1. Do you enjoy letter writing [as in snail mail]? When’s the last time that you wrote someone a letter or a note? When’s the last time that you received something in the mail from someone [not including regular stuff like bills, junk mail, etc.]?
I recently got a letter from a co worker who left our company to go into the Army. He wrote from basic training. It was a very nice thing and I have been and absolute boob and bore and not answered his letter. I will write him back this weekend. I love getting letters in the mail but there is a problem – you have to write letters to get letters and I am not a very consistent letter writer.
2. Do you plan to send out holiday cards this year? Why/why not?
Do you spend a lot of time on them? About how many holiday cards do you usually send each year?
A few years ago I send cards out regularly, accompanied by a long annotated Christmas letter. But I got out of the habit during my Dad’s illness and haven’t dipped my toes back in the water. I keep telling myself the blog kind of makes up for my Christmas letter, however a lot of the folks I sent Holiday cards to don’t read this thing, so I am living in a fantasy world.
3. Have you ever had a penpal? Where and when? How long did you write to them, or are you still in contact with them? What kinds of things did/do you talk about with them? How did your penpal relationship come about?
I remember one summer as a boy when my mom tried to get me to write to a pen pal. In retrospect, I think it was all a plot by teachers to keep me writing all summer long so as to aid my dismal handwriting. They were probably right (write?}) but I never followed through with it.
4. Do you feel that you have good penmanship? Did you ever have to take a handwriting class in school? Do you prefer typing letters or writing them by hand? Have you ever had your handwriting analyzed?
Are you kidding me? My handwriting is atrocious. It has a shelf life of about 18 hours, after which point even I can’t read it. At one point in school my handwriting was deemed so unworthy that I had to take special education classes and have special tutoring for about an hour a day. That will really mess with your self esteem – to go from the advanced reading classes to the the remedial handwriting classes and dyslexic kids classes in the same day. I prefer to type everything. See above answer on handwriting.
5. If you could receive a personal, hand-written letter from anyone in the world right now, who would you choose and why? Why would you want a letter from him/her?
I think Dave Eggers would write great letters. He would be a great pen pal.
1. IÂ’m not much of a letter writer. Sadly, the first letter that IÂ’ve written in years and years (Matty & Selena in Seattle) went completely unacknowledged, so I think IÂ’m back out of the letter-writing business. ReidÂ’s Mom is great about always sending us cards with handwritten notes, sometimes for no reason, just to be sweet.
2. Until last year, I was pretty good about sending out holiday cards, probably 20-25 per year. Last year, we meant to make them, but it never happened. This yearÂ…..who knows?
3. I donÂ’t think IÂ’ve ever had a pen pal, although that said, I have a terrible memory, so IÂ’ll have to check with my Mom and get back to you.
1. IÂ’m not much of a letter writer. Sadly, the first letter that IÂ’ve written in years and years (Matty & Selena in Seattle) went completely unacknowledged, so I think IÂ’m back out of the letter-writing business. ReidÂ’s Mom is great about always sending us cards with handwritten notes, sometimes for no reason, just to be sweet.
2. Until last year, I was pretty good about sending out holiday cards, probably 20-25 per year. Last year, we meant to make them, but it never happened. This yearÂ…..who knows?
3. I donÂ’t think IÂ’ve ever had a pen pal, although that said, I have a terrible memory, so IÂ’ll have to check with my Mom and get back to you.
4. My penmanship is legible, but psychotic. I had handwriting analysis done once and the person who completed the analysis insisted the sample was written by three different people.
5. I would love a letter from Margaret Atwood, something entertaining & insightful. Perhaps she could be my new pen pal and we could discuss her books.
4. My penmanship is legible, but psychotic. I had handwriting analysis done once and the person who completed the analysis insisted the sample was written by three different people.
5. I would love a letter from Margaret Atwood, something entertaining & insightful. Perhaps she could be my new pen pal and we could discuss her books.
1. RE: Letter Writing. IÂ’ve pretty much given up on letters in favor of email. Even at work, I bet IÂ’ve sent less than 10 letters in the past 5 years (itÂ’s actually a chore to find letterhead around here. . .itÂ’s usually in some dusty archive). I think the last really thoughtful letter I wrote to my niece upon her graduation from high school. The last letters IÂ’ve received were probably thank you notes for various things. . .and a postcard from my darling Pamela.
2. RE: Cards. I usually send out holiday cards—although some years I don’t get around to it. I try to be creative, and actually make the cards and feature a photograph I’ve taken. Given my current schedule though, it looks like this year I may not get around to it.
1. RE: Letter Writing. IÂ’ve pretty much given up on letters in favor of email. Even at work, I bet IÂ’ve sent less than 10 letters in the past 5 years (itÂ’s actually a chore to find letterhead around here. . .itÂ’s usually in some dusty archive). I think the last really thoughtful letter I wrote to my niece upon her graduation from high school. The last letters IÂ’ve received were probably thank you notes for various things. . .and a postcard from my darling Pamela.
2. RE: Cards. I usually send out holiday cards—although some years I don’t get around to it. I try to be creative, and actually make the cards and feature a photograph I’ve taken. Given my current schedule though, it looks like this year I may not get around to it.
3. RE: Penpals. I’ve had penpals as a kid. I met them through various means (school, trips, etc.), and by and large, they were some of the dullest correspondents on the planet. I do have several “chatpals” though—people with whom my only real interaction is via IM. I love the IM medium—it’s the perfect blend of spoken word and written word.
