Everything is fleeting

"It began in mystery, and it will end in mystery, but what a savage and beautiful life lies in between." - Diane Ackerman

Sometimes, before I go to bed, I spill over with emotion and thought. 

I think of what I saw today, how the trees were mostly brown, when just days ago, they were vibrant and full.
I think of my coworker whose husband recently passed away, and how she chokes up at every mention of his name.
I think of how little I know about people I know so well.
I think of how little time there is, even if there are decades of life had and to be had.
I think of how absurd it is that we must vote on whether or not we should constitutionally ban gay marriage.
I think of how random and how calculated various happenings are.
I think of each step that had to fall into perfect place for you to be reading this, for you to even know me.
I feel sorrow for our future fates.
I feel joy for our future fates.
I worry about dying.
I worry about not living.
I wonder how the world will continue to spin when I lose someone I love.
I wonder how one can do so much and still feel that there's not enough time.
There's not enough time.
There's not enough time.

"Our souls are hungry for meaning, for the sense that we have figured out how to live so that our lives matter, so that the world will be at least a little bit different for our having passed through it." - Rabbi Harold Kushner

Now you know what I think about before I fall asleep each night. This, and what to wear.

I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?

Are you there friends? It’s me, Jennifer. Remember me? I’m the one who had a bit of a breakdown last month…but I’m back.

Today began just like any other day.

There’s a scene in The Office where Robert California asks Erin to explain her morning to him. She starts by saying “Well, I woke up, and -” to which he replies “Erin, when you recount your day, never say you woke up. That’s a waste of your time. That’s how every day is begun for everyone since the dawn of man.” Enlightened, she says, “Very smart. Very Smart! … Suddenly, I was awake.”

Suddenly, I was awake. I ate my Pumpkin Spice waffles, pulled together an outfit for a fashion show viewing this evening, dragged my body to my car to follow (mindlessly) the windy roads to work. I made my rounds, updated the ERP system, and read through several taxing emails. The lunch bell rang and a sigh of relief inadvertently escaped me.

Just as I was routinely uncapping the steam-filled Tupperware for my Monday lunch, I noticed two visitors at the table next to me. After a brief introduction (artists (friends of my parents) from California who had been performing in MN over the weekend), one of the singers dove off into a pool of Creedence Clearwater Revival that instantly changed the pace of my day. He crooned out a couple of Vietnamese songs intermittent with funny (albeit foreign to me) banter. He capped the performance with a rendition of “Let it Be,” which always sends pangs to my heart, no matter the circumstance. There is something so sweet and tragic about this song that brings tears to my eyes and a lump to my throat, every.single.time. And the whole lunch room singing along? Guhhhhh.

While we’re on the subject, I thought you should know that I hope that song is played at my funeral. Morbid, but I’m a planner.

Perhaps it was more bittersweet that a blind man was singing this, especially the line “I wake up to the sound of music, Mother Mary comes to me…” because I can easily picture him waking to and breathing music all of the time. I can’t help but feel a little bad for people who have a handicap, even though I am sure they are in no need of my sympathy. This man is 32 years old, an accomplished musician who gets to travel and do what he loves, not to mention that his guitar skills are fascinating. And maybe if it was not for his blindness, he wouldn’t be so in tune to his tunes. Everything for a reason, right? 

"Someone told me long ago - there's a calm before the storm. I know, it's been comin' for some time. When it's over, so they say, it'll rain a sunny day. I know, shinin' down like water. I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain? I wanna know, have you ever seen the rain...comin' down on a sunny day?"

Anyway, this is the merriest of Mondays for his visit alone. It makes you stop and think and really hear the music.

They know this much is true

Honest Teas has 6-word memoirs on the inside of their caps. This one was written by Eddie Sulimirski and is so beautiful and rings so true for me. And hopefully for you.












On my letter to my 30-year-old self, my friend Ashley commented with this quote. I love all the moments so much that yes, I do indeed think it's possible to be nostalgic for this moment.






That is all. Enjoy your Thursday!

Epiphanies of sorts.

Sometimes I think the week crawls by ever-so-slowly, and before I know it, it is le Friday! So, happy le Friday!


If you are super-privileged, you know I have really great "a-ha!" moments. Also really great "weird" moments. I consider myself a smart person, but when it comes to really simple stuff, I get these epiphanies (one of my favorite words) and everyone around me says, "Wow. Really Jen?" Or they say, "Ohhhhhhhhhh" in unison with me.


