Send Real Mail!

I've been both the sender and the recipient of beautiful, wonderful real mail this week, and you know, there's just nothing like it. Texts, emails, Tweets, Instagram messages ... all of that is fine and dandy, but when you go to the mailbox and a fun, colorful, envelope with the real handwriting (and in my case, wax stamps, fancy postage stamp, and whatever else I can find to gussy it up...) of someone you care about, it's just the best.

I was lamenting the fact that people just don't send real mail that often, and saying how it's all going to go away if we don't keep the tradition alive, all up on my soap box when I was walking down Abbot Kinney the other night, and saw this stencil on the ground in front of Urbanic.

Awesome. And you better believe that the very next morning, I did just that. Posted it, Venice, California!

Check your mailbox.

Send Love Letters

Oh, how lovely. Someone stenciled this grand idea on this neighborhood mailbox, and I think we should all take their advice.

There's something so great about getting real mail, the prettier the envelope among all the junk, the better. Getting an email or text is nice, but to open that letter from the mailbox, see the handwriting, re-read it for years to come ... that's just the best.

I saw a great commercial for the U.S. Postal Service last night, where it said that football has its season, baseball has its season, but now is the season for the U.S.P.S. All those beautiful holiday cards and packages, with the postal workers trudging through rain, sleet, and snow (and heat out here) to bring expressions of love to people everywhere deserve our appreciation. It's also a wonderful tradition that would be sad to see go away. We've already lost our great old post office here in Venice (the annex one just isn't the same), so it's right to be a little concerned.

So, when the spirit (or your heart) moves you, put together a little surprise to make someone's day. And keep the Post Office alive. Be creative, be honest, be appreciative, be loving. Filling someone's heart is a beautiful reward.

“The frankest and freest and privatest product of the human mind and heart is a love letter.” 

-  Mark Twain