vive la snail mail!

Dear Shutter Sisters,

Shortly after I posted here about wanting to get back into the habit of writing letters and using photography to facilitate that, I got a Facebook message from Mika, a member of the Shutter Sisters community, about something she was participating in called The 100 Postcard Project.  According to the website, it's "a grassroots initiative to revive the art of personalized, material human connection through the writing of postcards and letters. Collaborators on this project aim to write 100 postcards or letters in 100 days, between May 22 and August 29, 2010, artistically rendered or otherwise."  I got excited that other people were interested in snail mail, too!  And then a week or so later, a friend of the family began sending us  postcards.  I started sensing a revolution brewing...

I received my gorgeous photo/postcard from Mika last week, and it was such a lovely feeling to receive something with my name handwritten on it, knowing that it was meant just for me, not a mass message to an email list or a blogpost for an anonymous audience.  It made me wish that more people could experience this for themselves.  Then this week, when I read Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Mission of the week--to pair up her readers as pen-less pals (e.g. the digital version of pen pals), it clicked...Snail Mail Shutter Pals for Shutter Sisters!

So here's how this will work.  If you would like to start exchanging a photo and/or letter/postcard/note with another Shutter Sister, leave a comment below with a functioning email address [in the email field of the comment form, not necessarily in the comment body itself].  Within the next week or so, I will play matchmaker and pair you up via email to exchange mailing addresses.  You will then send your Shutter Pal a photo and a short (or long) note about that photo and what it means to you, what it says about you, or whatever else you want to write about.  Or, if sending a photo is too much pressure, just a note or postcard will be great too.  And to help you along, I am giving away a packet of Photojojo's mailable photo frames to two commentors.  They'll instantly turn any 4x6 photo into a postcard!  Leave a comment by Monday night 10pm CDT to be entered to win.

Isn't this the perfect way to say Hello to each other?  Who's with me now?  Viva la snail mail!

Peace and Love,

Sarah-Ji

P.S. If you're daunted by the idea of letterwriting, start out by simply writing a note on the back of a photo, like a postcard, or sending an actual postcard.  I think of postcards as the Twitter of the epistolary form, and that makes it much less intimidating.

P.P.S. If anyone wants to send me Postcards From Italy, feel free to do so!

Update on Tuesday, June 29, 2010 by Shutter Sisters

Congrats to Debi of Emma Tree and Heather of To Live Inspired--you each won a pack of Photojojo's mailable photo frames! 

What a great start to our Snail Mail Revolution!  Feel free to sign up if you haven't already.

Update on Monday, July 19, 2010 by Shutter Sisters

If you signed up to be a Shutter Pal, you should have received an email by now with the information on who you've been matched up with.  If you haven't received that email, please contact Sarah-Ji directly at sarah [at] sarah-ji[dot]com.  Iif you wish to be added in the future to the Shutter Pals exchange, contact Sarah-Ji (instead of commenting on this post).  Thanks, and happy snail-mailing!

Comments

[Leslie]

I would love to take part in this!

Leslie
http://leslieandrews.net/blog

[Marcie]

What a wonderful idea!!
And - I'd love to send a postcard from Italy!!!

[Holly]

I would like to take part in this as well!

[Estelle]

I will send a postcard from Italy when I go there in October.

[xanthe]

it's such a beautiful idea Sarah-Ji, snail-mail is the best!. I'd love to join in from the UK

xoxo.

[Lauren Doran]

Sounds fun!

[Kathryn Dyche Dechairo]

I'm a huge fan of snail mail. My sister and I live in different countries and it's our preffered way of keeping in touch. There's nothing better than receiving a hand written note in the mailbox.

Count me in.

[mandy]

i would love to take part, too!

thank you so much for this - what a great initiative. :)

[Staci]

Please add me! I would love to be a part of this, and I think it will be more motivation to get those postcards made that I have been wanting to all this time!

[Jan]

I love this idea. Sign me up.

[Liz]

Love this idea and am really looking forward to participating!

[Erin Wilson]

What a lovely summer project. I'd love to play...

