The birthday card blues has stuck again. I’m fretting about going old-school with a paper card or embracing the digital age with an e-card. I send physical cards to people who sent me a paper card. Some of my friends even whip up handmade cards that are so awesome, I’d feel like a schmuck if I sent them an e-card after all their creativity and effort.
And don’t get me started on the time warp of snail mail. I no longer know how far in advance I have to send a card by mail. If memory serves me (and many times it doesn’t) there was a time when it would only take a few days for a mailed card to reach its destination. Now it’s at least five days. So much for advanced technology. A few years ago I mailed two cards on the same day – one to my sister 300 miles away and one to my neighbor two doors down. Sis received her card on her birthday. My neighbor’s card must have detoured through Timbuktu and was four days late. How do you plan for something that erratic? I should have walked it over but I was afraid she'd think I was too cheap to pay for a stamp.
Then there’s the hunt for a card. I always relied on the Hallmark store next to the grocery. It’s gone. The Hallmark stores must be on the endangered list. Now the Hallmark cards are in the grocery. But lately, I’ve noticed I don’t like most of the cards. I don’t buy musical cards, even though they are cute, because they are an ecological disaster (1) and expensive. I skip the his and hers sections dedicated to spouses, brothers, sisters, aunts, and uncles. When I narrowed it down to the type of cards I wanted, what seemed to be an endless selection of cards spanning the entire aisle had only a smattering of cards to fit my needs. By the time I filter out cards for kids and anyone under 50, I’m left with a handful!
Now I have a quandary. You see a cute card in the 99-cent section, but you feel like your friend would think you didn’t care as much if you only spent 99 cents on their card. What to do?
I loved the Shoebox section, but from the looks of the Shoebox section at my grocery, Shoebox is heading the way of the dodo bird. If you’re bored, here’s a game for you: in the picture below, spot how many duplicate cards are scattered in the section to make it look like there is a bigger selection. I spotted three. Also, if you look closely, you'll see some of those yellow slots say 'there's and awesome card next to me' pointing to the slots on the left and right - but those slots are also blank.
I do send e-cards. But choosing who gets an e-card feels like playing Press-Your-Luck (a TV show where if you choose the wrong button you get a Whammy). I can’t send an e-card to someone who doesn’t use email, or who only reads their email on a full moon. Also, I try to send paper cards to people who send us paper cards.
When sending paper cards, writing cursive is another dilemma. After my niece told me twenty years ago that they ditched teaching cursive in schools because it was too hard. I realized younger generations might not be able to read my greetings. After writing cursive for over 65 years, I started retraining my muscle memory to print. I wouldn’t want the kids to think I’m old-fashioned.
And here’s a surprise. Some Gen-Z people still send paper cards. A server at our restaurant likes to send paper cards because she likes the feel of the card and she enjoys writing a personal greeting on them. She is proud that she writes cursive, which many people her age don’t. She finds her cards on Etsy and prints them.
Hubby also uses Etsy. But when you print your cards, it is nicer if you print the card on heavier, card stock and we only have a few sheets left. You'll need a color printer - and toner. Our printer always seems to be low on one of the colors. Oh, and after it's printed you need a card-sized envelope to send it. No fair raiding envelopes from the store.
Don’t think you are saving money by using e-cards. While a few cards cost .95, they can run up to $5 and some special personalized cards cost $17-$18 – yikes, you could buy a small present or a pizza for that kind of money.
So if I miss your birthday, blame it on the Birthday Card Blues. I’m either calendar-challenged (a topic for another day) or I’m still looking for the right card – or a stamp.
References
Most disastrous than a Light Bulb, recyclemore.com. It even has a tip for how you can hack the sound system inside a greeting card into your recordable music device. (Create your own iPod)
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