HausOfImps

UPDATED JUNE 28, 2022 -- Note: this section is boring and is mainly content about my participation on SB and some rambling about address formatting -- feel free to skip to "about me" unless anything here looks relevant. I'll trim it down soon.

My mental health has actually significantly deteriorated since I last updated (May 28). Still keeping up with swaps, will let you know in advance if I end up needing an extra day or two, but still don't foresee significant issues. Please just be patient with messages and other forms of communication. I am depleted probably beyond what you'd guess from my swaps.

My old account is benevolentghost -- I cannot access it and was hoping to merge it with this one, but recently learned that admins don't read site email and need to be contacted on their personal Facebook accounts. As such, this obnoxious section will likely remain on my profile forever. In the past few years, I have gotten my mental health in check and gotten better at communication, so I'm excited to be swapping again.

So far, Damilola is the only person I was able to contact about making up 1's. She has received my swap and will update when she finishes reading. That will bring me to 300 fives, 2 threes, 3 ones. I hope to eventually get in touch with the others, especially zindelo. Unfortunately, these ratings are several years old. My cumulative rating would now be approximately 4.95 and I join swaps accordingly -- if I overlooked your rating limit without asking first, it was a mistake and you don't need to feel bad dropping me.

For people in the US!

You may notice that I format your address differently than how you've supplied it. I enter everything into USPS Zip Code Lookup. I highly recommend putting in your own address, getting the correct formatting regarding which parts to abbreviate, and updating your info. USPS is federally run. Your mail will probably get to you fine even if it's written in a nonstandard way, but it is probably best to give a federal agency the fewest places to make an error possible.

(I leave out my own zip code +4 and do the same for others with apartment numbers, because from my very limited understanding, this can and does change without warning). But if you're curious, it's 7051 at least of right now.

For people not in the US with very different address conventions!

SB occasionally messes up my address in a way that is easily fixable for domestic mail, but may not be easy for some countries. "Apt 3xx" should either be its own line, or on the same line as the one previous that ends with "Ave."

I always look up the correct way to format addresses for a country and may message you to make sure my rendering is correct. In case you can't tell, I get very anxious about this stuff and it not being done "right" and my mail falling into the abyss.

Hosting Style, Ratings, etc

I will always angel swaps I host. If you are partnered with me for something I'm not hosting and don't receive anything/aren't happy with what you receive, please let me know and I'll resend. I always rate within 3 days of receiving, and I expect participants in swaps I'm hosting to rate as well -- not the second they receive something, but you shouldn't have a piece of mail for more than a week or two without at least letting the person know you got it.

I am an active host. That means that I might message you if something seems up. I am not rude in these messages, but I sure have gotten a lot of rude replies back (though the vast majority aren't!). I understand as well as anyone else that life happens and I'm not a stickler about anything as long as there's communication. Literally just a response like, "Oh, sorry, I'm running a couple days late but sending today" is all I'm looking for, so I know you'll actually be sending. This isn't the Inquisition. If you can't handle a straightforward exchange like that, my swaps may not be for you.

I know that the number of swaps I'm hosting looks absolutely insane. I host a series at regular 2-week intervals, with swaps posted a few months out. I'm generally not in a ton of swaps at once.

If you're sending me something artistic, please take a picture in case it gets lost in the mail! Lost art makes me sad. If you are participating in one of my artistic swaps but we aren't partnered, I still would love to see a picture of what you made as well. I just think it's neat seeing all of the variations on a theme!

Check out the group I run with my BFF feverfawn!!! Monsters, Myths, & Legends -- US ATC Swappers!. We're now doing type 1, 2, and 3 swaps, not just ATC's :)

My name is Lisa. I'm 34 and and I live in Chicago with my partner of 8 years. I am interested in education, philosophy, languages, and cognitive science.

I have a love/hate relationship with my city. I welcome photos of your city, stuff related to public transit, boring facts about density and urban planning, etc etc.

I'm into tarot, astrology, and LHP. I'm a Virgo sun, Scorpio moon, Leo ascendant. My chart is very Virgo-heavy with a lot of second house placements.

I am pretty crazy with things like charts, statistics, logical proofs, etc. I don't know how else to explain it. You may find this annoying but I cannot turn it off, especially if I am excited about something. Just tell me I'm confusing you or kindly ask me to shut up if it's annoying!