Some of the A-has have included:
Dissecting the word "percent." Like per-cent. Like per 100. Like out of 100, OMG. Stop. OMG.


How about remote control? Yeah, you can control the TV. REMOTELY. (Also, when I was little I had this problem and called it a remote con-con-trol. My nephew just calls it "mooooote.")


Some of the "weirds" have included:
Fruit. Fruit is so dang weird. Here, let's plant this weird little seed. Then all of this gushy deliciousness will stem from it and grow around it and while we're at it, more seeds will happen to happen, and then you can eat it, and it's mostly good for you. WHAT? (That is NOT what she said). 


Clothes. Alright, so we can't be naked. I'll run and get some fibers and make some string and make some clothes to put on your body. Eventually it will just be for the look of it and rarely for the function.


Animals. There are so many species and they eat each other. And some of them lounge around in our homes, acting like they own the world.


Interwebs. How in the world are you reading this across the way?! Why don't you have to be next to me to know what I'm thinking? Even landlines puzzle me because voices can project across miles! I know there are scientific explanations for these things, but still. It's le nuts.


So yeah. Life is full of very weird things that make me wonder how the H we all got here. This brings me to the thing that inspired the weird post: snowflakes.


SNOWFLAKES! They are unique! They fall from the sky! They are SO beautiful! They were on my car like this!

I hope you have a good weekend. Take time to appreciate the little things, the weird things, and those things that make you say "Ohhhh I get it."

I am so thankful.

Obviously I was going to post today. There are so many things to be thankful for, and since a lot of this blog is dedicated to recognizing and appreciating those things, it's only natural that I write about them today!

Where do I even begin?

For starters, there are things that I am thankful for every day and while I don't discount them, they go into a short list here:

1. Health.

2. My five senses. 

3. Freedom.

4. Shelter, food, clothing, a car, a job.

5. Love and happiness.

Now on to the main event: people. None of the aforementioned blessings would matter at all if it wasn't for great people in my life. And here they are:

Family. I love my family! This year we have the addition of Mr. Kevin and it's pretty exciting to have a new brother. At the end of this year, we'll have yet another addition in the form of an itty bitty baby!

Boyfran. See this post. (Also his awesome, welcoming family!)

The girls. I’ve known these ladies since I was 9 or 10 years old. Enough said.

The girls. These are the people who made college so exciting. We shared school, parties, and Stinkytown Dinkytown. I even got to live with…all of them.

Show-goers. Music is the air I breathe and since I have the need to go to a bazillion shows, it’s been awesome to have accomplices.

HK boyz. These are the people who I spent almost every day of my time abroad with. They are all hilarious and insanely smart. I’ve gotten to see some of them since we’ve been back, but I’m still waiting for a reunion with the international ones.

HK penpals. After three years, these girls still write to me! You don’t know how great it is to get mail from them, adorned with silly Hello Kitty stickers. 

HK people in general. Reunions are my faaavorite and it's super fun to have friends around the world.

Bookclub. My fellow nerds literary aficionados keep my brain sharp and are fun to meet for dinner every month. Still waiting on that magnum bottle of wine.

You. Whoever you are.

Every person has added to my life in such a special way, and I really am grateful for each and every one. (Also the ones not featured here, who I maybe haven't seen in a while). Here is to more communication, more reunions, and remembering the awesome times we’ve shared. Happy Thanksgiving people, you rock my world. 

Merry Monday [Work Edition]

Doesn't it sometimes feel like we go through the week to get to the weekend, only to have it flash by us and drop us at the door of Monday again? Rinse and repeat?

Well that has happened once again and my friends, we're back at day 1 of the work week. I spilled coffee on my boots, had to lug ten-thousand things to work and got here late. But once I got here, everything turned around.

So now I'm a happy Monday Camper, or Mamper:

1. Just kidding I don't like the world Mamper.

2. More time. I found out a HUGE audit at work has been postponed from the end of November to the beginning of January. Having an extra month to work is EPIC, and this time we won't procrastinate, but keep at our schedule like our audit is still early.

3. Coworker morale boosts. Last week my coworker told me I'd be good at a new lead position I will be transitioning into because I'm intelligent and people value what I have to say. That made me really happy, because it's easy to feel exactly the opposite.

