NO GlOOM
Speed is of the essence at the end of the day. The days are folding back into themselves way too early – I start work in the dark but prefer not to finish work in the dark. But am always caught out. Trying to get images of the farm as the gloom gathers. 
I am still stalking Sheila trying to get a really good postcard shot. But she always wants to get up close to say hello. She lifts her head and her hooves and toddles stiffly to where I am, chatting the whole time. She is the only pig I have who will lift her head up high so her ears flop back when she reaches me, she needs to see me when she talks. She is an eye contact pig. She reminds me of a whale breaching for a look. But she really needs to be out of the mud for a photo – she is more fish than pig preferring to lay in the mud most of the day. Maybe it is soft on her old bones.
I got home from the city late in the afternoon yesterday. I went up to meet Rosy – do you remember Rosy? – she was one of my farm workers this summer and is now a fast friend. I am not letting Rosy drop back into the maddening memory crowds. She was in Chicago for a few days so I went up to have lunch with her and have a walk around the parks. Chicago really is a beautiful city at this time of year.
It is interesting how in your life you meet many people – thousands really -but only a very few become the real friends. They can be cyber friends too, you may never have even met in the flesh but still, you know those people to be your good true friends. I have met a few of those through this blog too!
In the old days there were people who wrote to each other for years and seldom saw each other so it is no different I suppose, except that we can instantly answer a friend’s questions now. And email is fast fast, whereas letters more thoughtful.
The immediacy of the modern email letters we write must make a difference to the content though. If I were to write a paper letter now I think it is much deeper, fuller. More precious.
I was in the art institute gift shop today cruising for gifts and books and postcards and found to my horror that they had shrunk their postcard collection. I asked and they said postcards just weren’t selling anymore. It was a trend to cut back on them now. Trending backwards. But I love my postcards, I squeaked. It was like someone said we don’t really need four legs on our chairs anymore and how had I not known about that. I was flabbergasted.I love postcards and have been collecting and sending them forever. I love making my postcards in Zazzle. In fact, I make more postcards with my pictures than anything else in Zazzle. I love postcards. I have boxes of them. I was saddened to see them being cut back. Trending DOWN.
Ah well. I will be ready when there is a resurgence of mail.
I hope you have a lovely day.
Love celi
WEATHER: Another good drying day.
Tuesday 10/17 0% / 0 in
A mainly sunny sky. High 69F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph.
Tuesday Night 10/17 0% / 0 in
Clear skies. Low 46F. Winds SSW at 5 to 10 mph.
Sun
7:06 am 6:08 pm
Moon
Waning Crescent, 3% visible 4:42 am 5:27 pm
61 Comments on “NO GlOOM”
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I was just commenting to a friend, he’s probably the last person I know who sends postcards. I think loosing them would be a shame too! I particularly like the older 60s style ones with too much colour.
Sheila will want some cows for the winter…
YES – and I used to find wonderful retro ones at the Portrait Gallery in London – do you think they are cutting their collections back too!? c
I haven’t looked, but many of the London museums have cut back on what’s on display, which IMHO sells them short. They seem to think that it’s all too much to take in.
As you said, you enjoy collecting postcards – as do I… Thankfully they’re not just reserved for mailing; )
Oh DRAT!! Sorry Bulldog, this comment was meant as a general response for C.
But re your “too much to take in”; where else should one go (other than a Museum) to “take in” as much as we can possibly absorb? SO tired of this “dumbing down” that’s being attempted in ever-increasing frequency.
What’s next, “Museum Viewing for Idiots”?
I still send postcards and love them! I have a couple apps on my phone that make it really easy when traveling to take a picture and send one right then and there without having to worry about looking for the post office or making sure that there is the right postage on them. I still do buy them when I see them but I don’t stress as much anymore because quite often my pictures turn out to be just as good as the postcard ones. 🙂
WOW – send me that app. They literally print then deliver them?
