#63 - Don't Like Slow Mail

Mail Delivery

​I've had lots of gripes about mail service over the years, but I actually do appreciate it. Especially now. Delivery workers must be feeling stressed.

​Thanks to mail and UPS delivery, we've been able to get most of what we need without entering stores.

I've also been able to recycle all those envelopes.  
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I haven't been to a store in 2 months, but I've been to the post office 3 times. That's because I've had "essential mailing" to do. Essential for me... to send important things like chocolate chip cookies and puzzles and books to my grown kids. 

​Extra Slow Mail

​It's frustrating that mail seems to be slower. But sometimes there's a good excuse. My daughter apologized for her late birthday gift. She didn't realize the craft kit she sent, was being sent from Turkey!  It was pretty exciting to know how far my gift had traveled!

I fretted that my dad hadn't gotten the box I sent, with cookies. He's been confined to his room in assisted living. He needs those cookies before they get stale! Then I realized, his mail was being quarantined before they delivered to his room. I felt relieved to know they were being extra cautious.

Snail Mail

Sometimes this quarantine feels like the Olden Days. Food rationing and pandemic flus, makes me think of my grandmother in 1918. She had to send a telegram to her mother when she got Spanish Influenza. Phoning was expensive back then. Letter writing was common.

This odd, backward time, has inspired me to send letters. Snail Mail is a good way to connect with some of the senior folks that I work with.

I don't have many options for cards in the house, but I did find quite a stash of old photos. I was able to make some cards and get rid of some junk at the same time!

Feeling Grateful

On Cinco de Mayo, I got my own package in the mail!

My childhood friend, Diane said she had aimed to get the surprise to me in time for May Day! We both share memories of May Baskets, filled with sugary treats!

The mail was a little slow and the packaging took a bit of a beating, but my surprise was a total delight! The little box was full of the same candies and treats, that Diane and I would have bought at our neighborhood store, back in Grinnell, Iowa!

More Communication

After getting the box, I texted Diane right away. Then I dug in for a feast. Later, I made a card, with a photo of a Troll doll. It's the blue-haired doll, that I played with, when Diane and I were neighbors. ​

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A few days after mailing the card, Diane sent a text with this image.

Our trolls stood together! That made me grin.

​One More Text

I replied to Diane's text. We talked about getting together in the future, when this pandemic is over. Maybe we'll have an adventure in Texas or Vermont, or somewhere between our homes.

Then I dug into my closet and found my "autobiography", the one I wrote when I was 11. This was the scribbled illustration, that went along with one of the many stories about Diane and me.

Covid Reunions

I love all the little reunions that have come about, thanks to this awful pandemic. So many people seem to be communicating more, with friends and family. Texts, phone calls, Zoom meet-ups and old fashioned mail!

It's hard to beat this little combination of old-fashioned & modern communication, with my old friend. Thanks Diane!