Letter writing Archives - Page 4 of 10

John Lennon stamp will be releases on Sept. 7

What’s New at the Post Office

Services, facilities and politics are evolving at the USPS. So, what’s new at the post office? One service I tried out this year and have found very helpful is Informed Delivery. Launched in the spring of 2017, Informed Delivery provides the postal customer with a daily email, which includes photocopies of the letter sized pieces to be delivered in that day’s mail, as well as notification of anticipated packages. Given the massive quantities of junk mail that the average customer receives, this service is valuable in anticipating important letters and documents. If you haven’t yet signed…

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July 2, 2018

Seagull

Handwriting / Letter writing / love letters

Love Notes by Denise Tapscott

Almost every day, I take a brisk walk. It doesn’t matter what my schedule is like. I walk at work, I walk at the gym, I walk when I plan to lounge around at home, and I even walk when I’m on vacation. Why the daily ritual? It’s a way for me to shake off any negative energy that might cloud my day. The cardio gets my blood pumping (which is definitely needed after creating dark stories and peculiar characters, letting words spill from my brain through my fingers, onto a keyboard). I also walk because…

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April 14, 2018

books / Grandparenting / Handwriting / Letter writing

Diaries: Letters to Ourselves by Kay Roberts

A few months ago, I rediscovered a diary I kept when I was thirteen years old. This find made me think that diaries might make good Christmas presents for my grandchildren, ages ten and thirteen. I cautioned them to avoid dumb entries such as my own: “Washed my hair, went to the show.” I do like my entry about liking Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, except for being "stuck beside somebody who smelled like barn" (I grew up in a little farm community in Wisconsin). I had hoped my old diary would give me a glimpse of who…

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March 15, 2018

The chain letter today is distributed by email

email / Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / Post Office / Post Office Boxes / Social Media / U.S. Postal Service

Post Office Boxes by Kay Roberts

On a recent little vacation in Calistoga, I realized I would miss a friend’s major birthday if I didn’t find and mail her a card. So I got myself out of a steaming pool and over to the post office. I go to Calistoga for those steaming pools at least twice a year, but I never had occasion before to visit the post office, and when I saw the rows of beautiful old post office boxes, I became (excessively, says my husband) nostalgic. What memories of growing up in the 1940s and 50s in Cumberland, Wisconsin…

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March 2, 2018

Valentine greeting card

books / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail

Love Letters

Does anyone write love letters anymore? Last week, my husband and I attended the beautiful wedding of his great niece in Las Vegas. There was so much joy, happiness, and tears going around that one could literally feel the love in the air. The young bride and groom met in a creative writing class at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Their writing instructor served as the best man at their wedding. The couple bonded over their shared love of reading and writing. I like to think that there will be many love letters in their future,…

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February 13, 2018

Frederick Douglass: Gentleman of Letters

Frederick Douglass's private study

books / Letter writing / Politics / Typewriters

Frederick Douglass: Gentleman of Letters

Frederick Douglass (1818 – 1895), African American writer, orator, and social activist, was a gentleman of letters. Born into slavery, he was largely self-taught, learning to read and write prior to entering his teens. His eloquence and fiery oratory gave him great influence as an abolitionist, social activist, and diplomat throughout his adult lifetime. Last month, on a visit with my daughter in Washington, DC, we had the opportunity to tour Frederick Douglass’s final home, Cedar Hill, located in Anacostia. Douglass, who purchased Cedar Hill from the Freedmen’s Bank in 1877, lived there for seventeen…

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February 11, 2018

Digital Publishing / Letter writing

New Look New Year

Readers may have noticed that as of the New Year, Social Correspondence has a new look. Going into year five, it was time to make some updates to improve both functionality and readability. First, sincere thanks to Sara of JuicyDesign. JuicyDesign created the original Social Correspondence site, and thanks to Sara’s web design expertise, the theme (or template) is now updated. Sara is a dream to work with, should you be contemplating creating your own site. Among the changes: the site is now configured for clearer viewing on your smart phone or tablet as well as…

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February 1, 2018

Digital Publishing / email / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / Postal Service / Social Media / Twitter / U.S. Postal Service

Holiday Greetings

As another year draws to conclusion, it is time once again to extend sincere holiday greetings to friends and family, near and far. This, of course, includes the readers of Social Correspondence! Thank you for allowing me into your lives over this past year. For those of you who have shared comments, subjected yourselves to interviews, or contributed guest columns, special thanks! Our mailbox has been filled daily for the past couple of months. First, there was that annual slew of holiday catalogs, offering tantalizing glimpses of everything from flannel pajamas to expensive electronic equipment. Despite…

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December 21, 2017

Volkswagen buses meet on Old Route 66

books / email / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Post cards / Social Media / Stamps / Technology / U.S. Postal Service

Postcards and Notes

Summer and fall are excellent times for vacation, and there is no better way to share those experiences than by sending postcards and notes by mail. It’s quick, it’s easy, and there are beautiful options to represent those good times. But more to the point, postcards and notes are a great way to communicate, anytime and any place. “Having a great time in (fill in the blank). Wish you were here.” This is a standard cliché about messages on postcards, that they are rote and say very little. But nothing could be further from the truth.…

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September 25, 2017

Royal Mail Delivers Your Letters – and Packages, Too!

Letterbox pillar, St. Ives

books / Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / newspapers / Postal Service / Stamps

Royal Mail Delivers Your Letters – and Packages, Too!

My recent visit to the United Kingdom would not have been complete without checking out the Royal Mail. Picturesque letterboxes led me to believe that a sweet, old-fashioned post office would be just around the corner, but that turned out not to be the case. The post office in St. Ives (Cambridgeshire) is co-located in the back of WHSmith, which is, in this location, a news and sundry store. One can purchase any one of three daily newspapers, a bottle of water, an umbrella, a Cadbury’s (now owned by Hershey) chocolate bar and various other snacks…

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August 27, 2017