Updated & current as of Nov. 2, 2018 **Holiday swaps

For holiday swaps - cards, etc - I will be happy with whatever you send me. I won't be offended if you send me Santa or Jesus, a Menorah or, really, anything else. As long as it fits the swap (so you don't get away with sending me a Valentine's card in December!), it's fine. Solstice? Great! Festivus? please! 'Generic' Seasons Greetings or Hapy Holidays? I'd be happy to get it! That odd card that you don't know who to send to? Yep, that's mine! :) Really, I'm pretty easy going about these things. If you have a Happy Festivus or Happy Solstice card, I would LOVE to get it!

Please don't feel you need to add tuck ins, if not specified in the swap. I'm perfectly OK with no tuck ins. (But, I do love the Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer or Frosty the Snowman stickers I see from time to time, as well as Snoopy/Peanuts, as well as the old, original Grinch.)

My favorite holiday movies are 'A Christmas Carol', 'A Christmas Story', 'Frosty the Snowman', 'Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer' and the 'Garfield Christmas movie'.

When sending, I will do my best to match your likes and such, whenever possible.

Holiday type items I do like I like black cats, ghosts, pumpkins, fall leaves, snowmen, snow flakes. Snoopy/Peanuts themed. Seasonal images - snow, evergreens, fall leaves/trees, pumpkins, spring flowers, summer themed.
PLEASE!! NO OWL IMAGES! They seem to be popular, but they actually scare me quite a bit, so I'd appreciate it if you would keep them.

MAILING

After I drop my mail off in the blue boxes or at the post office, I mark it 'sent'. This is our 3rd winter here in Western Mass, and I'm noticing a pattern. Starting in early Nov, mail is very sporadic. We will go several days without delivery at all, and I've heard that mail I've dropped in the blue boxes will sit for up to a week before it is collected and on it's way - even at the post office. I can almost promise the postmarks won't match up.

If you're going to be late, just tell me. It's ok. I am more annoyed with a lack of communication than I am about being a few days late (or whatever) in sending a swap.

I get rather annoyed when people spell my name wrong. It's Cindi, NOT Cindy! Seriously, if you are addressing mail to me, it's right there in black and white, typed out. Take the second to spell my name correctly! Thanks!

Hosting:

For swaps I host, I will angel all swaps, but you need to contact me to let me know you were flaked on! I won't chase you down to angel the swap.

So, about me & mine:

I'm a letter writer. I started pen palling in my teen years, in the late 1980's. I'm 42 years old, married 23 years now, a mom to 3 teens and really am a USAF wife. (USAF = United States Air Force) We are currently in Western Massachusetts. I'm not thrilled with the current presidency or their politics, but I am an American.

I'm not Christian, but do have my own beliefs. I have read a lot and participated in Wiccan celebrations, and enjoy reading about Buddhism. I sometimes miss the old traditions of the Lutheran services I used to attend, but that's not where my beliefs are. I don't 'hate' anyone for who they are or what they believe, or any race, religion or group of people. I am "LGBTQ friendly" even though I am a hetro-married woman.

I deal with anxiety, migraines and depression, and it sucks. I'm also an Adult Child of Alcoholics. My children have varying levels of "special needs", including anxiety, Autism spectrum, and TBI. I'm a 'caregiver' for those who need it, and it is exhausting most days. Swapping and mail should be - needs to be - happy. I have enough drama in my life as it is!

We have 3 pets, all rescues that have traveled the country with us. Ben is a Turkish Van cat, Jack is an orange tiger cat, and Falcon is a Husky mix dog.

I'm afraid of owls. If you could skip sending me owl images, stickers, washi tape and not decorate the envelope with owls I'd appreciate it. I'm also afraid of deep water and drowning, but I doubt you'll send me a pool, so that's probably ok. :)

I LOVE Garfield. I've loved Garfield all my life, and dearly enjoy getting anything related.

I would like

I like butterfly shapes, trees, and prefer stars and moons to heart shapes; I prefer silver to gold; My favorite color is blue (dark rather than pastel);
any Garfield item :)
rainbows, unicorns, llamas, bulldogs. items designed by Laurel Burch; pens - (business / promotional pens, souvenir pens); items with sun/moon/stars; Egyptian Gods/Goddesses (esp. Bast); I love old, abandoned buildings. I like coffee, I don't drink alcohol, and my guilty pleasure drink is Pepsi. (Or Vanilla Coke, when I can find it!)