Yep! I use a couple of them. One is Postagram and the pics are smaller but you can punch them out. My brother in law loves those. The other sends really beautiful large ones—PhotoCard. So easy to use these because it can access your addresses or you can input them yourself. ❤️ sending postcards!!!
Thank you! I am thrilled by this. Like they say: there is an app for everything !
It is great! Sure it probably costs more but in the long run it is so less stressful. I sent tons when we were in Europe — so easy!
what a great idea! I’ll be doing this also and more often! Thanks for the tip Beth Ann!
Happy to share. I am sure there are other postcard apps out there but these are the two that I like the most!
We were talking just the other day about how many friends we have. We don’t have many very close ones. It kind of bothered us. We wondered if that was unusual. Thought not. Cultivating them is a good thing.
I think it is perfectly normal- we are not high school students who count friends as popularity.
Since 2011 we have both been active bloggers. Friendships grew quickly among the unseen. Some of those have turned out to be lasting and personally rewarding. We’ve met a few in our travels. A few others turned out to be surprises and disappointing. No different from any other circles.
Our son advised us to be sure to get lots of RPT – Real People Time. He is correct. We try to keep that aspect of our lives enriched.
My dad said something when I was a kid – you will never have more than a few very good friends – look after them – he said something about binding them to you with a steel girder but I never quite understood that bit – some proverb reference i think.
A wise man, your Dad!
It was probably a steel girdle he meant – though I can’t find any reference in the Book of Proverbs to a steel girdle. 🙂
Might the word have been girded – as in “he girded his loins before battle” – instead of girdle?
The loincloth of Japanese Sumo wrestlers is an example of this ancient practice. Perhaps your dad’s expression meant to (figuratively) wrap your friends around you tightly and keep them close/ to be your strength?
No he meant the steel girder. Girded is quite different. Girdle is not something a man would say. A girder is a steel support.
Isn’t language wonderful? Apparently all of these originate from the same root: https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/gird
It looks like, for a minute, that Alex was trying to remember who her calf is, Inky or Rainbow? 🙂
I think IG is mostly responsible for death of postcards, sadly. Laura
PS I also wanted to say that Sheila in her wallow would also make a perfect postcard. Laura
Alex often hs them both with her – though Inky drinks from her Mum – Alex is the Number One Auntie
This is the problem. You can keep a postcard forever. This digital stuff is the very epitome of ephemera. When we go through our closets ten years from now, and dig through our boxes, we will not pull up emails and comments that tug on our hearts. We just won’t. The dog-eared postcards will still be there, though, pulling at our souls with all their might.
You are so right – I still have some sent to me by my kids there in my postcard box. If I get an email that is important to me I print it and glue it into my book. Things in print are saved. c
Postcards and printed images….. I miss getting printed images in the mail from family or friends. We used to get school pictures of the kids in the Christmas Cards. Hey, I don’t even get many Christmas Cards now either. My mother kept EVERY one she ever received. Birthday, anniversary and sympathy too. If she got a card – she cherished it and saved it. Now that I have to made decisions on what to keep or send away, I’m not sure what to do with the cards (and many other things)….
And someday, someone will make those decisions on my kept treasures. Such is the way of our lives…..
I think of that a lot. John is a packrat and I keep saying- you know when you are dead your kids won’t even look at that pile they will just shove it in the bin. I stick to my TWO suitcases rule.. c
Sorry C, but us DIY/ Fixer Types never know when something will come in handy… I think it’s part of growing up on a farm; )
And no; LOL, not everyone wants to be the Fixer; )
Oh my goodness yes though I can’t imagine what some of the ‘stuff’ I’ve saved could ever be used for!
I don’t think that is quite fair. I run a farm and fix everything myself with bits and pieces I save but as an immigrant with only a green card I am never sure when I will have to leave so I only keep two suitcases of the good stuff just in case things change. It is an immigrant thing.
