RiverTopanga

Hi, I'm Leslie.

Oct. 10, 2019: We have been here for 10 weeks today. It is amazing to see how fast time moves. Still have to unpack a lot of boxes. But most of the necessary items are unpacked (dishes, pots, pans, and some crafting stuff). Would love to have a place for ALL my crafting stuff, but I don't think that will EVER happen ;-).

Sept: So, we are all moved. However, I have STILL have not unpacked all the boxes. I didn't bring much furniture, but I brought a lot of STUFF! I haven't found my stencils yet.. which is disconcerting, and a lot of my craft supplies are still missing. But they will show up some day... I am sure! I am going to keep swapping for now, and have put up some Swaps in the Artisan ATC group. I'm still not sure if I will continue.

JUNE: Thank you all for the wonderful outpouring of love, sunshine, and support regarding the "1" rating. Please know that I really appreciate you all. I have had such a great time swapping with you. Everyone is so creative, I've learned a lot from you ;-) I will have to make a decision at the end of the summer, after my move. But I will be back on at least to let you all know what I have decided.

MAY 2019: Hello everyone. I am taking a break from swapping after my June swap is completed. I will be back after I move, sometime in late August to early September. At that time, I will decide if I want to continue with the site, or just continue with private swaps from all the very lovely people that are on here.

March 2019: *** PLEASE give extra time for your swap to arrive from me. We are having disastrous flooding here in Nebraska and it has affected EVERYTHING! ***

If you have not received a swap from me, please let me know before you rate. I very rarely miss a swap deadline, and will always message you if I think it will be late.

PLEASE DON'T FORGET TO RATE ANY OF YOUR SWAP COORDINATORS -They work hard for you ☺ 💜

9/2019: UPDATE: It appears that the "1" offender now has a perfect "5" even though I know she did not send her swaps on time in the beginning. This system is not working, and I am unsure if I want to still be part of it. I should never have received a "1" when I was not notified of the swap not being received. And I resent it, without being asked to. I always send on time, and always keep in touch with my partner. I will not be blackmailed into buying back my perfect score. I have not done anything wrong.

4/28/19: I received a rating of 1 today for a swap I sent over a month ago (3/2/19). The person receiving the swap did not message me to tell me they had not received it. I can't resend a swap if I have not been notified that the swap was not received. The other two people in the swap did receive their swap and commented on my page (so you know it was, indeed, sent). This is very distressing for me, as I always communicate with my partner. PLEASE TELL ME IF YOU HAVE NOT RECEIVED your swap BEFORE you rate. I have never flaked on a swap, and never will.
UPDATE: on my "1" rating- I wrote: 4/30/19: I still have not received any messages from you. Please check your "messages sent to" section at the top of your message page. You will see you have never sent anything to me. I really think you have me confused with someone else. Again, as requested below, please message me. UPDATE: 5/10/19: The swapper has now been partially suspended. UPDATE: 6/15/19: The offender is now back on regular swapping status... How is this possible? I received an email from her (Finally) on June 11. This is what it said, "Hey dear I havent receive your envelope... I got a PObox address in USA... So let me know if u want to resend your mail... I Will give you the address there ok??? Peace ✌🏽" Is she kidding? I have already sent it twice (and she never requested a resend in the first place). I am NOT sending again to a PO box in a country she doesn't even live in!! - RIDICULOUS!

4/19/18: Sorry if I responded to ratings a bit late recently. A very dear friend passed away suddenly on Monday. It's been hard to wrap my mind around the fact that I won't be seeing her again. 21 years of wonderful friendship and fellow Red Hatter. I hope she is watching us all and is at peace.

1/28/18: Huzzah! I have been released from the Doctor's care for my ankle! Hooray! He advised the swelling will continue for a few more months... but I definitely have strength back in it. What a Long Strange Trip it's Been having ankle surgery :-)

3/22/18: Gave up on the Traveler's Diary. I didn't like having to be tied down to a diary every day. But, more importantly, it's heavy and cumbersome. I still have it, and will write in it when the mood hits. // 1/28/19 - Bought my first Traveler's Diary today. Just an inexpensive one from Michaels. Not sure if I am really keen on spending most of my days writing in a book... I also have a beautiful Dylusions Art Journal that I started 2 years ago when I took classes from her. I only do about 1 page a month! So the Traveler's Diary is an experiment.....

