hydro75

34-year-old Activity Assistant at a nursing home, and wanna-be writer. Colorado native looking for a change of scenery... suggestions gladly accepted! Thrift store junkie. Married for four years. We're not planning on having kids (unless God decides otherwise!), but I love spoiling my nieces and nephews, then sending them back to my sibs when they start getting cranky. :)

LIKES:

-I LOVE ironic/sarcastic humor (MikWright, despair.com, Engrish, that kind of thing) I've been told I have a dark/twisted sense of humor, and I do find some dark things amusing, but I definitely wouldn't be mistaken for a goth/macabre type. :) Mostly I like to laugh at silly concepts and ideas with a pop culture bent, like that great bumper sticker: "What if the Hokey Pokey really IS what it's all about?" :)

-Colors: I love color in general! My perennial faves are oranges, reds, greens, brown and gold... think 70's Tupperware. :) Oddly enough, I love a dash of bubblegum pink paired with any of those colors.

-I've totally jumped on the owl bandwagon, especially vintage, retro or "cartoony" owls. Also fixating on cherubs, particularly gothic or somber-looking ones.

-LOVE retro food imagery and kitchen items (from the 1950's-early 80's)... magnets, old recipe cards, wall hangings, etc. Mushrooms, owls, lobsters, roosters, and especially anthropomorphic fruits and veggies/food with faces (more the slightly creepy 50's kind than the cutesy kawaii kind)... I love it all!

-80's video games/fads (Pac-Man, Frogger, etc.)

-Mexican folk art, Dia de los Muertos stuff, Loteria cards, anything along those lines.

-Interesting crosses, milagros, and what I consider to be "primitive" Christian artwork (rustic images of Jesus, saints, people praying, etc.) Not much for "Footprints", cutesy angels, or "contemporary" Christian art.

-I'm trying to collect covers from cheesy 60's/70's/early 80's romance novels... particularly the really corny, handsome doctor/pretty nurse, hopelessly dated kind. My plan is to eventually make them into journal covers and and box tops, but at the moment, the ones I have are in the same state as a lot of my crafting supplies-- I love collecting them and looking through them, but probably won't get around to actually DOING anything with them for the foreseeable future :P

-Food (of the postal kind): love chocolate (milk or white, please), Smarties, butter mints, rice candies, those flavored Kit Kats they have in Canada and Japan, dried fruit, coffee (love trying local brands from different parts of the world), will at least try (and probably love!) just about any tea (love lychee if you can get it!). As you've probably guessed, I have a huge sweet tooth, with a few exceptions: I'm not crazy about gummy/gel candies, or most candy with aggressively fake (artificial) colors. Otherwise, I'm pretty much up for trying any funky/unusual candies or treats from your corner of the world! :) No food allergies that I'm aware of. If you would like to share a recipe, I love Italian, Mexican, Japanese, Chinese and Thai food.

Arts and crafts I collect: ATCs, matchbox shrines/fills, art dolls and funky, handmade stuffies/creatures, recycled jewelry, collages, altered anything!

Random things I collect: honeycomb decorations, tiny Bibles and other tiny books, funky scarves and bags, costume jewelry, pewter "Our Daily Bread" plates.

Can always use: pens, notepads/stationary (dollar store is good, but I giggle like a schoolgirl over leftovers from the 80s or earlier), tiny bottles, scraps of interesting paper, any weird little objects I can collage/create with (game pieces, bits of wood and metal, beads, baubles, stuff from your junk drawer???), stickers (love photorealistic or artsy, but don't really have a use for specific scrapbook stickers like the ones that say Mom, Dad, All Boy, It's a Girl, etc.) If you send me unused stickers from the 80s, I will love you forever!

My style in general: eclectic, colorful, retro, off-beat, folksy (not to be confused with country!), whimsical (not to be confused with cutesy!)

NITPICKY WHINING:

-I'm not a fan of anything too cutesy, or licensed characters (Precious Moments, Disney, etc.), and puppy and kitty items (I don't have a problem with the actual animals, I just prefer not to plaster their images all over my house.)

-I'm respectful of all religions (I'm a left-leaning Christian of Jewish ancestry), but prefer not to receive anything with pagan/witchcraft associations, thank you! :)

-I really have no use for store-bought stuffed animals or little ceramic tchotchkies, but they make great Bingo prizes for our nursing home! :) So if you send me something along those lines, that's probably where it'll end up... just so you know... :)

-Scented items are kinda iffy, not so much for me as for my husband... he has a hyper-developed werewolf sense of smell, and if he smells something in the house that he doesn't like, thinks is too strong, or doesn't smell like what it's "supposed to", I'll have to hear about it for days on end. Probably best to avoid this stuff altogether UNLESS it's Nag Champa incense, which for some reason he loves... go figure??

