baybelletrist

Update 11/4/2010: Still very little improvement with my arms. I'm a lot of pain some days and numb on others. My spirits are pretty low on the physical front. If you're waiting for a swap from me, I apologize again. If you feel you need to rate me a 1, I will respect your decision.

Update 9/30/2010: My RSI is so bad that I'm back in physical therapy. No crafting, cooking, gardening, or cleaning for me for several weeks at least. Apologies to anyone I've disappointed. Now I'm going to go put my arms on ice.

Update 8/21/2010: At long last I've cleared that one horrendously late swap, phew. I'm taking a little time away from the Bot to get my life in order, because let me tell you, there's a whole hell of a lot of DISorder around here. My apaaartmeeeeeent ::sob:: Think good thoughts that I'll be able to get my sh*t together in order to come back and participate fully here. You all are great!

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I live in the SF Bay Area with my husband and two cats, all of whom I adore. I am currently a part-time adult ed instructor in ESL, a job I love, but it doesn't pay the bills very well, sigh. Politics alternately amuses me and makes me screamingly furious. I love people; they're the most important thing in my life. So say hello! ^_^

This appears down below, but because I occasionally receive items that smell of smoke, I'm putting it up here as well:

I am rather sensitive to some scented items, so it's probably safer not to send them. Also, I won't be able to use any paper or books that came from a smoking household. (Allergies suck. Thank God I'm not allergic to cats, since I love mine so much.)

Ha ha, you're funny. The list would eat this page. I am a voracious reader. BOOKS OM NOM NOM. I mostly read science fiction and fantasy, but I love books on crafting and sewing, frugality, interior decoration, ecology, and gardening. A few favorite authors are Robin McKinley, Patricia McKillip, Sharon Lee and Steve Miller, Jane Austen, and Georgette Heyer. Robert Heinlein and Piers Anthony irritate me, and I just generally can't get into hard science fiction. Lately I've been wanting to read books that are "comfy," not so much ones that I have to concentrate hard to read.

Most of my crafting time nowadays goes to paper crafts, but I also like sewing and embroidery. I enjoy baking and cooking when I'm not pressed for time. I am a button fiend, but not for ones shaped like dogs or clusters of grapes and such--I love simple plastic, mother of pearl, metal, wood, and glass buttons. I love beading and recently got started on making projects again after a long time away from the craft.

My favorite colors are rich deep shades of red and purple, Indian teal, dark rose, dark green, and rich brown, but I enjoy a huge range of colors--though I am not a fan of "acid" colors or most of the '70s prints that have taken over the shops in the last couple of years. (Some are pretty, many not so much.) Yellow and pale colors make me look like a refugee from the terminal ward at your local hospital. I prefer natural fibers such as cotton, silk, linen, bamboo, rayon, wool, and blends of these, but they're coming out with nicer synthetics these days. I love texture--nubbly fabrics, velvety fabrics, soft and silky fabrics. My favorite prints are all over the place, from paisleys to plaids, but I prefer subtlety and softness to bold, big patterns. (I'm petite, and I don't like my clothes to wear me, if you know what I mean.) Frou frou is fun in limited quantites; I'm not into froths of lace all over the place but rather like narrower edgings and that kind of thing. I recently bought four 50-gallon bins for my fabric stash, and it doesn't all fit. I think I need an intervention. O_o

As far as paper goes, I love Florentine scrolls, almost any kind of Japanese paper you can imagine, Thai lace paper (squee), stripes, paisleys, old-fashioned patterns of all kinds. Try me! :)

Sushi, sushi, and sushi, with some sushi on the side. I love tea also, from masala chai to white tea with forays into English breakfast and Republic of Tea's Ginger Peach. Dark chocolate makes me happy; so do Thai food (especially the iced tea, who knew), mango, toast with jam, good Mexican food (Oaxaca FTW), Haagen Dazs vanilla bean ice cream, cinnamon rolls, baked beets, French onion soup, chicken korma, berries of all kinds, and salads with balsamic vinaigrette--just not all at once, please!

• Charms of all sorts
• Pretty paper
• Metal, glass, and chipboard embellishments
• Your favorite recipes, especially for baking and stir frying... I'd love to receive new recipes for eggplant, tofu, and Asian noodles, but please please please leave out the ham
• Pretty cards and stationery
• Cool embellishments you've made or found...I really love recycled/upcycled/repurposed things

• Plastic tchotchkes
• Cutesy pictures of babies (babies in flowerpots? whaaat) and fuzzy animals
• Americana
• Hello Kitty and similar kawaii styles
• Gigantic jewelry (except for those wonderful African traditional styles)
• Glitter and tinsel
• Plastic confetti--I have all I could ever have needed, and my younger cat eats everything ;_; (I'm sure I don't have to draw you a picture, eew)
• Sugar candy (candy corn, Pez, jellybeans, stuff like that)
• White chocolate
• Thomas Kinkade

I am rather sensitive to some scented items, so it's probably safer not to send them. Also, I won't be able to use any paper or books that came from a smoking household. (Allergies suck. Thank God I'm not allergic to cats, since I love mine so much.)

With all that said, don't worry too much. If you send me something and I'm not crazy about it, I'll still say thank you and I'll just quietly regift it someplace. Swap-bot is all about generosity, and I think we should celebrate that, not be super picky about what other people send us out of kindness. :)

I understand that life can get really crazy. If you need extra time for a swap with me, that's okay--just please let me know ahead of time. I don't bite, honest. OTOH, if I don't hear from you and your swap is sent very late, I reserve the right to rate you a 3, even if your swap item is really nice or well made.

By the same token, if I'm going to be late, I will always, always let you know. Your package may take longer, but I have never yet flaked on a swap, and I will try to always make it worth the wait.