Animals I like: sloths, llamas, cats, giraffes. Not much into reptiles or fish, in general. Blue Jays, Cardinals Prefer real animal pictures to drawn/cartoon types. Please, no Owls!

Cartoonish characters I like include: Garfield, Scooby Doo, Pooh Bear (especially Eeyore), Tiny Toons & Animaniacs, Sanrio's Gudetama, Adventure Time. Also Ziggy and Simon's Cat! :)

please do not send:

Items that smell like cigarette smoke (I have to throw those away, outside, as they will give me very bad headaches), also please no scented candles, air fresheners, etc. for the same reason.

Items with my name spelled incorrectly(seriously, if you are going to 'surprise' me with address labels, please make sure my name is spelled correctly!)

Owl paper, stickers, washi, etc .... I'm afraid of them, so it's actually traumatic.

Patriotic & 'God Bless America' type items - we are a military family, but do not care for those type of items.

I've made some Dotee Dolls, and do somejournal swaps. I've made some Pocket Letters, but I think I prefer regular letters. My 'mail art' is usually limited to washi tape and/or stickers - or printed paper, as I make some envelopes, usually from book pages or calendar pages. I like to re-use items when possible.

Starting to get into Journal cards, so if you have some to share, I'd be happy to receive them. :)

I love to read. Prefer used books to new books. Also love audio books. I am on Goodreads, and I log in all my books there.

Books I like

I can't narrow it down to a list, but I love original Grimm Brother's fairy tales, mythology, folk lore & customs, mysteries (Agatha Christie!), Stephen King (The Dark Tower series!), Shirley Jackson (The Haunting of Hill House in all it's forms!), anything about haunted houses, abandoned buildings, biographies and memoirs ('Buddhist Boot Camp' and 'Faithfully Religionless' by Timber Hawkeye). I've read or listened to Harry Potter, but am more of a fan of Percy Jackson. I read some YA recommended by my kids.

TV & Movies

Some of my favorite actors are: Robert Downey Jr, Brendan Fraser, Rachel Weisz, David Tennant

TV shows I watch & like: Are You Being Served? (Old BBC show), Supernatural, Sherlock, Dr Who, Northern Exposure, 30 Rock, NCIS (just starting on this one)

Favorite Movies: The Mummy, The Haunting, Brother's Grimm, 10 Things I Hate About You, Clue;
Disney's Hercules, Disney's Emperor's New Groove

Favorite Music The Monkees,Imagine Dragons,John Mayer, Katy Perry, Joan Baez, Soul Asylum, Enigma,Billy Joel, Daft Punk,Dar Williams, Bjork, Edwyn Collins, Ricky Martin (yes, really. I was a fan of Menudo when he joined, so that lingers), music from the 1980's, music from the 1990's (more the 'pop' than 'alternative' I guess)

I still love stickers! :) Stickers I would enjoy:

Lisa Frank, Garfield (any, they are the only ones I actually collect & don't use), Scooby Doo, rainbows, books, coffee, flowers, stars/moon/sun, fall/autumn, trees, unicorns are ok, realistic animals like dogs, cats, llamas, giraffes, sloths.

No owls though! And none of those big-eyed distorted designs. Those are creepy!

Cartoon types I'd enjoy: Garifled, Scooby Doo, Looney Tunes/Tiny Toons/Animaniacs, Muppets, Adventure Time, Regular Show, Muppets, Snoopy/Peanuts, Ziggy

I'd rather not receive: holidays, teachers rewards, little kid themes, big- eyed animals, OWLS!!!, hearts. Please do not send American flags or 'God bless America' or the like items.

Washi Tape I don't use it in my planner or journal, so the worded tapes I have little use for. Please no Bible themed types - I can't use it. I don't care for emoji, especially the 'poop' emoji. I just don't understand that fascination.

I would enjoy tapes with coffee, books, cats, sloths, giraffes, unicorns, rainbows, llamas, stars, moon, trees, butterflies, snowflakes are ok, and I like snowmen. Blue, purple or silver colored. I prefer silver to gold. I don't mind glitter washi tape, as long as it won't "shed" on the paper or in the envelope.