[Laurie]

What a great idea! I would love to be in on this..

[honey]

i love writing letters. i start every day by writing to someone. i make postcards or alter others or write long letters. it is a morning meditation for me. i love going to the p.o. and imagining my letters arriving. it is a beautiful connection, so i would LOVE to participate in this endeavor. what a terrific idea....and the giveaway is great too! thanks for offering this!

[Jennifer]

Sooo love this idea; I am definitely interested! Great idea - thank you!

[Karen Travels]

Yes please!!

Karen

www.clumsyhiker.blogspot.com

[Ali]

This is a great idea - wouldn't it be great if the Post Office saw an increase in mail volume - they wouldn't know what to do! Computers have caused a drop in volume - maybe these online communities can cause an increase!

[Claudia@ DipityRoad]

count me in :)

http://www.dipityroad.com

Claudia

[estelle]

what i forgot to add earlier is that snail became my New Years resolution a couple of years ago and I loved it and sent a card/letter every week to someone I care about.

[Jeanne]

Yes please!

[~ kristina ~]

Wonderful! Sign me up!

[Debi]

Yes, please. I am starting a year of changes, right here in the middle of the year - perfect timing!.

[Juliana Suzuki]

Hey! Do you accept people from Brazil?

If so I'd love to take part =D

-Ju

[kristin]

i am so in!
i LOVE snail mail.

x
kristin

[lucy]

i'd love to participate.

[Elizabeth]

I love sending postcards. It's an easy way to say, "hello, I'm thinking of you".

Sign me up!

[Alison]

I'd love to play! So excited about this!

[Margaret]

This is a great idea. i haven't written letters like that since college.

[deea]

Sign me up! I'm a tactile person. Love to have things to hold and keep!

[AnnaNova]

sign me up!

[camerashymomma ~ meredith winn]

sarah!! you brilliant woman!! include me. yes please! i love this idea. thank you so much for bringing this dream to fruition (and so quickly!)
xo

[christina]

Absolutely count me in. Can't wait. I used to write letters all the time, I still have some of the saved correspondence from when I was in college. And i remember just loving seeing real mail in my box. Let's do it again!

[Heidi]

Oh, I love this idea! I would love to join in too!

[Diane]

I took part in the photo exchange arranged by Shutter Sisters a couple years ago but I hardly ever received a photo in exchange from my assigned 'partner'. I would NOT be willing to do a <i>photo</i> exchange but I would do a postcard exchange. I would hope whoever is assigned to me would fulfill their commitment, however. I just don't know how you get people to reciprocate.

[Christiana]

I'm in - christiana_childers@yahoo.com

[Sandy]

Love this idea! I have loved receiving the real deal in the mail!

[kristen marie]

I would love to do this! Count me in!

[amy]

love this idea....count me in!

[Stacey]

I would love to do this!!! Thanks for setting this up!!!

Stacey

[Victoria]

This... is... a ... beautiful idea! I would love to be a part of it!
And who knows, I could possibly deliver a fellow shutter sister's (besides my own) postcard being a rural mail carrier :)

Count me in, please!

[Jessica]

What a cool idea!!! I absolutely want to participate. I need a good photo project to inspire me and I think this would do the trick.

http://www.MomShots.com

[Shalet]

I'll join in!

http://peculiarmomma.blogspot.com

[Kathleen]

Sounds like a fabulous idea. Count me in. I'd better go buy some stamps!

[Sonia Crawford]

I would like to participate in the "Snail Mail Shutter Pals for Shutter Sisters". I think this would be fun.

[Paige]

Sounds great to me! I'd love to be included.

[Chocolate on my Cranium]

I'd LOVE to participate! My children are in a 50 states postcard swap. They look forward to getting a new postcard every week from a different state in the U.S. In this age of instant access it's nice to take it slow and be rewarded for patience.

[Jayne Bramley]

I would love to play!!! Count me in :)

[BlessedMess]

Love it! I'm in!

[Ramona]

count me in.

[Sharon]

I love snail mail! And Shutter Sisters! Please, count me in.