Megsongbird

Hey there! :)

I'm Megan (or Meg) - nice to "meet" you! I'm a south jersey INFP who is trying to make it through med school, one stressful day at a time. However, I'd like to think of it more as "Superhero Training Camp" because if doctors aren't the closest things to superheroes, I don't know what is! There is not much room for creativity and imagination in medicine however - not as a student anyways, so the need to find other creative outlets is always present.

I am madly in love with an English gent from Devon who swept me off my feet from the very first moment we met. From his kind eyes to his always laughing smile, I couldn't be more in love. This guy is just...yeesh. For all you hopeless romantics out there, imagine every Lifetime + ABCfamily cheesy romcom you've ever seen with a British male protagonist and smush them all together into one man, and it's him. And I am that American girl who's always studying for one thing or another when their paths finally cross serendipitously. (Can you tell I grew up watching too many cheesy movies?) :) It's like The Holiday meets Princess Diaries...I am just waiting for him to admit he's a prince. ;)

*I added a link to My Listia account above, not because i'm trying to promote buying things from me, but because I'm still a newbie on swapbot! Thus, I don't have many ratings yet. Hopefully, by seeing my reviews as a seller on Listia, you will have confidence that I always send what I am supposed to, and I would never flake. If a problem ever arises (postage due, didn't receive swap, etc), please don't hesitate to message me, and I have zero problem sending an envelope to cover the postage you had to pay or re-sending a swap if it was never received. Hopefully nothing goes wrong, but if it does, not to worry! We can fix it! :)

In what little free time I have, I love to create. Anything. Everything. I grew up in a house with a mom who could easily be classified as a borderline hoarder - but I like to think of our home as a treasure trove. There are scraps of just about any material you can think of somewhere in the house, with recycled materials and broken bits of things that can be re-purposed into whatever your imagination can create!

My favorite thing is to find a way to make things people buy all the time for absurd prices. For instance, if I see a piece of jewelry on sale for say, $50 at a brand name store, first - I'll laugh. Second, I'll inspect it thoroughly to figure out how it was put together, and what it would take to make it myself. Then I do. My most recent "re-invention" is a (non-bubble) poly mailer. I ship things, but not often enough to buy a bulk amount of 100. And I thought it was ridiculous that all the pretty designer poly mailers consisted of about 20ish different patterns that EVERYONE uses - aka: none are very unique. So I figured out a way to make my own since trying to google a DIY tutorial comes up with NOTHING!

Anyways, haha, I digress! So I love to "re-invent" things. I also am a henna artist of sorts. (Another art I was tired of paying for someone else to do for me!) I use traditional methods and the fundamentals behind henna designs to create unique pieces of art that are more unconventional. Other than drawing on people's skin, I am always doodling new designs onto anything I can whenever I'm not studying. I've recently been into keeping blank ACEO/ATCs around for whenever inspiration strikes. Those are my form of ACEO/ATC, and I love sharing them! :)

What else...I am also a singer + musician. I haven't played in years, but I can play piano. Most days, I'll just pull out my uke though. I'm OK at both, but only learned to play the uke so I didn't have to wait on buddies with guitars anymore if I wanted/needed accompaniment. I am really mostly a singer though. My specialty? Love songs. The sadder, the more lovely + raw it sounds in my opinion.

Thus, my childhood nickname "megsongbird" (and also my last name starts with "song...." hehe) I am always singing. Like....always...even when I don't realize it. Or whistling/humming if I'm shy around someone. I just can't stop really! I'm one of those people who believe that music really can make a difference in someone's life. And I could talk about that forever....but I'll spare you. ;)

The last art I use as a creative release that I think is important enough to mention here is writing. I love words. I love the power that finding the perfect words to describe EXACTLY how you are feeling/what you are describing has. It is the art that, if not written, you cannot see. Yet still, it exists. It's the transformation of single ordinary words into sentences...phrases...quotes that are extraordinary enough to be able to change a person's life. I think of it as a superpower (can you tell yet I'm a huge superhero nerd?), And with great power comes great responsibility, right? Use it negatively, and you can literally make someone feel so terrible that they end their life. But weave it beautifully enough, and you can inspire the fallen to rise up; the hopeless to look up again. You could bring someone back to life. Words...they are incredible and more powerful than most individuals care to realize. So yes - I write. And I spread hope. By whatever means I can. That is my passion in life, and at the root of every decision/choice I make.

I linked my writing Instagram up above. My writing is either the post itself, or a deeper explanation of the thought in the caption. Starting from the first post, it follows my journey from the end of 2016, when I was at my lowest point, until the present. It's just my little thoughts. :)

Now...from what I see looking at other accounts as examples...some likes + dislikes are in order!

• Animal Crossing anything (Octavian + Lolly are my two personalities, and they will never be allowed to leave my island!!)