4. Enjoying work and the people who surround you. Most of us spend at least 40 hours of our week at work. It helps to enjoy the tasks you're involved in and the company you keep. I used to not care about being friends with people at work...(sounds mean, I know) but then I realized I will see these people the most out of anyone I know so I might as well like them!

5. Noah and the Whale. Even though I'm a little peeved with them, I am excited to hear them tonight. They were pretty-darn-good at Lollapalooza last summer and I'd like to see what the show is like when I'm not sweating in blaring sun and fearing skin-sizzle.

I hope your Mondays are equally good or better! It can be hard to get up and do it all over again, but when you actually want to, it's a nice change of pace.

Scary Monday

Happy Halloween friends!! Halloween is one of my favorite holidays, especially when it falls on a weekday. This is because you then get to celebrate more than once (weekend and actual) and you get to celebrate it at work like we're doing today. 


Things that I love about Halloween that make me happy on this Halloweeny Monday:
1. Candy. My teeth are rotting as we speak and I'm going to decrease my intake in general...but maybe not today.
2. Disguise. Since we're ourselves pretty much every day, it's fun to step outside of that role and be something we're not. In this case, Snow White.
3. Black and Orange. Even my phone is festive with these colors right now.
4. Community and Trust. When else can you go door-to-door and expect strangers to give you something that you like and can (sort of) benefit from? (Don't think about the movie Candy Man).
5. Fall. Halloween is SO fall.
6. Pumpkins. Picking, carving, displaying, eating the seeds. 
7. Fright. I'm the biggest scaredy-cat on the planet, but it's fun to do something that spooks you. But I don't intend on watching seventeen scary movies like Jes or Zeb have been doing.

8. Apples. Except for when I'm Snow White.

9. That Festive Feeling. Work is bubbling with excitement and it's nice to have more fun at that place you go to every day.

10. Humor. Where do ghosts go out? [Anywhere they can get sheet-faced].

I hope your day is spooktacular, filled with more tricks than treats (and maybe some puns), and that you have fun!

Oh, and, from the weekend:

Paris, Je T'aime.

Many of you know that I recently spent a week in the City of Light with my sister, Nancy. We've been back for about a week, and every day I still miss little parts of the city. I couldn't decide where to post details of my trip since I have two blogs, so I decided to split it up. Style and music on Treble and Lace, and everything else here...makes sense, no? Anyway, this is how I'm reliving the moments and appreciating what I was able to experience. 

This is what I know is true.

{Pont des Arts}

On café:

The French have a way of enjoying moments, especially when they center around food or drink. All of the cafés we went to had chairs outside (even though it was cold) that faced the street so we could enjoy our café au lait (or café crème, whatever) and watch life go by. We spent time enjoying our mornings (and afternoons and evenings because coffee is appropriate at all of those times) and taking in the sounds and sights of Paris.

On transport:

The one thing I really appreciate about other (usually big) cities is their transportation systems. The Métro is such a vast network underground, I can hardly believe someone came up with the idea and carried out the plans (and so long ago!) to create such an intelligent way to travel. While the scent of urine lurks at every Métro stop, it's still a great way to travel - as long as you can hold your breath! Besides train-ing, we walked EVERYWHERE. We had the sore feet, legs, and backs to prove it. At home, I barely walk to the mailbox. Okay, that's an exaggeration, but still. And like MN, they have a public bike sharing system (Vélib) that we never got around to using. There's always next time.

On le food: 

{Fromage}

{Ladurée macarons}

Yum. I don't remember anything about the food when I was in Paris in 2005, except that I thought I received half a chicken for a meal. (Thinking back, it was probably Poulet Rôti). This time, I made a list of things I had to eat while I was on the trip. I didn't complete the whole list, but that leaves new options when I go back. (On my list was: Pain au Chocolat, Macarons, Crêpes, Crème Brûlée, Beignet, Quiche, Fondue, Salade Niçoise (I've been hooked on these for a while), Soupe de Poissons, Boeuf Bourgignon...

On le shopping:

{I need}

Le Marché aux Puces was one of the coolest shopping trips. Antiques are treasures on their own, but French antiques? Sign me up! I ended up with a vintage hat box, a set of keys, and a mirror for le boyfs maman. If I had a little more euro, (okay, a lot more) I would have walked out with a vintage Hermès scarf, Chanel bag and necklace, and Dior feather jacket. Ah, one can only dream. If we had the means to transport, ma soeur would have walked out with every chair there and I with every piece of luggage and maybe a few haunted pianos. This just means I'll have to do this at home, in MN. (Sans the haunted part).

