Holiday greetings in the age of technology

I appreciate people, rarer every year, who still send holiday cards through snail mail. I enjoy seeing the cards and decorating the dining table with them. 

I hope the senders don’t mind that they hear from me by email. I can’t remember why — perhaps it was my frugality — but quite a few years ago I switched to emailing holiday notes. I ignored the etiquette mavens at the time who said that e-cards are tacky and assured myself that a personalized message shows effort, whichever way it is delivered. 

Birthday without firm plans unfolds beautifully

Birthdays, to my mind, are special. We’re recognized without doing anything impressive. No one close to me was also born on November 26, so the day belongs to me. Some years it falls on Thanksgiving, guaranteeing family members will celebrate with me.

Looking at the calendar a few days before this year’s birthday, I was concerned. None of the celebratory meals to which friends had invited me fell on the actual day. Could my birthday feel special if I spent it alone?

Maybe, if I made it a self-care day. 

In their own words: trying to understand Trump voters

Like many, I’m trying to escape political news since the election. But I can’t shut down my thoughts about Trump voters. 

How could they?

I want to understand so that I don’t hate them. 

I’d like to know what they think overrules Trump’s racism, misogyny, and overall hatefulness — if those are not why they like him.