I love folk tales, mythology, and legends. I'm very inspired by cryptids, monsters, large birds that do not conceal that they are dinosaurs, and the graphics from the SNES classic Super Ghouls N Ghosts.

I make friendship bracelets, ATCs, zines, and cassette tapes. I have not been able to keep up with pen pal letters lately, so if you are expecting one from me -- please be patient. I'm slowly getting caught up.

A - ATCs, aliens and UFOs, animals (pretty much all!), ambience, astrology, absurdity, Art Bell, Atatürk

B - birds, beluga whales, bookbinding

C - cryptids, conspiracy theories, cuttlefish, cultures, coins (foreign), cooking, collage, Cold War (history), cognitive science

D - demons, devils, Daruma dolls, dinosaurs, dystopian themes, dissociatives, Darumaka

E - ecology, experimental music, esotericism

F - Furby, forests, folk tales, folk art, friendship bracelets, flowers, floral patterns

G - guinea pigs, goldenrod (color), ghosts, garden gnomes, gnosticism

H - Halloween (especially vintage, like Beistle), Hoopa

I -

J -

K - kawaii, king penguins (especially the chicks)

L - languages, linguistics, Lifetime movies, left hand path, Landorus

M - mushrooms, marabou storks, mythology, maroon (color), mix tapes (cassettes), monsters, media theory/analysis, meditation, maneki neko

N - New Age, nutcrackers, notecards

O - Ottoman Empire, occult

P - Pokemon (including Pokemon Go), pastel colors, playing cards, philosophy, postcards, public transit (train or bus tickets!), paranormal experiences, psychedelica, psychology

Q - Qabalah

R - reading (especially non-fiction), rats, Russian language

S - Shy Guys, South & Central Asia, stamps (used and unused), especially foreign) Super Nintendo, shortwave, stickers/sticker flakes, shoebills

(P.S. - my sticker stock is very low. As long as they aren't reward/planner/kiddie stickers, I'm happy to accept anything -- flakes, partial sheets, bent or imperfect sheets, etc. As long as the stickers themselves are clean/usable and it isn't harboring bugs or something, I'm happy to receive it! Feel free to mix and match for flat items even if the swap specifies 1 flat sheet only)

T - tea, teal (color), theremin, tongue drum, Turkic culture, Turkish language, Taoism, tarot, talk radio, Trevenant

U - urban photography, used books, Urdu

V - video games, volunteering

W - washi tape, writing systems

X -

Y - Yoshi

Z - zines, zentangle, zeybek dance

Music: Old but still accurate last.fm, video game music, slowcore, shoegaze, industrial, noise

Movies: I Stand Alone, August Underground's Mordum, V/H/S, Spirited Away, Lifetime movies, documentaries, YouTube stuff like university lectures and ambience videos

Books: Marshall McLuhan, critical theory, Homo Ludens, SPK: Turn Illness into a Weapon, The Divided Self, psychology, philosophy, media theory, cultural anthropology, short story anthologies, science fiction, Neil Sanders. Here is my Goodreads.

I don't want to receive religious materials meant to proselytize, convert, or influence. I am open to holiday greetings from any religion. I like to discuss religion and politics, but not debate them.

I legitimately don't care if something you send smells like cigarette smoke, is scented, or if your pets invade your craft area. No allergies. I'm really lucky that I don't get migraines or go into anaphylactic shock if exposed to smoke -- I'd probably die just from breathing the polluted air when I open my window! Not sure how everyone else is managing.

I see a lot of people mention here that they do not want to receive what I can only describe as "crap." If you are just going to send me total crap, I don't think I can convince you not to. You probably didn't even read my profile.

I always enjoy private swaps, if I have time for them. Don't be shy to contact me about one! Photography, zines, ATCs, art in general, tapes, etc. I love themed stuff. I will pretty much always say yes to anything related to devils/demons/demonology or Nintendo. I also collect drawings of Art Bell and stuff like lanyards, pins, etc for places I haven't worked at. I do mix and match these items because I think it is funny, so don't send me anything you wouldn't be comfortable with me displaying in public.

Btw -- add my partner and I on Pokemon Go! We send gifts and the digital postcard feature is really cool.

• Me: 5301 3376 5281

• bf: 7637 3042 2189

Shoot me a message with your username if you add!