On les jardins:

French gardens/parks are interesting because what little grass exists there is fenced in, with a sign cautioning visitors not to step on it. Much different than the US, where grass is meant to be picnicked, ran, sat, and stepped on. The dusty, rocky yards actually were pretty though, and served as a good backdrop for Treble and Lace photos! (Coming soon). We visited Tuileries twice and Luxembourg once. Both beautiful!

On l'art:

I've always thought art was beautiful but never really appreciated all of its dimensions. While I still take art mostly at face value, I appreciated the museums we went to. The Louvre was much too intimidating this time around, as weeks are needed to see everything. Since I'm mildly OCD and need to complete things in order and read about each piece of art, it was nice to go to smaller museums: Musée D'Orsay and Musée de L'Orangerie. L'Orangerie was a new one for me and boy was it amazing! Eight installments of Monet's water lilies covering 22 panels, separated into two rooms, was enough to have me in awe.

On l'everything:

I love it. I'm thinking of ways to spend some serious time there. Maybe a future retirement home. Someone join me. (I can see at least three people (N, C, A) raising their hands).

“I soon realized that no journey carries one far unless, as it extends into the world around us, it goes an equal distance into the world within.” – Lillian Smith

Merry Monday

Today is a very happy Monday and I have little to no reason to feel bad about it being a Monday!

Why am I le happy?

1. Planning for vacation. It's sometimes tough to get all the work back-ups, ideas and packing worked out for vacation, but I must say, it is one of the best "problems" to have. C'mon, I know you've groaned about packing before. 

2. Halloween on the horizon. I'm already missing my boyfran after just three days apart. Since his favorite holiday is Halloween, I went to his apartment and left candies and caramels and cider and spooky things for a surprise. Surprise!

3. Dressing up. Zombie Pub Crawl makeup felt disgusting, but it's fun to dress up as something you are not. It's one of the only times you get to step out of your shoes and be not-yourself.

What's making you smile this Monday? 

PS: I'm going to be on hiatus for at least a week for this:

That is all.

Merry Monday

Today is much different than last Monday! I love how things can turn around and be totally different from one day to another. (As long as it’s for the better). Since today is actually a merry Monday, it’s easy for me to take a minute to appreciate a few things.

Here they are:

1. Pho. My mom made homemade Pho, which is Vietnamese noodle soup for those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of enjoying it. It’s particularly good to have when the weather is cold. It’s a little harder to eat when you’re in Vietnam in 90 degree weather with intense humidity, but still good. 

2. TV Shows. TV is back! Thank goodness for sitcoms and dramas and fewer reality TV shows. I love when all of my favorite shows come back for the fall. Situations have changed, characters and their hairstyles have morphed (eew Parenthood what were you thinking?), and it’s the beginning of a 20-something run of new episodes. I don’t mind being rather consumed by tv. (Oh and the Emmys were on last night to celebrate TV too).

3. The Fall. I can’t get over how much I love this season and everything about it. Yesterday I went with my mom and nephew to the Moon Festival at the Landmark Center which celebrates the autumn and Asian culture. It was rainy and cloudy out and to me, perfect!

What are you enjoying this Monday morning?

Tuesday Bluesday

Yesterday was definitely MONDAY. So much a Monday that I couldn’t even bring myself to the computer. Usually I get a little mopey on Sunday nights because the whole weekend is over and it’s time to hunker down. I also get mopey after being part of a wedding. When you’re part of a wedding, you get to attend the rehearsal dinner, be part of final preparations, get ready for the wedding, stand up in the ceremony, have fun at the dinner, and go crazy after dinner. Then you spend even more time with everyone when you go to the gift opening the next day. After that, the couple flies off to their honeymoon, the out-of-towners head home, and you’re left feeling mopey and you miss the big group you’ve been a part of for the last three days in a row. So that is where I am right now.

Plus it seems that everywhere I turn, I hear of a relationship crumbling. So that has added to the feeling of absolute ick.