• Handsewn/crocheted/macrame items

• Paper pads/sticky note pads (Note: NOT random loose pieces of paper/stationary - I really don't want anymore, please!)

• Vintage things

• FOOD (Sorry, I'm getting hungry trying to finish this...haha): any type - I love everything except ginger (unless with sushi)(Though, why you would mail me ginger OR sushi is beyond me!). I have a HUGE sweet tooth, so if it can give me a cavity - I'm all for it! I like trying unusual foods from different countries too!

• Decals/stickers (popculture/food/animals/NATURE/kawaii/anything)(NO religious/teacher "good job!" stickers or things like that though, please)

• Washi tape (Patterns + pictures > words)

• Paper-related crafts: blank journals, bookmarks, stencils, cricut-made awesomeness, etc

• Weird/unique/awkward things

• Ink pads/clear stamps

• Lace, interesting ribbon (so not a basic solid color unless textured or something)

• Reading: fiction books (magical/fantasy like Harry Potter/The Borrowers/Fairytale by Stephen King) + self-help/improvement books, books that make you think or are able to give you a different perspective. Bonus points if it makes you cry.

• ANYTHING Harry Potter series related. HUFFLEPUFFS say whaaaat?! :D

• Handmade guitar pics from recycled materials!

• Fun factoids/your "little tricks" for life!

• Unusual or tried-and-loved recipes from your stash/passed down from your family. (On recipe cards, preferably!)

• Blank recipe cards

• Cards/envelopes (If handmade, then ones that will survive through the mail as I mail cards frequently.)

• Mail art

• Dried flowers

• Mixtapes (cd/usb) of someone's favorite music or their own music (Update: I was going to erase this because neither my laptop or car even have a cd player anymore, but I would totally buy an add-on usb cd player if someone took the time to make me a mixtape. I think there's a charm in listening into someone's mind and the way they compiled specific songs just for you. And this is something some of the younger kids will never understand. :))

• Snail mail (obviously!)

• Poetry, thoughts, long hand-written letters, anything you want to tell an anonymous ear that will never judge - I love understanding what makes a person who they are. I want to hear your story. (Especially love life stories since I'm a hopeless romantic!) :P

• ACEO/ATCs or any piece of art someone's created (it's the best gift!)

• Cats/pugs/sloths/most animals/"special" animals (those ones that bump into things a lot or do dumb things hahaha - I'm going to have a special animal farm one day...:') )

• Anything funny (humor is how I am able to function as a human bean. I love it all, anything witty, adorably funny, sarcastic, sassy, twisted, "inappropriate", puns, weird, awkward - all types welcome!)

• Miniature anything/accessories - I have an obsession with tiny versions of things. I don't know why, but THEY ARE SO CUTE. (I LOVE miniature anythings!! You have nooo idea how much I wanted to see a Borrower when I was a little girl...cough I still do cough)

• Girl/Woman power themed things

• Anything MMA related! (I practice a bit of BJJ + Judo)

• Pens/colored pencils/paint (anything colorful!)

• Handmade anything coffee > water > mud (Why you'd send me mud? I'm not sure. Please don't send me mud...)

• Honestly, anything someone sends me, I'll love. You could send me a rock, and if you give me some deeper meaning/story behind it, I'll cherish it forever. Imagination + creativity are all that's needed to make me happy. Surprises are the best!!! :D

• Pink, super girly girl stuff - flowers and little cute things are fine, but I'd prefer not receiving entire envelopes/packages that look like someone spilled peptobismol all over them! (Though I am all for girl power + am definitely a hopeless romantic so anything lovey dovey or "Beyonce-esque" is fin e! ;) )

• Used stamps (I have way too many)

• Anything religious

• Random loose pieces of stationary/paper - I have no idea what to do with these. Loose cardstock is okay as long as it's not just one plain color.

• Kiddie die cuts

• Unicorn/mermaid things

• Dark chocolate that's TOO dark...(aka those fancy kinds that are like 70% cocoa)

• Ginger flavored things

• Drugs

• Negativity

• I don't know what else. I'll add if I ever get something I'd prefer not to, but i'm pretty easy-going!

New! (As of 2/10/2023)

I think it would be really neat to make an entire deck of playing cards from cards made from different swappers! I'm aware that it will take a while haha.

If you want to help add to my deck, you can either:

1. Use an already-made, normal-sized playing card (2.5" x 3.5") and then decorate the back of it (not the number side) however your imagination steers you!

   OR

2. Use this blank template to print/cut out and create a card that is completely unique on the front AND back! (Cardstock thickness is probably preferred, as I do want to play with them, but whatever!)

I will list and update the cards I still need to complete my deck below:

Hearts: all

Diamonds: all

Spades: all

Clubs: all

(If you plan to send a card, please message me to let me know what number and suit you are sending, so I can update it promptly and avoid getting two of the same! Thank you kindly! :))