I love Snail Mail! It's so fun to come home from a long day at work and find some wonderful Happy Mail! I am so happy that I was told about Swap-Bot by a snail mail friend! I am really having fun swapping with everyone

SOCKS: Please note, I wear a size 9-9.5 shoe. Please buy socks accordingly :-)

My likes: (these are not in any particular order): Travel, Coffee - Not Keurig, I have a real coffee pot! Love flavored coffees too :-) - Please no Instant coffee. I dislike the taste of "powdered" coffees., Polar Bears, Bento lunch boxes, Cardinals/birds, the colors purple, teal, Red Hatters, England-Scotland/ France/Belgium/Japan/Hawaii /California-San Francisco, Boston, Gilmore Girls, Big Bang Theory, John Denver, Jimmy Buffet, Dr. Who, Butterflies, Lady bugs, Flowers, ALL animals, the SUN, making bento lunches, the Paranormal, good wine, card making, scrap booking, mini pocket letters, Pokemon, Scooby Doo, Godzilla, the unusual and whacky.

Would love to have a collection of "Hello from...." Postcards from every state and as many countries as possible. Still working on this... so many places out there!!

A NOTE about TEAS: Nothing containing Chamomile or Echinacea please, I am allergic to the daisy family. Also, I do not like the taste of Licorice. So please no teas with licorice or anise in them. Another note: I love teasanes, flavored black teas, and David's Tea. Caffeine is my friend :-)

Update on my son. He has gone back to school - hooray! and has decided that instead of being a Neurosurgeon or Neuro-scientist, he wants to be an astro physicist. He's intelligent enough. I hope he sticks to the schooling this time and gets his degree... in anything! He is currently living in Sacramento, CA. and has a wonderful, sweet, beautiful girlfriend. Her father passed away at Christmas time, so she and her mother have been having a rough time.

My mother also lives with me. She is 86. She still drives, and has made friends with everyone in town, Literally.. EVERYONE!

For Crafts, I am a long-time stamper and scrapbooker. I have stopped making full size Pocket Letters- they are very time consuming. But I do make mini pocket letters, and I am very excited a friend told me about Swap Bot! I can do most crafts, however, I have not yet been able to get the hang of sewing, crocheting, or knitting... but I would still like to learn.

I have found an inner artist me from being on swap sites. It's exciting to be challenged like this!

My all time favorite books...

1. Martians Go Home

2. The Disc World series by Terry Prachett

3. The Harry Potter Series

4. A book from childhood... The Diamond in the Window.

5. Little Men by Louisa May Alcott

6. The Golden Compass trilogy

Favorite Movies... hmmm So Many!

I love old movies: Examples: Singing in the Rain, Bringing up Baby, Oklahoma, Carousel, The Philadelphia Story, American Graffiti, Back to the Future (the first is the best! and yes, it IS a classic!), Dirty Dancing... and the list goes on.

I saw La La Land before Christmas 2017, it was Fantastic!

If you like classic movies check out this website... http://www.omahafilmevent.com. My friend Bruce puts on these events, and I am a volunteer at the bi-annual events. A fabulous evening!

Also, I love all things Dyan Reaveley/Dylusions. I use the Dylusions paints and inks in a lot of my Swaps. The colors are so vibrant, and the Dyan Reaveley stamps are so funky and fun, I love them! So receiving anything you create with these would be fabulous!

I recently took some classes from Dina Wakley. She is a beautiful, warm, talented woman! I learned how to use a gelli plate, and I love it! Never thought I would want to learn something else, but Gelli printing is awesome.. try it if you have a chance. Loved, loved, loved the Dina Classes!

And, I really love Smash Books. They are what I have been using on my trips for the past year. Anything to be used in a Smash Book would be great!

Swap On!!

..Thank you!

PET PEEVES:

SMOKEY OR STRONG SMELLING ODORS. I have severe allergies and any smokey, moldy, or other strong smelling odors will be thrown in the trash before I even open them.

IMPORTANT NOTE REGARDING SWAPPING WITH ME: Please don't take offense if this does not apply to you. If you are going to be late, NOTIFY ME. Even if it's only going to be 1-2 days late. I would do the same for you. Nothing ticks me off more than someone that doesn't follow the rules. I follow them when I send to you, you should follow them when sending to me. 99.9% of the time we know If we will be late completing a swap. If your mail date says you mailed AFTER the deadline, then it obviously was NOT a postal problem... it was your problem. I'm sure everyone would appreciate the truth more than some lame excuse we all know isn't true.