But some things keep me afloat:

1.     Mason Jennings. Sunday night I attended his in-store performance at Electric Fetus in Minneapolis. While I was not that close to the stage, it made it so I was first in line for the meet and greet. I had a little conversation with him, shook his hand, got an autograph and photo, not to mention his new album Minnesota that dropped today. He is amazing.
2.     Book club. I really missed the mark on this one. I forgot I had a book club book to read this month (maybe I’ll attribute it to the fact I was busy with wedding stuff). Yet, it was still nice to spend time with friends after a long day at work.
3.     Healing. Sunday marked the tenth anniversary of the September 11th tragedy. It’s hard to watch all of the footage again and to hear stories of loss, but it’s uplifting (and heartbreaking) to hear the stories of healing and moving forward. What gives me hope is when people come together and are there for each other. I can’t imagine what it would be like to know or be someone so directly affected by it all; I feel lucky to have been where I was and to be a part of this country. I really do love the US.

So even though I’m still moping around I know it’s not not what I should be doing, these things give my mood a little boost.

Merry Monday - Labor Day Edition

Being that today is a holiday, this version of Merry Monday isn't as legitimate. I slept nine hours last night, I don't have to go to work today, the sun is shining, the weather is cool, and my only obligation is a Twins game in this gorgeous weather.

Still, there are a few things that make today one of the best:
1. Sleeping in. Almost everyone I know has a routine of when they go to bed and when they wake up. Mine is pretty erratic but the one thing that is somewhat regular is that I sleep fewer hours than I think I should. So when I don't really have to pay attention to any alarm clocks, external or internal, it's bliss.
2. Drinking coffee through a straw. Even though it's about 60 degrees outside (yeay!), I'm still enjoying iced coffee...through a straw.
3. Easy communication. Text messages rule.

That's it for today. Here's a little lyric from Vampire Weekend in spirit of labor:

"We only work to live. Until we live to work." I hope you have some kind of happy medium in your life.

Enjoy your labor day and celebrate what it means to you. Whether it's all of the people who have come before us who worked hard to provide infrastructure, freedoms, and convenience, or if it's about the end of summer, the start of something new, or the last day of the State Fair - celebrate it.

Merry Monday

Mondays are tough. The lovely, fleeting weekend is over and now we’ve got a whole five days until the next. There’s a reason that our coworkers so sweetly observe that “someone has a case of the Mondays.” In order to tip the scale in favor of happiness, I’m going to start posting three things that I am grateful for, that make me happy, or that make me realize that Mondays aren’t so bad after all. Plus, this can add a bit of regularity to my posts. (I know they’re a bit sporadic*).

To start:

1. Feeling sore after a good work out. Yesterday I participated in the Columbia Muddy Buddy event at Afton**. It may have been the hardest I’ve ever pushed myself and today I’ve got sore muscles to show for it. It’s a good sort of pain though. 

2. Cool temperatures. This morning the grass was dewy, the sun was shining, and there was a light, cool breeze. I definitely drove with the windows down.

3. Puppy noses. This morning I couldn’t find dear Lily, until I spotted a little nose sticking out from underneath the bed. She was hiding from one of fifty things she’s afraid of…cutest thing ever!

This sort of reminds me of 1000 Awesome Things, where Neil Pasricha celebrates the small joys in life (like pressing an elevator button and having the door open immediately).

*I like the word sporadic.

**More on this a different day, when more energy is available.

What gets you through Monday? Whatever it is, I hope it gets your week off to a great start!

It's a Good Thing Things are Just Things.

Earlier today, my dad backed his car out and found that it wouldn't move. He thought the car went on some sort of auto-lock mode, so he hit the gas pedal harder. Turns out the thing preventing his car from moving was...my car.


I surveyed the damage and found a sizable dent accompanied by scratches on my front bumper. I wondered if I should fix it. On one hand, it's pretty ugly. On the other hand, it's just a dent. On the third, odd hand that I don't actually have, it's an addition to a couple of other bumps and bruises the vehicle has endured.


I thought about it and thought about it and eventually put it in the back of my mind.


Then, after work I decided I had no food in the house and needed to make a pit stop at the grocery store. At the exact moment I walked up to my car after shopping, (as I struggled with the bag whose handles just broke off) (did I just personify a bag?), a large truck swiped the passenger side of my car.


The guy was extremely nice and apologized for hitting my car and for taking up my time. (This was much better than when a lady rear-ended me and then wouldn't look at me and was extremely rude and talking about me on the phone). (Or how about the time I rear-ended a deaf person and she wrote on a piece of paper "I'm just glad you're okay." Tear.)


