Okay, call me old-fashioned, in a time warp, or a card-carrying supporter of the last real bargain on earth: the United States Postal Service, but I can’t help it- there’s something about letters. I just love a real note on real paper that expresses real sentiments.
Even Larry David, curmudgeon non-pareil, thinks there comes a time when an appropriate expression of gratitude or remorse is required. No “drive-by” like text message or “thanks man” does the trick for Larry either. As e-centric as I might be, I just can’t get with the emailed condolence note, a real apology requires thought and the effort it takes to write a note, address, and affix a stamp.
Of course, there are some exceptions where e-mailing (not texting) is acceptable —I like hearing from guests the morning after a party –as I’m emptying the dishwasher and recycling champagne bottles. It’s fun to “dish” about who said what to whom or drank too much and passed out in their Uber. But what I really want to say from my In The Groove soapbox is; why don’t people show their appreciation for how much effort it takes to throw a great shindig by sitting down and actually writing a note? I’m putting this out there, without apology: the very best guests are the ones who write notes. They are the people I remember, think of fondly, and who make to the table, again and again.
I am glad that my mother taught me how to do this and I’m always pleasantly surprised when someone of a later generation gets with the program and really communicates this “gratitude” that everyone is always talking about. So following are a few of my favorite notepapers. Making something beautiful, in sentiment and with these papers, makes me smile, I get such a thrill of accomplishment and satisfaction from taking the time to do it up right—so can you.
