I think a snail might have delivered it faster!

Here's an interesting story about a postcard that was delivered to its intended recipient about 60 years after it was originally mailed.

According to the news stories out there, Scott McMurry was a teenager in 1958 (give or take a few years) when his mother mailed a postcard from the Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Earlier this month, the postcard was received in Florida by a woman who has a similar street address to the Georgia address where McMurry lived as a child.

She and her friends did a little detective work and found McMurry in Virginia. In the meantime, the U.S. Postal Service reclaimed the postcard and finally delivered it to McMurry, about 53 years after it was first mailed.

For more details about the lost postcard, as well as some photos, read the original story in the Daytona Beach News-Journal or the updated story in the Chicago Sun-Times.

(Thanks to my husband for alerting me to this story that he came across online!)

Beautiful Stamps!

When I was a kid, I collected stamps. I had often admired my mom's stamp collection from when she was a young girl, and then I received my very own book. The stamps came from all sorts of places...from letters that came in the mail, from my grandmother who got them from other relatives, from ads in the back of comic books...

I carefully mounted each stamp in it's proper place in the book. Somewhere, I still have that stamp collection. It brings back a lot of memories.

As I got older, I didn't keep up the hobby of stamp collecting. But, I still appreciate stamps. Nowadays, I'm happier to buy interesting stamps -- both new and vintage -- and send them off on envelopes to pen pals.

One of my favorite publications is "USA Philatelic," the quarterly part-catalog, part-magazine put out by the U.S. Postal Service. It usually features an article about one of the newest stamps, as well as lists and photos of the stamps that are available. There also are lots of other things to buy from the catalog, including notecards, stamp guides, first day covers, etc.

The "USA Philatelic" that came out earlier this year was beautiful, featuring the cherry blossom stamp story. You can still order a copy of it online for free. I think the catalog is so nice because the cherry blossom stamps are so pretty!

If you want to subscribe to the publication so that you get it in your mailbox four times a year, sign up at www.beyondtheperf.com, the online site for the catalog.

New Letter Writing Blog!

I discovered a new letter writing blog today. I found it in a rather backwards manner...through a letter in my mailbox!

A while back, I finally got around to setting up a new post office box, and I posted my new mailing address on this blog. I didn't make a big deal about it; I just quietly posted the address over there on the left side of the blog. I check the P.O. box about once a week, and usually there's nothing but sales fliers in there.

But, today, there were two hand-written letters! Joy! It's so exciting to get mail!

One letter is from JoAnna Haugen of The 52 Letters Project.  I blogged about that project on March 1.

Evangeline's Papyrus stationery.

The other letter is from "Evangeline." She has a new blog, Letter Writing Project. She posts photos of letters she receives and stationery she buys! I was the lucky recipient of a beautifully written letter on some of her Papyrus stationery. Oh, my! I wish we had a Papyrus store nearby. Or, maybe I should be glad we don't, for my bank account's sake!

Stop by Evangeline's blog and welcome her to the letter writing community!

Happy Letter Writing!

Hemingway letters revealed to public

The John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum has made available to the public 15  letters written by author Ernest Hemingway to his close friend Gianfranco Ivancich. 

You can read about the letters at the JFK Library website or  in this Associated Press article.

Letter from the Titanic

In the news this week has been a story about the mapping of the ocean floor where the Titanic sunk almost 100 years ago.

Then, today, I came across a story on the British newspaper website The Mirror Online about a letter written by an 11-year-old girl who was on the ship. She and her family disembarked before the ship struck the iceberg and sank, so her story has a happy ending.

You can read the entire story about the voyage, the letter and where it is now — you can even see a photo of the original letter — on The Mirror's site.

The Titanic

Out of Ink!

I'm not really a fan of gel pens, but a while back, I bought a package of Pilot G-2 07 (Fine Point) purple pens. I don't normally like gel pens because they don't write well for me. Whether it's the pens or my writing style, they tend to leak and/or skip.

But, I wanted a purple pen. And, I liked the fact that the G-2 was retractable. In the past, I've had trouble with gel pens drying out after I lost the top to them. And, I love fine-point pens. So, I tried the G-2, and I loved it!

It has a clip on it, so I can attach it to a notebook. It's retractable, so it doesn't dry out, and it doesn't get ink on other things in my purse. And, the purple ink is just cool.

I rarely "use up" a pen, especially a ball point or gel pen. Usually, I lose them or they dry up.

But, today at lunch, while I was jotting down some ideas, my favorite pen — the purple Pilot G-2 07 ran out of ink.

I think I bought a package of two pens. Now, I'll have to look around for that other pen. Or, go shopping for more.

How about you? Do you have a favorite pen? Do you keep extras on hand? Tell me about it!

Letter Writing Topics

If you are new to letter writing or have recently set a goal to write more letters or are a regular letter writer who sometimes suffers from writer's block, you might sometimes find yourself at a loss for what to write about in a letter.

Each letter is unique, and it's contents depend upon the recipient and what's going on in your life.

For example, if you're writing to a longtime friend or a close relative, your letter may be chatty and read as if you started in the middle of a conversation. It may make reference to events from your past or to conversations you've had before. You might ask about mutual friends/relatives, share personal news, etc.

If you're writing to a new penpal, you'll be more introductory, offering up bits of information about yourself without telling your whole story all at once. You'll probably ask lots of questions, too, hoping for a letter in response.

Even experienced letter writers may find it difficult to write certain types of letters, such a condolence letters or even letters of support. In those cases, your best solution is to take the time to think through the letter. Make sure you're saying what you really want to say. If it's an especially difficult letter, set it aside for a few hours or even a day or two, if you have the time to spare, and re-read it, re-writing it, if necessary.

If you need some quick letter writing topics, consider a few of these:
* The weather
* History of your town
* What you did today
* Your surroundings
* Your dreams for the future
* Your most cherished memory
* Your favorite food
* Your dream vacation
* Your pet or the one you wish you had
* Opinions on a current political topic

Now, "I don't know what to write about" isn't an excuse! Go write that letter!

(Clipart courtesy of http://cliparts101.com)