LIFE IN THE CHEAP LANE by Cathy MacDonald
E-MAIL EASTER GREETINGS
Letters and cards, real ones that can be held and read over and over,
are cherished goods -- which Canada Post pointed out with a recent
campaign in the face of rising e-mail usage.
But if there are a lot of people to keep in touch with, and they're
hooked up to the internet, free virtual greeting cards are the cheapest
way to go. Picking out one Easter card won't take $2-$5 worth of
online-time, the price of a real, paper card.
Head to an internet card site, simply scan the offerings, and click
onto the card you want. Follow the instructions to personalize it, type
in the recipient's e-mail address, and send it off. It's that simple.
The recipient gets an e-mail alerting them they have a card and
containing an address to click onto and pick it up. They'll find a fun
card with great graphics, even some with cheesy computer-generated
music.
Hallmark, the king of greeting cards, has a fabulous website at
www.hallmark.com. Traditional card
offerings, including sympathy and
anniversary sentiments, share space with quirky quips from its Shoebox
division. (Draw the line at sympathy e-mail though. That's tacky.
Condolences deserve a real card.)
I really liked "Funny but no...", rejects that don't quite make the
Hallmark grade but which you can send. Sample: "Sorry... I really didn't
think you were listening anyway."
Over at www4.bluemountain.com/ there's a handy scoreboard showing a
multitude of traditional events and national whatever days to send a
card for. For instance this month, along with Easter sentiments, there
are also cards for Quilt Day, Islamic observance Eid-al-Adha, and
Doctor's Day.
More mail money-savers from Susan Getchell of Fredericton, N.B., who
points out that if you work in an office that receives a lot of padded
envelopes they can be recycled for personal use. (With permission, of
course.)
Tape paper over the original address, and re-use them. Save a lot of
money if you regularly mail fragile things requiring these big
envelopes.
Also, she writes "save money on stamps by purchasing them at outlets
that regularly have sales on stamps. The post office doesn't, but
Lawton's (or other postal outlets) do."
Need a quick postcard? Cut one out a cereal box, use the blank back
side to write on. "Who cares what's on the front if you're only using
the postcard as a contest entry, or just need to send something quick,"
Getchell advises.
Hope Ryckman of Gibsons, B.C. also makes her own postcards. "If
someone has given me a birthday or Christmas card, I merely cut out the
picture front part of the card to the same size of a postcard and turn
it over," she e-mailed. She draws a line down the middle of the blank
side, separating the message from address, and places a stamp in the
upper right hand corner.
"I send it to someone to say hello or wish them a good day! It's cheap
and it is a wonderful way to recycle," Ryckman says. Strikes me as a
also great way for young children to stay in touch with grandparents.
Do you live Life in the Cheap Lane? Send in your idea, question or
suggestion. Write c/o P.O. Box 8626, Station A, Halifax, N.S. B3K 5M2;
fax to 902-468-2645 or e-mail me at sixmacs@ns.sympatico.ca.
Please
include your name, a daytime telephone number and an address.
Copyright (c) 1999 Cathy MacDonald
Distributed by Writers Syndication Services
