mail

2023 / Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / Post cards / Post Office / Stamps

Underwater Post Offices Throughout the World

Post offices around the world can be charming, unique, or simply functional, but few places feature underwater post offices.  Swimming and letter writing are some of my favorite pastimes, but not necessarily together!  Only a few underwater post offices have survived, but they have their place in history. Twenty years ago, the small town of Risør, located in the south of Norway, constructed an underwater post office as a novelty for tourists.  Established by the local scuba diving club, it was billed as the only dry underwater post office in the world.  Constructed in the form…

1 Comment
October 16, 2023
Pandemic Pen Pal
email / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Note cards / Pandemic / Pen Pals / Post cards / U.S. Postal Service

Pandemic Pen Pal

Many of us are experiencing a new normal – perhaps working from home, avoiding theaters, dining outdoors – and with these new Covid restrictions, what better time than now to develop a written correspondence with a pandemic pen pal? Commonly, pen pals are people who seek friendships and new experiences through the exchange of letters, often among people who have no previous connection.  Many people favor international correspondence in order to learn and better understand the culture and customs of another country.  In the early days of Social Correspondence, I often read sweet stories about long-term…

0 Comments
September 24, 2021
Archives / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail

Lost and Found Letters

The percentage of letters lost in the mail is relatively small, but still there are times one wishes for a Lost and Found Letters Department. Sometimes you either sense or know that something is missing. That promised invitation to a literary event that never arrives. The letter listed in Informed Delivery that does not materialize. Where do these letters go? Were they delivered by accident to the wrong house? Perhaps they fall on the ground and get swallowed up in the trash. Technically, there is a Lost and Found Letters Department.  It is called the Mail…

5 Comments
August 2, 2021
A Random Letter in the Mail
books / email / Grandparenting / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Note cards / Pandemic / Politics / Social Media

A Random Letter in the Mail

Have you ever received a random letter in the mail?  Random, as in an unanticipated, handwritten note or letter? The use of first-class mail has been in decline for decades, and letters have become almost rare.   Any letter or note in the mail is a gift, whether it be a thank you note, a birthday card, a holiday greeting.  But most of our communications today are virtual, via social media, email, text messaging, and more, using multiple platforms. Given the shift in how we communicate, a random letter in the mail is a welcome surprise.  Within…

2 Comments
May 8, 2021
books / Handwriting / junk mail / Letter writing / Mail / Note cards / Post cards / U.S. Postal Service

What’s in the Mail

It’s an old habit that is hard to shake; each morning I wonder, what’s in the mail today?  Thanks to the USPS’s Informed Delivery service, one need not wonder.  Informed Delivery sends an email with images of most letter-sized pieces that will be arriving that day.  But even without the preview, contents of the daily mail are fairly predictable.  Count on some form of advertising, whether printed on newspaper stock, post cards, or flyers.  Solicitations from charitable organizations proliferate.  Soon, prior to November elections, we will be deluged with political flyers in the mail.  All of…

0 Comments
August 31, 2019
What’s New at the Post Office
John Lennon stamp will be releases on Sept. 7
Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / Politics / Post cards / Post Office / Post Office Boxes / Postal Service / Stamps / U.S. Postal Service

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…

0 Comments
July 2, 2018
A SPECIAL LETTER FROM MY GRANDDAUGHTER AT Y CAMP
A special letter from camp
Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail

A SPECIAL LETTER FROM MY GRANDDAUGHTER AT Y CAMP

  Guest post by Kay Roberts I received a special letter from my only granddaughter and namesake, Catherine, which she sent me from Y Camp.  What was so special about it? Catherine is ten and was spending two whole weeks away from home at Y Camp.  How would she handle this big new event?  Could she eat and sleep in a strange new place with kids she didn’t know? I remembered back decades ago when her father went to Y Camp.  It was a day camp and he only had one night when the kids camped…

3 Comments
July 26, 2017
New Stamps
Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Postal Service / Stamps / Uncategorized

New Stamps

The U.S. Postal Service has been busy again issuing new stamps, and now there are even more stamps to enjoy. There is a stamp to celebrate Lunar New Year, an ovation to Maya Angelou, a Vietnam Medal of Honor stamp, a Special Olympics stamp, stamps featuring water lilies, vintage roses and tulips, and more. But it seems that the best is yet to come. Among the new stamps, let’s first take a look at the timeless and ever popular Elvis. The latest Elvis stamp will be dedicated on Aug. 12 at Graceland in Memphis. Priscilla Presley…

3 Comments
July 13, 2015
Letters from France 1917 – 1919
Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / War letters

Letters from France 1917 – 1919

This story of love and separation during the First World War came to me quite by accident. My colleague Jennifer Greenlee and her family have been looking for an archive that could become an appropriate yet accessible permanent home for 140 letters written between 1917 and 1919. The letters, written by her grandfather Joseph Bosque to his sweetheart (and later his wife, Jennifer’s grandmother), Annie Corbett, described his experiences during Army basic training in Jacksonville, Florida and later, from his post in France. As noted by Jennifer’s late cousin Tom Bosque, who published a compilation of…

0 Comments
May 16, 2015
Mail Trucks: Next Generation
Americans rely on mail delivery for letters, packages, checks, medications and more
Mail / Postal Service / Technology

Mail Trucks: Next Generation

Mail trucks now roam the streets of San Francisco and other towns and cities in the U.S. on Sundays. In fact, this past Sunday, a mail truck drove right up to the front of my house, where the postal carrier hopped out and slid a package under the gate. But don’t expect to receive a birthday card from your best friend or a letter from your cousin on a Sunday anytime soon, as this new delivery service is limited only to packages from Amazon. The U.S. Postal service delivers mail and packages to every address in…

1 Comment
April 28, 2015
  • 1
  • 2
Close Menu
Verified by ExactMetrics