Needing to be ready to flee at a moment’s notice sounds terribly unfair to me; but yes, I can definitely see your point about having to clean up after someone else has gone…
That was not quite fair- I did not grow up on an American farm but that does not mean I do not save things that might be useful later. I do all the fixing around here as a rule- However I am an immigrant with only a green card so my two suitcases of things precious to me are ready just in case the rules change. And I do not feel comfortable filling the shed with junk that someone else may have to sort out after I have gone.
I grew up in the city so my saving habit came late. The old fella who owned this farm before me had no qualms about leaving all the stuff he had packed away for his kids to deal with – and there was a lot! I agree though, some day all this wonderful stuff will most likely be tossed out by those who come after. I guess I’m finally learning to not put so much stock in ‘stuff’. But I just know this ‘dohickey’ will come in handy to fix some ‘thingumbob’ some day – hahahaha.
So sorry Celi, you’re right it wasn’t fair and I didn’t mean it the way it sounds. Please accept my apology? I just (incorrectly!) assumed that Your John, being the Saver, was also the Fixer. It seems such a very sad situation where you feel so impermanent. Sent with sincerest hugs of apology.
I didn’t grow up on a American farm either and honestly don’t understand this whole “green card” thing (we don’t have them on this side of the border; )
As a real estate agent, I send lots of handwritten notes and postcards! And get good responses from them because it is unusual to get handwritten mail! I love to get cards and letters in the mail, the thought counts and it takes more effort than an email or text. I still send Xmas cards, though don’t receive as many.
My mom is moving again and we are sifting through her things, lots of memories! I don’t think going through my hard drive will be the same!
I agree – and I love that you send paper cards to your people – it really would make a difference – people let that stuff hang about and when they need your services again the images will still be in their mind – we should start a card revival!
I know this does not relate to today’s post, but I tried to make this comment on the Amazon Things page but there was no space for comments there. Anyway, I would love for you to add a few more everyday things to your list. I regularly purchase through Amazon and would happily go through your portal, but I need something to activate it (and I don’t use the toothpaste you have on there).
Yes! I will do that. You are so right. Now, we need to make a list if everyday things that we all use. Thank you for the reminder to get onto that. Name a few things you are happy for me to put on there – i put my sons fav coffee on there the other day for just this reason
Okay, so it has taken me a few days (kids, life, you know), but here are a few suggestions:
-Traditional Medicinals Throat Coat tea (I swear by this stuff during cold season!)
-Nylabones for the dogs
-Oxiclean
-Dawn Dish soap–the blue stuff
-Aquaphor Baby Healing Ointment (great for everyone, not just babies!)
-Eucerin Lotion (I usually buy the “intensive repair” stuff, but really, any of the lotions are great.)
-a non whitening toothpaste (Crest or Colgate or whatever)
-I always buy my vitamins through Amazon, but they are for pregnant and nursing mommas, so maybe not what you want on your list, but just in case: Garden of Life Vitamin Code Raw Prenatal 180 count and Garden of Life Prenatal DHS (fish oil) 30 count
If I come up with anything else good, I will let you know, and I really don’t expect you to put all of this on your list–just a couple suggestions. Have a great day!
P.S. I love the dryer balls you have on the list! I got a set, and they are fabulous!
Yes! Thank you – this is a great and a number of these I use too! Thank you.
I still buy postcards. If I’m not mailing them, I use them for book marks. I also love sending cards to people who I know love them. When I have time, I love creating my own postcards and note cards from my photo stock. The deer and wildlife photos make lovely cards.
Yes – they would be marvellous cards! c
Hah- sending everyone postcards to use with stamps on them would be a splendid Christmas gift…I think I will do that!
Oh GOOD ONE, Kathe. Pre-stamped postcards? What an excellent idea: )
They used to have those in the 40’s-50’s – actually it was an embossed ‘stamp’ and was added to the price of the postcard. I remember embossed envelopes, too.
