Sam

Information de voyage

Actuellement, je suis

Les activités qui m'intéressent :

Greetings, fellow travelers! I'm now in Ireland and would welcome the chance to get-together for a chat. Love being out & about and exploring...movies, dinner, tours, ETC!

Description

Greetings…and my longtime nickname is “Sam” (although, no, not short for Samantha as my initials spelled S.A.M. for many moons).

Having worked full-time as well as full-throttle for the past 25+ years, I recently arrived at a pivot point in my life -- so I set my sights on the UK/EU..a.k.a. my heart’s desire.

I am a native Californian, born and raised in the Los Angeles area – but once I discovered the delights of N. California, I relocated (with great glee!) to Sonoma County, about 50 miles north of San Francisco. Then, after nearly two decades there, I moved again to another “wine country” region, the Sierra foothills – a.k.a. home of California’s historic 1850s Gold Rush. There, I designed and built a vintage-inspired hilltop home with my late hubby while pursuing my dual-track self employment (interior designer, and also marketing/publishing consultant with a longtime specialty of obtaining national/regional first-tier publicity for first-time authors and other “unknowns”).

However, last year it was time to up-sticks, so I duly snipped my ties to N. California in order to depart the States and begin a NEW season of life – so I'm now trading upon my extensive roster of work/construction skills (as well as house/pet-sitting) for an open-ended season of ongoing travel. I'm in England currently and have my eye on returning to both Ireland and France (after long ago but much-cherished visits in each) -- and, as a nearly lifelong Anglophile, I am SO enthralled to be spending time here in Britain at last! : D

My overall nature is outgoing, upbeat, friendly, curious, thoughtful, engaged, respectful, and definitely fun-loving. I ADORE meeting new people in whatever context, and communication has been a cornerstone of both of my unrelated businesses for the past two+ decades. So I’m quick on my feet verbally, and also listen very attentively. Overall, I am a sunny optimist, very self-reliant, and a proactive self-starter & problem solver.

Before I became what I think of as an accidental entrepreneur (brought about when the publishing company I was working for closed their West Coast offices), I always made a point of making friends with everyone wherever I was employed – from the janitor to the CEO. I strive to accept people as they are and interact with each individual in whatever manner they prefer…whether casually or more formally, etc.

My favorite thing to do in life is Go BYE-BYE!! I have been to over 20 states here in the U.S. (although mostly on business, but still relished), and also honeymooned in Paris for about 10 days, and in the years directly thereafter spent 2 weeks each in Ireland and Italy, as well as one snowy Christmastime in Montreal. I am always drawn to historical architecture, and thrive on meeting “the locals” when traveling as special moments of chance encounters with others have always created the most lasting memories for me. Although I appreciate the hustle-bustle tempo when visiting big cities (adored Dublin & Paris!), typical destinations I gravitate to are often less touristy rural locales and small villages off the beaten path.

I’m a “dog person” but also love critters of all sorts -- in fact, I've recently completed a 3-week house/pet-sit via Workaway while in Spain (kitten & dog), see pics of them on my Photos page as well as Claire's review. I'm currently on my 10th house/pet-sit back in England via a different platform (see my Photos for a screenshot of reviews earned for my first few sits, more available!).

Favorite pastimes include reading, movies, a diverse range of music, DIY and crafts, gardening including landscape design, cooking/baking/entertaining, wine tasting, antique-ing, and also revitalizing vintage furniture...and the most engaging activity of all: stimulating conversation with friends, old & new! : D

Centres d’intérêt

Écriture

Politique/justice sociale

Photographie

Animaux de compagnie

Arts du spectacle

Nature

Musique

Films et télé

Randonnée

Jardinage

Ferme

Événements/vie sociale

Dessin et peinture

Danse

Bricolage / artisanat

Cyclisme

Culture

Cuisine et alimentation

Menuiserie

Livres

Astronomie

Art et design

Architecture

Animaux

Langues

Langues parlées
Français: Débutant

Plus de détails sur les langues qui m'intéressent
I recently completed a 1-week program in Spain volunteering to assist those enrolled in an English immersion program, and would welcome additional opportunities to help others with their conversational English skills.

Trouver un partenaire de langue

Compétences et connaissances que j'aimerais partager ou apprendre

Ça m'intéresse :  

Langues

Baby-sitting et jeux créatifs

Aider dans une ferme

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J'ai des connaissances :  

Enseignement

Entretien général

S’occuper des animaux

Accueil / tourisme

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Je peux apprendre aux autres :  

Jardinage

Bricolage et projets de construction

Projets artistiques

Préparer les repas / cuisiner pour la famille

Aider à la maison

Aide informatique / Internet

Quelles sont vos compétences ?

Overall I have a broad scope of skills including:

Construction/renovation related:

Interior/exterior painting incl. specialty paint finishes, stenciling, tiling (also have designed custom tiles), wallpapering, upholstery, and furniture refinishing

Hand and smaller power tools including sander, reciprocal saw, tile saw, drill, etc. + Bobcat tractor

Gardening (including landscape design)

Interior designer (self-employed, 25+ years following 5 yrs. of f/t retail employment):

Vintage/historic design is a longtime specialty, other skills include creating 2D/3D scale renderings.

I designed and was the general contractor for my own custom vintage-inspired residence, and have also fully renovated two prior homes inside & out.

Extensive computer skills, also photography & photo editing.

Mine has been a somewhat atypical dual career as in addition to my p/t interior design business I've also been a self-employed business development consultant specializing in publicity for 20+ years, and also providing self-publishing assistance. U.S. publicity obtained for first-time authors and other “unknowns” includes: CNN, People, U.S. News & World Report, Entrepreneur, L.A. Times, et al. (please note I do NOT work in the social media space).

In business, I'm very detail-oriented but also always keep an eye on "the big picture." My personal nature is upbeat and outgoing, cooperative vs. competitive, and I typically get along well with folks of whatever age, nationality, etc. (as I'm a peacemaker!).

Personally speaking, I'm neat, tidy, considerate (including being a quiet houseguest), and am a non-smoker + zero drugs. I’m also highly organized and a proactive self-starter regardless of the nature of the task at hand – but will always ask for more information or clarification as needed. FYI I have two recent letters of recommendation re: house-sitting I can provide you, and would also welcome dog-sitting opportunities having had several decades of dog-caring experience, and I'm an animal-lover overall.

Thanks so much for your initial review and consideration…

Autres infos...

I'm quite the Scrabble aficionado...and actually love board/card games of virtually any kind!

Informations complémentaires

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  Fumeur

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  Permis de conduire

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  Allergies
  not to my knowledge except for one Rx

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  Régime alimentaire spécial