write more snail mail

my birthday is coming up. and it’s a big one! 30 years around the sun! on momentous years such as this, i like to celebrate those in my life and who have helped me get to where i am today.

this year, i’m sending little notes doing just that. so i’ve got a bunch of blank note cards and a several books of stamps. i’ve been emailing and facebooking asking friends and family to please update me with their mailing address (something i’ve been meaning to anyway. bonus!). i initially wanted to send out as many cards as my new age, but i’ve surpassed that number already. hopefully, my thanks will be well received by all my loved ones.

it’s so nice to receive things in the mail, and it’s even better knowing that you can reply! now that i think johanna and i will continue to do this, i must invest in really cute stationary! just the other day i discovered a set of stuff on my cat fold and mail stationary that spent months under the bed… glad to finally put it to good use!

writing letters feel a lot more personal than facebook and even emails. our lives have become so fast paced lately. it’s good to slow things down sometimes! makes it a lot more meaningful when you’re forced patiently wait for something.

i’ve been writing to my friend who’s in england right now. even though she’ll be back in the states pretty soon, i’m thinking about asking her to be my penpal. we’re good friends and i like her a lot, so maybe writing letters to each other will be our thing. i noticed that some people are phone people, IM people, etc. maybe we’re.. letter-writing people? i’m not sure but it’s worth a shot.

Well I think the art of snail mail is dying out. We rely on computers and email myself included. So in the last couple of weeks I’ve joined a couple of sites through Facebook and Flickr and found some new penpals and friends. I’ve send 5 letters to new penpals and also sent 4 postcards to random people via postcardx the website. So hopefully I get a reply to them all or at least one.

this week i sent out a bunch of cards. some for birthdays, some with money, and some just because. no letters, just a quick note, but it felt really good sliding them into the mailbox. i’ve got more cards to send and a short letter. and even a couple of small packages. i hope to get them out at the start of this week. i sending out snail mail. i hope it all makes them feel special and makes their day.

back in the day, i was a diligent snail mailer. and i produced a good deal of snail mail. a few years ago, i always put out at least one letter a week. i have no idea what i wrote about in those letters, but i think i was content in communication with friends around the world.

and now today, i’m nowhere near to being the snail mail master i used to be. the internet and email don’t even explain it, as it does for most people. my email volume has also significantly decreased since a few years ago. i’m just not communicating with other as much as i did before.

or am i? i’ve noticed that i talk alot lately. i talk alot more now that i did before from infant to young(er) adult. i think i’ve switched from written to verbal communication. i used to be scared to death of the phone, but i find now i can carry conversation well enough via phone. i still don’t care for it much, but i use more often now.

and i think i talk too much these days. hence, the “speak less and listen more” goal. but maybe if i speak less verbally, and listen more, i’ll have more things to write and discuss in some snail mail.

so i need to quit putting it off and sit down and write a letter. Sal is over due for a letter. she too is trying to get back into the snail mail groove. and i’m afraid i may have killed it for her as i still haven’t written her in months. wish me motivation.