Not certain if they’re still available for purchase from Canada Post, but pretty sure I’ve still got one or two pre-stamped envelopes tucked away in a drawer; )
WOW, such glorious colour in your header shot C!
I bought a heap of postcards at the Art Gallery in Sydney on a recent trip. I can’t afford to buy prints of the artworks I love, so postcards instead, and they go up on my picture wall.We could start a Farmy postcard swap, any who want to join in could send and receive from all over!
There’s something so special about writing and sending or receiving a hand written card or letter. I treasure little cards and notes I receive.
Keep as many new friends you make as you can. I thought as I got older that it would be less easy to make new -real time- friends but so nice to be wrong about that. Many people I’ve met have stuck to some degeee. As well, online like-minded community & friends have added so much value to my life.
Our village’s post box was removed, the casualty of a dwindling mail system. A decline in postcard culture is part of that, I think. Our nearest post box is 30 km away. I post things, I wanted to say but I imagine nobody who makes such decisons would listen. I have family & friends not connected by the internet. Our postie-mailman is sympathetic, he will collect mail to be sent, as well as delivering it. Not his job but he’s a nice man.
We have a post box with a flag you put up and the postie takes the letter. I love it.
I read this earlier and then had to run. That header doesn’t look gloomy, looks almost scary in light of all the fires around. Gloom is standard in the PNW. I love all your photos here but I don’t send postcards. I’ve bought them for my scrapbooks of trips but rarely to send. I tend to get verbose with my note writing and a postcard would just not do it for me. I hope things cheer up a bit. So happy you got to go have lunch with a friend downtown. My online friends are almost closer and more caring than my physical friends. But since I’ve moved so much, my friendships are not as deeply entrenched in history as many are. I love my blogging friends. It takes a lot for me to miss a day here whether I leave a note or not. Hoping you’ve had a marvelous day.
I was brought up short on this point only the other day by a blogfriend who, thru’ the years, has become a dear real one. Having at the moment too many beloved friends around the world in hospital with cancer and other operations or having a hard time in other ways, and unable to afford proper floral bouquets to all and sundry, I spoke up about my frustration of only being able to communicate by email or phone. I was initially surprised when the suggestion was to send a ‘real card’ or note that the recipient could hold in hand . . . actually something you had handled. Well, don’t think I have bought or sent a card for over five years when once my Christmas card roll was over 500, but the penny has kind’of ‘dropped’ and that will be another ‘methodology’ used . . .
I think most everyone likes to get a real, written letter or card. I have friend who is finally moving back ‘home’ and I’m delighted. I’m also kind of sad, all the years she’s lived away we have written real honest-to-God letters to each other. Oddly I always seemed to receive one from her when I needed it the most, she says the same. Such a good feeling to see that familiar hand writing on an envelope and to grab a cup of coffee and sit down and read. Fortunately I have a grandson who’s a brand new Marine and also a very good letter writer. Even better it’s almost a sure thing he will be stationed stateside for two years so I don’t have to worry about him being deployed, I love my country but I really don’t want to give it my grandson.
As the handwritten messages I’ve received have dwindled, I’ve started to hold onto them more. As my 94 year old father gets older, it becomes less and less likely that I’ll ever see him in the flesh again, since he lives on the other side of the world and the state of my back makes air travel less and less possible. His letters to me have become extra precious in a different way way to the infrequent Skype conversations we have when my brother is visiting him. He still has beautiful copperplate handwriting, the kind that isn’t taught any more, completely legible and elegant. So many children these days have terrible scrawls, because all their schoolwork is done on a keyboard. Gosh. I sound like my mother…. Anyway, Bring Back The Hand-Written Letter, I say.
D > What goes around comes around : already there is a renewed appreciation of hand-written letters on fine paper, written in ink, with a flowing and pleasing hand. There is still a demand for art postcards. The trend is away from meaningless volume, towards the significant and special.