4. RE: Penmanship. I donÂ’t have great handwriting. I either print in all caps, or scrawl in a lazy cryptic script that only I can decipher. I am accustomed to typing most of my correspondence. As I donÂ’t like learning about myself, IÂ’m afraid to have my writing analyzed (although itÂ’s a surprisingly exacting field. . .not sure if itÂ’s at all accurate.
3. RE: Penpals. I’ve had penpals as a kid. I met them through various means (school, trips, etc.), and by and large, they were some of the dullest correspondents on the planet. I do have several “chatpals” though—people with whom my only real interaction is via IM. I love the IM medium—it’s the perfect blend of spoken word and written word.
4. RE: Penmanship. I donÂ’t have great handwriting. I either print in all caps, or scrawl in a lazy cryptic script that only I can decipher. I am accustomed to typing most of my correspondence. As I donÂ’t like learning about myself, IÂ’m afraid to have my writing analyzed (although itÂ’s a surprisingly exacting field. . .not sure if itÂ’s at all accurate.
5. RE: My Dream Penpal. I think itÂ’d be awesome to get regular letters from Justin Timberlake. HeÂ’s so dreamy, and IÂ’ll bet he leads an interesting life. Seriously, no one comes to mind. Maybe someone with a wry sense of humor like George Saunders? Nah. . . I think IÂ’d rather hear from Justin.
5. RE: My Dream Penpal. I think itÂ’d be awesome to get regular letters from Justin Timberlake. HeÂ’s so dreamy, and IÂ’ll bet he leads an interesting life. Seriously, no one comes to mind. Maybe someone with a wry sense of humor like George Saunders? Nah. . . I think IÂ’d rather hear from Justin.
1. I do not enjoy writing letters by hand & sending them via USPS. However, a friend of mine also recently joined the military, & I’ve recived two letters & responded with two letters whilst she’s in basic training.
2. No holiday cards unless I come across something I find hilarious. The holiday season is striking me as tedious this year & I want it to end.
3. If email counts, I had a German penpal a few years back who shared my taste in music almost identically. I think we “met” on some musicians’ forum & got to chatting via IM. Unfortunately, he told me he loved me & wanted me to come live with him & that was the end for me.
1. I do not enjoy writing letters by hand & sending them via USPS. However, a friend of mine also recently joined the military, & I’ve recived two letters & responded with two letters whilst she’s in basic training.
2. No holiday cards unless I come across something I find hilarious. The holiday season is striking me as tedious this year & I want it to end.
3. If email counts, I had a German penpal a few years back who shared my taste in music almost identically. I think we “met” on some musicians’ forum & got to chatting via IM. Unfortunately, he told me he loved me & wanted me to come live with him & that was the end for me.
4. I write like a girl I’ve been told. Not with hearts or smiley faces dotting my i’s, but clear, concise cursive. I don’t enjoy writing anything by hand. However concise my penmanship is, typing achieves further perfection.
5. I think I’d like to write back & forth with Cyndi Lauper. She’s very approachable, talented, & hilarious. I’ve a feeling we’d be fast friends… ‘Cyn In The City’ or something like that.
4. I write like a girl I’ve been told. Not with hearts or smiley faces dotting my i’s, but clear, concise cursive. I don’t enjoy writing anything by hand. However concise my penmanship is, typing achieves further perfection.
5. I think I’d like to write back & forth with Cyndi Lauper. She’s very approachable, talented, & hilarious. I’ve a feeling we’d be fast friends… ‘Cyn In The City’ or something like that.
1. I don’t particularly enjoy writing letters. I hold my pencil in an odd way, as I am cross-dominant, which leads to severe hand-cramping after a paragraph or two. I last wrote two thank-you notes for ‘get well’ gifts I received after my ‘incident’. The last letter I received was from my Gramma.
2. I think we normally send about 20-25 cards around Christmas, but that also depends on our timeliness in finding the “right” card. I’m not sure if holiday cards are going out this year, but I swear to do my best. While email cards are amusing, there is something to be said for getting something in the mail aside from the 20% off coupon from Bed, Bath and Bea Arthur. I want to pass the seasons greetings on to you, the customer.
1. I don’t particularly enjoy writing letters. I hold my pencil in an odd way, as I am cross-dominant, which leads to severe hand-cramping after a paragraph or two. I last wrote two thank-you notes for ‘get well’ gifts I received after my ‘incident’. The last letter I received was from my Gramma.
2. I think we normally send about 20-25 cards around Christmas, but that also depends on our timeliness in finding the “right” card. I’m not sure if holiday cards are going out this year, but I swear to do my best. While email cards are amusing, there is something to be said for getting something in the mail aside from the 20% off coupon from Bed, Bath and Bea Arthur. I want to pass the seasons greetings on to you, the customer.
3. Penpal? Not in the strictest sense.. but I have had regular correspondance with several long-distance relationships over the years.
4. My handwriting, like Jenn’s, fluctuates in style GREATLY from day to day, minute to minute. Although I took penmanship as a youngster, I now prefer typing.
5. Johnny Depp. I’m not sure what we’d talk about, but I’m relatively certain that I would have to “be alone” with the letter a few times.
3. Penpal? Not in the strictest sense.. but I have had regular correspondance with several long-distance relationships over the years.
4. My handwriting, like Jenn’s, fluctuates in style GREATLY from day to day, minute to minute. Although I took penmanship as a youngster, I now prefer typing.
5. Johnny Depp. I’m not sure what we’d talk about, but I’m relatively certain that I would have to “be alone” with the letter a few times.