That's me with a Japanese postbox in Portland, Maine this month. Alex and I took a little day trip to Maine, and we stopped in Portland; I couldn't resist running across the street to check out that red postbox. (It was given to Portland in 1989 from its Japanese sister city of Shingawa, but I have no idea why.) And then I asked him to photograph me with it.
Yes, grad school ate my life, and I haven't been blogging or writing much mail, but now that I'm on break between semesters, I've been digging back into mail as much as I'm able. It's been a great way to unwind, and although I'm still not doing as much of it as I'd like, it's great to return for a while!
I've also greatly surprised myself (and many others) by an urge to send a few holiday cards again. I know, weird for me, huh? In years past I have even posted about why I don't do holiday cards, but this year I was really feeling like less of a scrooge. I think it is because I lived and worked in a place for 7 years where I was required to attend religious ceremonies against my faith, and attending multiple Christmas services against my will was part of that. It was, frankly, a traumatic experience. I think it has taken me this long to "heal" from that (it was 3 years ago, going backwards, when we lived in Newport, RI), and finally I can approach the holidays without quite so much bitterness. And I found it was a time I just wanted to say hello, and send warm greetings, just short notes to let folks know I was thinking about them. I've written over 60 so far, and because they're holiday cards (New Year's can last well into January!), I'm continuing to write them, and enjoying the process.
Happy mailing, and happy endings to 2015!
