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Post by penguy on Jul 11, 2020 18:22:50 GMT
What do you do when you receive a letter? Recently I've been doing things a bit differently.
1. First of all I read the letter through just for the pleasure of reading it and to get a sense of how it was written. 2. I go through and read the letter again and jot down points I want to respond to on the back of the envelope. (just started doing this) 3. I put the letter in the envelope in my in-basket. 4. I reply to letters in the order I receive them. When the letter comes up for a reply, I reread the letter and use the notes on the back of the envelope and write the letter.
What do the rest of you do?
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Post by Gary S on Jul 11, 2020 19:37:37 GMT
1. I read the letter usually as soon as it arrives but some slip through the cracks and I find them unopened weeks or months later when they're due to be answered. 2. I'm supposed to jot down the date arrived and the date I initially read the letter. I figure only about 60% get this treatment. 3. Weeks or months later I reread the letter and am amazed that I don't remember reading it even though 60% of them have a date I supposedly read them on the back. 4. When answering the letter I plan to hit any interesting comments point by point but usually go off on a tangent or two and skip any number of points I meant to address. 5. If I planned to include any items with my reply I remember after it's sealed up and already on the way to the mail box. I'll make a note to include them in the next letter but that rarely happens. Later I'll wonder who I meant to send some article laying on my desk to but not be able to remember. I set it aside and repeat the process again in a month or two.
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Post by Catida on Jul 11, 2020 20:03:22 GMT
1. I wait for a moment when I can focus on reading the letter without someone interuptig (or at least can hope..). Then I read it through. 2. I put it back in the envelope and on the holder above my desk, where I keep letters that are waiting for a reply. I don't always respond to letters strictly in the order they came in. If I'm planning to write a long letter, I need to wait for a day when I have more time for writing. 3. When I'm to write the reply, I read the letter through again, and if it's a long one I underline questions and other things I want to comment. In my response I answer the questions/ comment the topics one at a time (well, about..) and in between I write about everything else that comes to my mind
Edit. Oh, before or/and after the actual letter writing there may also be a step when I decorate the envelope and/or the letter paper. And when the letter is written, I weight it and choose stamp(s) from my stock Sometimes I also weight before sealing it, to see if there's room to tuck in something extra. Oh, and I take photos of the letter before putting it in the envelope. I started to do that as a backup after a letter I sent never reached the recipient. But I've sometimes found it handy to be able to check what I've written last time, especially if it's been months ago.
Gary S, Haha, your post gave me a good laugh!
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Post by michelleg on Jul 12, 2020 2:35:18 GMT
Gary S, that is a scream! And alas, so like my own wayward letter-answering ways! I generally: 1. Retreat to my bedroom or my home office and read the letter through once. 2. Set it aside to answer later - sometimes it goes in a little red holder on my desk; other times, if I'm in my bedroom, it goes in a decorative box or lap desk. 3. Once I'm ready to answer letters I choose the stationery I'm in the mood for that day - sometimes it's plain white and I decorate it with washi tape, sometimes it's coloured paper that I decorate with stickers; sometimes it's my elegant Crane linen stationery. 4. Take a photo of the finished letter since my memory is dreadful these days and I don't want to repeat myself in a subsequent letter. 5. Address it, stamp it, and then drip, drip, drip - wax seal it. 6. Write on the envelope the date I answered the letter, and sometimes, the date I mailed it. Then it goes into a decorative box with lavender and cedar. Multiple letters from the same person get tied together with ribbon.
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Post by davidv on Jul 12, 2020 3:48:15 GMT
My usual practice:
1. Read immediately, often in the kitchen 2. Discuss with my wife and/or let her read it 3. Before writing I'll skim through again, usually making a little list of topics to cover 4. Write the letter (sometimes in one sitting, sometimes over more than one) either at the kitchen table or my desk. I'll usually write pretty quick after receiving unless life is busy (it usually isn't really) 5. Let my wife read my reply and discuss 6. Occasionally I remember something I wanted to say and add a P.S. 7. Address and walk to mailbox.
I keep the letter I received in its envelope and have a folder in a filing cabinet for them. The folder might need to be organized differently soon as the volume of letters has been increasing
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Post by vertolive on Jul 12, 2020 4:25:47 GMT
1. Pulling a real letter from the box causes me to vanish to an undisclosed and fortress-like location where I may read it undisturbed.
2. I emerge from said location and responsibly date the envelope as to day received, then file it by date in the Song Dynasty bowl on the console table.
3. If thorny topics have come up in the letter, it will require me to “grok” my reply longer than if not.
4. When my Inner Creative Eye has cracked and I’m ready to compose, I choose the first rubber stamp, and consult my chart for the Western Latin Rite date.
5. I re-read carefully, keeping every pertinent statement stored on my Mental Grid. Ink color(s) are selected.
5.5 I loosen up with a short reading out of Dante to get my rhythm and vocabulary warmed up
6. Ink flies in a frenzy of writing myself into a corner and back out again.
8. More stamps are pulled to enhance the reserved, plain shimmer envelope. Postage added to complete the theme. Outer inks are waxed over.
9. The envelope is placed between the celadon Foo Dog Pair on the mantel for placement in the mailbox between 6:50 and 6:56 am to avoid Island Mail Pirates.
10. The med cart arrives.
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Post by Catida on Jul 12, 2020 6:32:47 GMT
vertolive, What kind of wax do you use to protect the inks on the envelope? (If I understood right your meaning..) And what does "grok" mean? My dictionary was unable to help me. And.. what, a med cart??
