I have always loved reading and nature. To take a break from the standard reality, I escape into speculative fiction and have done so all my life. I also need frequent nature breaks and currently spend a lot of time hiking. I've always hiked or at least taken walks in nature. I like any and every place. I grew up on a farm in the Midwest and took frequent walks alone, a pattern I maintained until recently. I've been hiking with a couple of hiking groups and the people are very nice. I may read a lot but I'm also very active. I love to listen to music and dance. I listen to music almost every waking moment. I don't like to repeat songs very often, though, so I have an extensive collection of digital songs, CDs, and LPs, which I've been listening to a lot lately
I enjoy learning about different cultures and eating many different foods. I've traveled as often as possible, having spent time in Europe and South America and I lived in Japan for four years. I especially like the Japanese culture. I hope to do more traveling now that I'm mostly retired.
I still teach university level courses in teacher education when I can do that. I taught at the university level for about 14 years in all and at campuses in a few states: Florida, Texas, Alabama, and California. I started out teaching science in high school (chemistry and physics) before going to graduate school to get master's in journalism and science education, then my doctorate in science and technology education. My undergrad degree is in astronomy, which has always been my favorite science.
I love talking about "ideas." I currently belong to a group in which we discuss philosophy, science, and other topics of interest to the members.
If you know the MBTI, I'm an INTJ. I'm an introvert but I've been a teacher/professor almost all of my career. By nature, I enjoy curriculum development more than the actual teaching. I highly value education and lifelong learning.
I'm an academic but I'm also a pretty laid back person, too. I watch stuff like the crime and futuristic series on Netflix, but I can't stand commercial TV and find it hard even to be in the room with a TV blaring commercials. I love humor and tend to enjoy sarcasm because I grew up in a large family (oldest of nine) and that's the way we were (and still are!).
I look forward to the discussions here and beyond!