Hello Reader, Valentine’s Day always signals a good reason to put your pen to paper. And having your message clear and legible will help the recipient know who is playing Cupid. Did you know? In former times, when a man was wooing a young lady, the quality of his penmanship determined whether he even had […]
Expressing sorrow
Yesterday, I wrote a condolence card to a friend. No matter how many of them I write, each one challenges me with an inadequate feeling. What can I say to offer comfort at such a time of grief? Yet words of sympathy are necessary to write especially now- when so many are dying unexpectedly, due […]
“Betty Bonkers working on jet lag”
My favorite younger sister, Andrea, died on February 22, 2019. It was sudden and unexpected with dubious circumstances. She had just come back from a dream vacation to Hawaii. Her last text to me said, “Betty Bonkers working on jet lag.” Next, I heard Andrea was dead. So many parts of this jigsaw puzzle will […]
“the Ghost of an idea…”
Charles Dickens began writing A Christmas Carol in October 1843. At that time, he was suffering from “a hideous cold,” and was in the midst of a financial crisis. After five years of economic success, Dickens had overextended his finances, his newer books were not selling as had been anticipated, and he was forced […]
9 billion phone checks a day*
Ever wonder how much time you spend checking your phone on a daily basis? And how much does that all add up to in hours and minutes? In a recent survey of 8,000 people, the “Average daily screentime usage” was 3 hours. Most people spend between 1-4 hours on their phones. If you spend a […]
Writing History
On the surface, writing by hand in a diary is a solitary experience…jotting down whatever is noteworthy from the day. If the entries are dated, a timeline emerges with days, weeks, seasons unfolding into a record of one’s personal living history. Upon closer inspection, a diary is more than a collection of musings, it is […]
Pen to Paper, 1st visit
I had not imagined how intimate it would be to read the handwritten letters of 60+ artists. Many names were familiar to me from my art school background. Those who where new, quickly became familiar through the personality of their handwriting. There is something so immediate and personal about handwritten letters. Pen to Paper is […]
Letters to Pope Francis
December 23, 2017 Kids write letters to Santa. They also write letters to Pope Francis. With “Dear Santa,” they generally have a list of stuff they’d like to own. With “Dear Pope Francis” they look for answers to “make sense of the world.” Regardless of how you feel about religion, Pope Francis is a unique […]
Mary & Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink
July 24,2015 Yesterday, I discovered this beautiful book in my mailbox. Hurrah for the cause! Two women pen friends, both named “Mary” honor their long enduring handwritten connection in this exciting new book on letter writing. Here’s the synopsis from Amazon- Mary and Me: A Lasting Link Through Ink explores […]
You’ve Got Mail-Don’t Write Off the Letter
July 6, 2015 The students who took Professor Marty Townsend’s course:”The Letter as Genre” compiled an anthology of essays into a book called You’ve Got Mail- Don’t Write Off the Letter. Freshly published, it is now available through the campus bookstore. Description- “In our digital age, many have claimed that letter writing is dead. […]