10/9/19 - I have kind of disappeared. Dealing with such junk including depression, death, and disease. Not all the same people. I'll make anything right that needs to be in a month or so. ? Not sure on timeline. I'm hoping you guys know me well enough to know I'm not flaking reasonlessly and that if I could be doing stuff, I would.

For my Wacky Holiday Zines, I'll still keep those up, and will send you whatever zines I owe you all as soon as I can. That's for everyone who signs up, not just the partners I get.

In the meantime, thanks for your kindness and patience.

I Pledge to Rate

I'm 47. I like many types of art, and have gone through phases in life, always creating. Some phases I've been through.

• cross stitch
• knitting
• crochet
• quilting
• mod podge madness
• painting with acrylics
• sketching
• zentangles
• inchies (my new budding fave)
• stamping and card making (Stampin' Up)
• And then, no matter what else I may be doing art-wise, I'm always a writer.
• There have been more, no doubt, but who can remember it all?
• My new passion, diamond painting. Prettier and far more meditative than you'd think.

I am not good at painting, so don't worry about finding a picture in there, but I like mixing pretty colors in pretty ways.

I'm fanatically obsessed with.

• the color green
• but also all the other colors, too!
• Benedict Cumberbatch
• David Tennant
• dogs
• peacocks
• songbirds
• Harry Potter (Ravenclaw)
• and mainly, the color GREEN. My daughter can't wait to move out cuz "I'm sick of living in a lime!"
• but I also love ALL the colors, too!

Other things I like, in no particular order.

• abstract paintings
• all things Irish
• birds
• having all adult children!!!!
• being on my OWN for the first time in my LIFE
• photography (but the kind with the $200 camera or my iPhone 7+),not the $1500 camera--

As for who I am.

• I am an ultra liberal
• Atheist (a bit agnostic), which means
• I love people very much and
• Appreciate life now cuz I believe it's all I've got and
• I don't hate religious people who don't hate others.
• I have a kid who's gay. Have been a vocal supporter of gay rights since Matthew Shepard (I'll bet half of you youngsters don't even know who that is--if not, you really should look up his story. Heartbreaking.)
• All 3 of my kids are mixed race (white/black)
• I had 4 grandkids, but

• One died of SIDS at age 4 months and 5 days.

• I'm from Minnesota born and raised

• I had my first kid at 17
• So now at 47,
• I'm "free" for the first time in my entire life.
• Not married, kids grown and heading out.
• I'm in a stage where I am seeking ME.

• Part of that is I've started painting.

• I mostly stay at home and

• Am now medicated and recovered more or less from agoraphobia.
• But I'm still a homebody

Grandkids are the very reason for having kids. They are so awesome!!!

My dad died 3 years ago, and I still miss him every single day of my life, and my ex (children's father) died 2 years ago, and I miss him more and more. I thought time was supposed to heal! I'm patient...

• I love history.
• I am and have always been a writer. I journal a LOT and write fiction a LOT. Please don't ask me what I've published. I'll let you know if I ever have something to answer that question with! Well, blog articles, which I do for work.
• I think people and their stories are super interesting, so...
• If we end up in a swap together, I'd love for you to tell me your story! You know, those anecdotes that are hilarious or sentimental that the rest of your friends and family are sick of hearing. I haven't heard them yet! Tell me! I would honestly prefer that to physical extras.
• Also, I'll 99.99999% of the time include at least a page, likely more, with any swap. If not, though, there was a time crunch, and I'll have at LEAST a quick note. If it's a letter swap, don't worry about having to measure how many pages - mine will be WELL OVER the requirement cuz I LOVE to write letters.

This was going to be a list, but I realized what I'd like to receive is something you put your heart into. If it's a postcard, it can be either something you are super interested in, or something that matches stuff I've written here. Just please no bible verses. I don't like that. If you want to pray for my soul, feel free, just don't tell me about it. :D I have realized that as far as postcards go, I mainly look at the side you have written on. Sometimes I forget to look at the "front" for days. So it's your words that mean the most to me.

ATCs - People here are at all different levels, and as long as I can tell you put your best into it, I love it! I truly love each one best. I mean, think about it. You are sitting down, spending time, sometimes a lot of time, creating a piece of art for me. Of course I love it!

