester night out.

Interests

Books most of all. They are my lifeblood.
Cycling and hiking in the hills.
Creepy stories about monsters and ghosts
The gym (not an interest, more a necessary evil)
Theatre and film
Music festivals - a year without one is a year wasted.
The feeling of live music when it lifts your heart out of your chest
Animals and wildlife
The weird side of life

• animals
• wildlife
• writing
• books
• literature
• music festivals
• festivals
• cooking
• music
• live music
• cycling
• hiking
• snowboarding
• mountains

Music, Movies, and Books

Books:
Anything by Stephen King, but especially IT.
The Grapes of Wrath
House of Leaves
Any Human Heart
David Copperfield
Wuthering Heights

Movies:
Into the Wild
Forrest Gump
The Dark Knight
The Goonies
Casino

Music:
Bruce Springsteen
The Gaslight Anthem
Counting Crows
Kings of Leon
Tori Amos

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I randomly give up a job i hated, moved to Switzerland to be with my partner, and got a job as a nanny for a year. I looked after a 2 year old German boy and it was the happiest year of my life; spent cycling through the Franco-Swiss countryside, hiking and snowboarding in the Alps, and bonding with a beautiful family.

Also - i did a cliff dive in Costa Rica. Trekked into the jungle and leapt off a 44ft waterfall - it's a local right of passage for the youth. Exhilarating doesn't even cover it!

What I Can Share with Hosts

I can share stories of drunken nights and amazing sights
I can incorporate them into the stories i'm writing
I can offer cooking enthusiasm (if not outright skill)
I clean and keep things tidy
I can tell a great joke and make a great whiskey and coke.
I can talk about music and literature until the early hours.
I can make you laugh.

Countries I’ve Visited

Costa Rica, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Portugal, Romania, Scotland, Spain, Switzerland, Tunisia, Turkey, United States, Viet Nam

Countries I’ve Lived In

England, Scotland, Switzerland