Having said all that... (I recently re-read my profile and realized how negative it sounded!), I just love getting "fun" mail, and if I receive something I can't use myself, my nursing home folks probably can! Besides bingo, we also have a "store" for them once a month where we sell little things like stationary, snacks, perfumes and colognes, etc. for dirt cheap (pretty much nothing over a dollar), with the proceeds going towards special events for the facility... so anything I receive in a swap that I can't personally use (cutesy, scented, etc.) will probably make an elderly person's day! :)

Also, I LOVE handmade things, and even if something isn't particularly "my" style, it will probably find a place in my collection!

I realize I'm a walking contradiction on a lot of levels... so don't be afraid to PM me if you have any questions!

"The Poisonwood Bible"/Barbara Kingsolver, "Choke"/Chuck Palhanuik, "The Psycho Ex Game"/Merrill Markoe & Andy Prieboy, pretty much anything by Leslie Stella, Amy Tan, Wally Lamb, David Sedaris, Amy Sedaris, Nick Hornby, Anne Lamott and Flannery O'Connor. In fiction, I generally prefer quirky but realistic stories. Not big on fantasy or sci-fi unless it's really character-driven (like Ray Bradbury's stuff). If a current fantasy series has a huge following, and if that following consists largely of kids or teens, there's a good chance I won't like it. :P

For non-fiction, I enjoy personal essay collections, craft books (especially those that encourage re-purposing or using stuff you have on hand, and aren't a thinly veiled advertisement for a specific brand of glue, paper, etc.), or funny coffee-table type books like Signspotting. I've discovered over the years that self-help books generally don't work for me... guess I'm beyond help.:)

Altered books, mini-shrines/assemblages (from Altoid tins, cigar boxes, etc.), ATCs, collage, polymer clay, papermaking, painting (not very well, but I have fun with it--- watercolors and acrylics), sewing, matchbox shrines/fills, recycled/found object jewelry. Love trying new techniques and projects, and that's one of the reasons I love swapping-- there are so many creative ideas that pop up on here, and things I never would have thought of on my own! :)

Mostly classic rock, and 70's-80's pop. A few faves: Fleetwood Mac, U2, Lyle Lovett, Bruce Springsteen, Keb Mo, David Bowie, Pretenders, Johnny Lang, KT Tunstall, Tears for Fears, Alison Krauss & Union Station, Bowling for Soup, Johnny Cash, Jars of Clay, Tracy Chapman. I'm kinda out of the loop with newer music, and love receiving mix CDs of stuff I probably haven't heard. I'll give anything a listen, but generally do not like mainstream country, metal, rap/hip-hop or "tweeny" pop.

I also like a little classical or instrumental/ambient stuff now and then, but I'd be hard-pressed to name any specific artists/composers I like.

Fishing, bicycling, ice skating-- all in moderation! :) I'm definitely not the most adventurous/outdoorsy Coloradan you'll ever meet... generally, I'd rather look at our scenery and draw/paint/collage it, than ski or hike it! :)

I also try to write whenever I can find the time and inspiration. I'm trying to be more disciplined about it, and would love to hear any tips or ideas that work for you!

Napoleon Dynamite (I heart Jon Heder!), Goonies, Princess Bride, Four Weddings and a Funeral, Prince of Egypt, Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Office Space, The Wedding Singer.

Not a huge TV watcher, but enjoy The Simpsons, King of the Hill and The Office. Oh, and Dirty Jobs and No Reservations (okay, I admit it, I have huge crushes on both Mike Rowe and Anthony Bourdain!) :) I just recently discovered Glee-- great show, and another actor for me to crush on (Matthew Morrison)! :P

I put a lot of thought and effort into my swaps, and expect the same of my fellow swappers. I always rate my partners quickly and fairly for a job well done, taking the time to comment on any special touches they included in their work, and I expect the same from those I send things to. It is very disappointing to put a lot of work into a project/swap, and then receive little or no response from the recipient.

For me, swapping is not just about amassing "stuff" (I do that quite well on my own, thank you very much!) but about getting to know people around the world, trying new techniques, and developing my creativity. I hope to meet others on here who feel the same way! I don't really see the point in swapping for things I could just as easily buy myself, or store-bought items that are pretty much universal, like fat quarters or lip gloss. Which is not to say I don't like those things (I do!), just that I'm much more inspired by swaps that encourage creativity and the proverbial "thinking outside the box," and swaps that allow me to give someone something they might not have in their corner of the world, and let me experience tastes/art/ideas I wouldn't otherwise have in mine. :)

Aside from a big aversion to things that smell like smoke, and hubby's aforementioned smell issues, I think you'll find me to be more lenient than the average swapper when it comes to old/used things... so don't be afraid to send thrift store/garage sale/flea market finds my way, as long as they're in decent shape. I love old stuff!

If for some reason you don't receive a swap from me, or if something gets damaged in transit, PLEASE contact me before rating! I will be happy to re-send if necessary.