Postcard Happiness Project: send a postcard, make someone's day

I just learned about a sweet little project that I think my blog readers will love: The Postcard Happiness Project. Here's how they sum it up:

The postcard happiness project is a free initiative that enables us to send postcards to others who could benefit from a little postal kindness. This page is about potential happiness. It’s not meant to make you sad about challenging times. It’s designed to lift your spirits in the knowledge that there’s something small and inexpensive that you can do to lift a stranger’s spirits in a big way somewhere out there.

This is not for people looking for pen pals, it's for those of us who are stalwart senders, who just love to send mail anywhere, everywhere, without thought for a response.

On the Postcard Happiness blog, they post names and stories of people of all ages who need some encouragement. They could be depressed. They could be fighting cancer. They could be bedridden. They could have just suffered an assault. But they all need some brightness in their day, and you can send it in the form of a postcard.

No registration is required, and you can send as many or as few postcards as you'd like. The only cost is the postcard and the stamp. If you love to send mail, and it makes you feel good to make others feel good, go check it out.

Meeting a pen pal + mobile Letterpress

So you may have seen my recent post about Alex Myers's reading in Brooklyn last Friday. It was a fantastic reading and a great trip, made even more special because I got to meet a pen pal ALL THE WAY FROM NEW ZEALAND! The lovely Erin Fae is in NYC for the summer to work on The Press Cycle Project: Letterpress on Three Wheels, an amazing traveling letterpress project to bring this special paperful joy to the masses.

Erin braved utterly torrential rain to make it to the reading - we were all half soaked, joking that we had swum there - and Alex took this photo of the two of us after the reading. I wish we had taken more, I wish I could have brought my awesome Letter Writers Alliance bag but I was afraid it would get soaked, I wish the photo of me were better... it is a testament of my love and appreciation for Erin that I post this photo in the first place, because I think she looks gorgeous and I am not so pleased with the photo of myself. BUT! Cross-continental pen pal meetings must be lauded as much as possible, and documented properly. So, voila!

I would also like to share with you Erin's fabulous Press Cycle Project, because even if you are not in NYC, you can still share the joy. (And if you ARE in NYC - may you encounter one of her magical spontaneous cycle-powered printings!) You can read more about it on her Kickstarter page, plus watch the cool studio, but here's the gist: she's building a mobile studio to teach people about letterpress printing, and will make prints on the go. I am a backer, and if you're a letterpress or paper lover (and really, if you're not - why are you reading this?), I'd encourage you to consider supporting her special endeavor... or at the very least, keep up to date on the project via @PressCycle on Twitter.

Her project only has 3 days left on Kickstarter, so don't wait - do it now!

Postcrossing stamp from Belarus

I am so delighted by all the countries worldwide that have started producing postage stamps themed to Postcrossing -- and even more delighted when I receive them!

The latest offering, shown above, is from Belarus, and I am a big fan. I like the cheery letters and bright graphics, and especially the "Happy Postcrossing" wish that so many Postcrossers share with each other on our postcards.

So far I've received other Postcrossing stamps from the Netherlands (which somehow I've never blogged about before!) and Finland... so far, the one from Belarus is my favorite!

Hmm... what do we have to do to get a Postcrossing stamp here in the USA? Something tells me that's not too likely, but perhaps I'm just a pessimist.

In NYC on Friday 6/13?

Are you in or near New York City this weekend? Got no plans for Friday the 13th yet? Then I have a marvelous suggestion for you! My best beloved Alex Myers is reading from his wonderful new novel, Revolutionary at the Old Stone House in Brooklyn. The event is free and open to the public. He'll read from the book and answer questions, and I'll be there enjoying the event, too. Afterwards, along with a book signing, there is a reception with "colonial cocktails." Not sure what that means, but I'm looking forward to giving them a try! If you come by, please do make sure to say hello!

Alex Myers author talk at Old Stone House in Brooklyn, NY - 7pm on Friday, June 13

I promise, a mail-related post is indeed coming soon...