I could have gotten upset and wallowed in self-pity. But then I remembered what I read in Randy Pausch's The Last Lecture. He explained a time when his wife had backed one of their cars into the other car. She hid both cars inside the garage until he got home from work and all day long, she fine-tuned her plan of how she was going to break the news to him. She made his favorite meal and towards the end of it, spilled the beans. His reaction was to wait until they finished eating dinner to go look at it. He told her as long as the cars were running, they were fine. She was shocked that they were going to drive around in dented cars, but he said "If your trashcan or wheelbarrow has a dent in it, you don't buy a new one. Maybe that's because we don't use trashcans and wheelbarrows to communicate our status or identity to others."


I'm still going to get my car fixed, especially because something about the door handle function isn't proper. But it was a good reminder: things are just things.

You are Possible.

Every time a friend's blog starts, Jennifer's heart sings.


I have an overwhelming sense of happiness when I hear that one of my friends has entered the blogosphere. Sometimes, I literally jump up and down. I know I'm still a rookie, but it's awesome to hear that I have played even a little role in someone else's adventure. What's even more excellent is when a friend tells me I inspired her to start a blog, and then her friend is inspired by her to start a blog, and then and then and then.


As you may know, I have a special spot in my heart for writing. Writing is its own therapy and allows us to articulate whatever emotion or thought is bubbling inside us. It's amazing how far back it dates (someone look this up for me) and how it preserves thoughts, events, and feelings. (I don't like the mushy connotation that the word "feelings" has). Writing is a spectacular form of communication, like I gushed about here, and it's pretty amazing that humans developed it in the first place. Don't even get me started on language itself.


Back to the part about my friends being awesome-I assume that since you're blogging, you're okay with it being publicized. So here you/they are in birth order:   


If you are living life to the fullest and enjoying every little bit: then you should Know I Lived.
If you appreciate life and want to cook delicious meals: plan a trip to Spicyland.
If your thoughts are on design and style, inside and out: mind your head and Pear of Hearts.
If you wonder how it's possible to leave your career for your passion: you ought to be Stumbling Towards Bakery.
If you like philosophy and making your life happier: close your eyes and Imagine Rappy Happy.

One last tidbit before I get off the internet for crying out loud: 

My heart is so full, it just may burst. We. Are. All. Possible.

Do the Write Thing.

I have a strong sense for nostalgia. One of the things I will not let go of is writing letters. I'm not living in the ice age; I spend quite a bit of my time on the computer and a lot of my conversations happen via internet tubes, but I still believe in handwritten letters.


My "grandma" is a woman who lives in Atlantic, Iowa who had the heart and the home to sponsor my parents when they came from Vietnam with little education and a huge language barrier. She opened her life to them and gave them a place to start in an intimidating whole new world.  And this was not a whole new world in the Aladdin-Jasmine sense. This was a cold place where speaking Vietnamese didn't get you far. (Imagine coming from the tropics to Iowa, then Minnesota).


My grandma loves to write letters. Ever since my parents got back up on their feet and ended up relocating to Minnesota, I have seen letters from my grandma on a regular basis. My parents rarely write back to her because they're not the writing type and would rather have a phone conversation, yet she still sends letters, cards and photos. When I learned to write letters, I often sent them to her. Part of me sent letters to make up for what my parents lacked in correspondence, but part of it was because I liked to share thoughts and the idea of receiving something in the mail always appealed to me.


Since my start in writing to my grandma, I've had penpals and written notes in grade school, sent cards to my high school friends when we went off to college, sent cards to my college friends when we went off to real life, and kept in touch with my friends who moved away or who I met in Hong Kong when I studied abroad. (Here's to you, E, J, and D).


There's something about opening the mailbox and seeing a piece of mail that isn't a bill, a credit card offer, a plea for your money, or an inappropriately-sent advertisement for pre-teen clothing. Seriously, Justice, stop sending me discounts. People have a foggy view of what snail mail is. It doesn't take long to write a letter, it doesn't take a lot of money to put it in an envelope and stamp it, and it only takes a few days for most letters to arrive.  The US Postal Service also has a nice way of making sure things actually get to their intended destinations, whereas shipping overseas increases the likelihood that something gets lost occasionally. It's funny too that most people like to receive mail, but most people don't send mail. So where does this mail come from?


It could start with you. One of my resolutions for my Happiness Project (that I started in response to reading the aforementioned The Happiness Project book) is to write a letter once a week. It may seem like a lot, but if I go through my rotation of people I write to, that means each of them might get a handful of letters or cards a year.


Go ahead, do the write thing.