Notecards - Again, as far as what it looks like, whatever floats your boat, or mine. It's your words I care about. Share a piece of you, and I love it.

Letters - The longer, the better, baby. That's all I'm saying. Also, PLEASE legible, because I hate when I try to read it and can't! So if you're writing a really looooong letter and your hand gets tired, set it aside for the next day or something, so I can definitely read it. I'll do the same for you.

Hearts - I have literally not given a heart to one person who I gave a 5, because I could tell no effort had been put in. Otherwise, I always give hearts.

Extras - Welcomed, but not required. I give hearts for people who put effort in. Who am I kidding? I basically give everyone hearts. So I do love when I see extras, but I do not feel "disappointed" when I don't see them. All I want is my swap, and if you are thinking of making it a little extra special, as I mentioned above, tell me a story. Tell me a funny thing that happened today, or a funny kid story everyone who you know IRL is sick of hearing. Even funny pet story. I would love a page or two much more than a few extra things. But I totally appreciate when you do send extra things, too, and I can make use of them. What I'm saying is, I get mail that's not a bill, I'm thrilled with it already!

I sometimes read more than 200 books annually, so I have a list of favorite authors, which includes, first and foremost, Stephen King. Then in no particular order.

1 Stephen King

• JK Rowling
• Amy Tan
• Louise Erdrich (home grown)
• Bryce Courtenay
• Carlos Ruiz Zafon
• Charles Dickens
• Anne Rice
• Alexander McCall Smith
• Zadie Smith
• Brandon Sanderson
• Anchee Minh
• Ursula K Leguin
• Joe Hill
• Owen King
• Margaret Atwood (long before the Hulu show came out)
• Gregory Maguire
• William Kent Krueger (home grown)
• NK Jemisin
• Charlaine Harris (guilty pleasure)
• Diana Gabaldon
• Lisa See
• GRR Martin
• JRR Tolkien
• Octavia Butler
• Ian McEwan
• Amitav Ghosh
• David McCullough
• Dominic Murray (a friend!)
• Sherman Alexie
• Tony Hillerman
• Margaret Cole
• John D. McDonald
• Lemony Snicket
• Walter Mosley

Okay, there are so many more. But you get the idea. I like books.

I watch way too much TV. The top three, in the order I became a fan of them, are

1 The West Wing, BBC's Sherlock, and Doctor Who

2 Then all the Law & Orders (I will always love Jerry Orbach), Firefly (robbed!), Grey's Anatomy.

And in no particular order

• ER
• Buffy
• Castle
• Criminal Minds
• Supernatural
• The Walking Dead
• Being Human (UK)
• Star Trek (all)
• LA Law
• How I Met Your Mother
• Big Bang Theory
• Young Sheldon
• Modern Family
• Blackish
• Life in Pieces

Much to my shame, there are many more. I'll leave it at that, though.

I mostly listen to books and NPR, but in the last couple years, Pandora and I have been working out my fave music. So here's some of my fave artists.

• Maroon 5!
• Mumford & Sons!
• The Fray
• Milky Chance
• Bastille
• Of Monsters & Men
• The Lumineers
• Peter Bjorn and John
• The Arctic Monkeys
• The Script
• Twenty One Pilots
• AWOL Nation
• Fallout Boy
• The White Stripes
• Ed Sheeran
• Foster the People

So that, whatever that is called.

1 Shawshank Redemption

• Lord of the Rings Trilogy
• Dirty Dancing
• Tombstone (the only Western on the list cuz - not a fan of Westerns - but the Wyatt Earp/ Doc Holliday relationship in this gets me every time).
• Harry Potter movies
• Meet the Parents
• Schindler's List
• Dead Again
• Fallen
• Star Trek movies

I don't watch a lot of movies. But this is a selection of ones I have liked.

• Prejudice
• Racism
• Monotheism
• Bible verses
• Thoughts & Prayers
• Insincerity
• Pessimism
• Large crowds
• Small crowds if they are too noisy
• Trying to have a conversation when I can hear another conversation or radio or TV
• Loud Noises
• Ticks
• Pickles
• Bagless Vacuums
• Cleaning (though I love having a clean home, so...)
• Cats (but only because I am so allergic to them that if I'm around them too long I might actually die, otherwise they are cool)