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Post by Catida on Jul 12, 2020 6:35:59 GMT
6. Write on the envelope the date I answered the letter, and sometimes, the date I mailed it. Then it goes into a decorative box with lavender and cedar. Multiple letters from the same person get tied together with ribbon. This is what I do too. Except I don't scent my letters. But my box is starting to get filled, so I'm not sure what to do next. Get a bigger box?
How do others store the letters after they've been answered?
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Post by Gary S on Jul 12, 2020 6:39:11 GMT
vertolive , What kind of wax do you use to protect the inks on the envelope? (If I understood right your meaning..) And what does "grok" mean? My dictionary was unable to help me. And.. what, a med cart?? A med cart is shorthand for a medical cart like is used in a hospital. They are usually full of life saving devices needed in an emergency situation. They may contain certain drugs as well. Sometimes the ones in an Emergency Room or ICU floor are called "crash carts" for when a patient's condition "crashes" and they are on the verge of death.
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Post by Catida on Jul 12, 2020 6:46:55 GMT
Thanks Gary S, that word I did understand, but I was wondering why one arrives to vertolive
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Post by stompie on Jul 12, 2020 8:00:39 GMT
See a letter in the mailbox, pull it out and do a happy dance!
Then follow mostly the steps that most others seem to follow.
When replying I rub candle wax on the envelope to protect the ink
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Post by vertolive on Jul 12, 2020 12:24:24 GMT
vertolive, What kind of wax do you use to protect the inks on the envelope? (If I understood right your meaning..) And what does "grok" mean? My dictionary was unable to help me. And.. what, a med cart?? Catida— I use a wax candle to rub over the writing on the envelope to protect water-based ink from damp conditions “Grok” is a neologism coined by author Robert Heinlein in his book Stranger in a Strange Land meaning “to understand completely and intuitively”. I used it here as esoteric humor “The med cart” — used jokingly to refer to psychiatric medications brought on schedule to people confined to mental institutions I know that humor (or attempts at it) can be the most difficult part of language to acquire !
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Post by michelleg on Jul 12, 2020 13:12:25 GMT
1. Pulling a real letter from the box causes me to vanish to an undisclosed and fortress-like location where I may read it undisturbed. 2. I emerge from said location and responsibly date the envelope as to day received, then file it by date in the Song Dynasty bowl on the console table. 3. If thorny topics have come up in the letter, it will require me to “grok” my reply longer than if not. 4. When my Inner Creative Eye has cracked and I’m ready to compose, I choose the first rubber stamp, and consult my chart for the Western Latin Rite date. 5. I re-read carefully, keeping every pertinent statement stored on my Mental Grid. Ink color(s) are selected. 5.5 I loosen up with a short reading out of Dante to get my rhythm and vocabulary warmed up 6. Ink flies in a frenzy of writing myself into a corner and back out again. 8. More stamps are pulled to enhance the reserved, plain shimmer envelope. Postage added to complete the theme. Outer inks are waxed over. 9. The envelope is placed between the celadon Foo Dog Pair on the mantel for placement in the mailbox between 6:50 and 6:56 am to avoid Island Mail Pirates. 10. The med cart arrives. Bwahahaha! But of COURSE one would read Dante before replying to a missive. If you actually have a Song Dynasty bowls and Foo Dog, I'm going to be absolutely green!
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Post by Catida on Jul 12, 2020 15:14:15 GMT
vertolive , What kind of wax do you use to protect the inks on the envelope? (If I understood right your meaning..) And what does "grok" mean? My dictionary was unable to help me. And.. what, a med cart?? Catida— I use a wax candle to rub over the writing on the envelope to protect water-based ink from damp conditions “Grok” is a neologism coined by author Robert Heinlein in his book Stranger in a Strange Land meaning “to understand completely and intuitively”. I used it here as esoteric humor “The med cart” — used jokingly to refer to psychiatric medications brought on schedule to people confined to mental institutions I know that humor (or attempts at it) can be the most difficult part of language to acquire ! Thank you for explaining I congratulate myself for assuming your meaning with the med cart right. But then I started to hesitate and think maybe you're actually in a hospital for some reason, and it could cause an awkward situation if I laughed at your joke and you'd say it wasn't a joke
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Post by vertolive on Jul 12, 2020 17:55:40 GMT
1. Pulling a real letter from the box causes me to vanish to an undisclosed and fortress-like location where I may read it undisturbed. 2. I emerge from said location and responsibly date the envelope as to day received, then file it by date in the Song Dynasty bowl on the console table. 3. If thorny topics have come up in the letter, it will require me to “grok” my reply longer than if not. 4. When my Inner Creative Eye has cracked and I’m ready to compose, I choose the first rubber stamp, and consult my chart for the Western Latin Rite date. 5. I re-read carefully, keeping every pertinent statement stored on my Mental Grid. Ink color(s) are selected. 5.5 I loosen up with a short reading out of Dante to get my rhythm and vocabulary warmed up 6. Ink flies in a frenzy of writing myself into a corner and back out again. 8. More stamps are pulled to enhance the reserved, plain shimmer envelope. Postage added to complete the theme. Outer inks are waxed over. 9. The envelope is placed between the celadon Foo Dog Pair on the mantel for placement in the mailbox between 6:50 and 6:56 am to avoid Island Mail Pirates. 10. The med cart arrives. Bwahahaha! But of COURSE one would read Dante before replying to a missive. If you actually have a Song Dynasty bowls and Foo Dog, I'm going to be absolutely green! The Song Dynasty bowl was purchased at the Shanghai Art Museum as a reproduction in 1988 and lovingly wrapped in newspaper and twine by the lovely man at the shop. I hand carried it all the way home. Th Foo pair came from an importer shop called Legends of Asia in 2018. They are the traditional male and female, are huge, and named Mr & Mrs Merry and Pippin Foo. They arrived in a mysterious locked suitcase.
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