My Subscription Life: Kai

My Subscription Life is a series designed to help you get to know the MSA team a little bit better. Each profile introduces a different member of the team, showcases their favorite subscriptions, and explores how subscriptions impact their lives. 

In today's edition of My Subscription Life, I'm going to introduce you to Kai. Kai is one of our writers, and she's responsible for sifting through deals and brand announcements that come through the MSA feed and writing them up for the site. She works primarily behind the scenes, but she's part of the site's backbone, and we couldn't do what we do without her. Kai has been with MSA since July of this past year; she's a hard worker and a rainbow of kindness and positivity. I get to work with a lot of great people at MSA, but I always walk away from my interactions with Kai wearing a smile.

I'm so pleased to introduce you to her today in this edition of My Subscription Life!

My Subscription Life: Kai

Lindsey: Hi Kai! Can you start by sharing a little bit about yourself?

Kai: First, thank you so much for thinking of me, Lindsey, glad to be asked! I’m a writer, I live about four blocks from the Delaware Bay, and my only daughter is in grad school at NYU in Brooklyn. I love learning anything new (Google is my best friend, truly); writing has been a great way to help me do that. At MSA, I’m not as well-versed on subscription boxes as most of the others, but I’m enjoying learning about the wide variety of boxes out there, how they work, what people like about them, and what they don’t.

My hobbies include movies, films, scripts, pop culture, and most recently, BTS! If you knew me for a while, you’d know how unusual and shocking that is; I was very much ANTI-boy band my entire life (and I’m in my 40s). But I just enjoy their music so much, I adore the members so much, and they’re so exciting – I could go on for several hours... and have. (For fellow ARMYs, I have a double bias: Jimin and Jungkook!)

L: What does your average Saturday look like? 

K: I’ve always been a homebody, but I’ve become even more of one during COVID. I’d like to change that when the pandemic is behind us, to be honest.

These days, my Saturdays start at MSA, so I’m thinking about subscriptions much of the morning/early afternoon, and then I relax. That usually includes reading through some of the many tabs I kept open “for later,” learning more about whatever hyperfixation I’ve become interested in (recently? Data science… and BTS!) and looking for my glasses.

If my daughter’s around, we’ll have long and winding conversations, answering important questions like: “Bruno was hiding in the walls for 10 years in that movie but he seemed totally fine?”, “Let’s make sure we’re on the same page – what exactly is a cardigan?” and “Italy wasn’t a country until WHEN?”

I’ve made a conscious decision to watch a new movie every Saturday, since I don’t see as many as I used to – but since making that decision, I’ve watched two! Instead, I find myself getting lost in trailers – I can’t be the only one who finds trailers more interesting than the films sometimes?

L: Can you describe a memorable trip you’ve taken?

K: My daughter inspires most of my memorable times, and one of the best has to be the first time she and I went to the Katsucon anime convention, in 2015. If you’ve never been to a three-day anime convention in the winter, it’s a strange and wonderful experience. It was cold and the trip was three hours in a car I didn’t trust 100%, but when we entered the hotel (the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center), it was easy to forget everything else.

The views from the glass atrium were gorgeous and there were small indoor trees; once we settled in, it felt like we were on a warm island oasis... with every comic book, anime and video game character in the world. Everyone was super-friendly in a way that almost didn’t seem real; everyone was a minor celebrity (my daughter got stopped a number of times for pictures), and I even ended up in a pink bunny suit (sorry Annie, kigurumi) without an ounce of embarrassment. It was a relaxing trip in the most funny, fantastical and unexpected ways. I mean, riding in the elevator to lunch with Daft Punk, Sailor Moon, and Spider-Man was silly but also cool in a way I can’t really describe. We laughed A LOT that trip.

L: When and how did you first discover subscription boxes?

K: My daughter actually got a Lootcrate before I really paid attention to subscriptions/boxes. Though, I already had a Netflix subscription by then...

L: What are your current subscriptions?

K: FabFitFun, Freshly, Kidpik, Netflix, and Disney+.

L: Which is your favorite subscription?

K: I really like FabFitFun because it always has things in it that I wouldn't think to pick up for myself.

L: If you could only subscribe to one box or service, which would it be?

K: Freshly keeps my daughter fed at grad school, so probably that one!

L: Describe your perfect subscription. 

K: I'm still waiting for a BTS box full of photocards, stuffed toys from their BT21 line, and cool extras like washi tape or stickers.

L: Ha! I love it! Do you have a favorite subscription category? 

K: I love the geek boxes because they usually have some of the most unique products in them.

L: People gravitate to subscriptions for different reasons. What are your primary reasons for subscribing?

K: I'm not a shopper, so seeking and finding cool things isn't my strong suit; I love getting cool things that I never would have found otherwise. Plus, it's nice to get something in the mail!

L: If someone offered you the opportunity to curate your own subscription box, what would you send out to your subscribers?

K: Probably tea, mochi, and something soft.

Thanks so much, Kai! 

Questions for Kai? Jump into the comments section below!