The airport code is PSC. It stands for Person Seeking Connection. Also Postscript, of course. The destinations are many. Curiosity. Admiration. Companionship. Longing. Civic Duty. Imagination. Community. Posterity. Celebration. But to begin? Our destination is Preparation. We are packing, so to speak, for our summer air travel, paper thin though it will be.
Why preparation? I will never claim to be an ideal correspondent. Some stretches of the year (such as these past two months--sob!), I lose my grip on every grounding routine in my life. But what has helped me to become gradually more consistent in my habits over time is simply setting the stage. Gathering what I need so I'm equipped when the moment presents itself. So if we're going to spend the summer sending paper airplanes out across the world, let's set ourselves up with tools and supplies that are a joy to use. I encourage you to come in and treat yourself to a nice pen or two (or five), and grab an extra ink bottle, cartridges, or refills so that your ink never stops flowing. Get yourself some stationery sets or letter pads with ample envelopes. Purchase a few of sheets of stamps (or a roll of a hundred because wouldn't you know we have the prettiest brass stamp holders that house them) so you never have to think about when the post office is open. Print off your spreadsheet of addresses, or--even better!--buy an actual address book and spend an evening populating it. Set it all up in any little corner of your house you can steal away (for the record, Facebook Marketplace has a dozen gorgeous antique writing desks within driving distance of you at any given moment), and your new correspondence set-up will positively beckon. Bonus points for a small lamp or candle. The mood should always be just so.
There are some other things I like to have on hand. Wax stamps and sealing wax for indulgence. Washi tape. Decorative labels that give you a clear spot for an address that you can tack onto a patterned envelope. Vintage stamps for extra flair. But the basics--a trusty pen, stationery nice enough to write on and not so nice you have to worry about how much you're using, and forever stamps--will do just fine. But if you want a little help sussing out the vast and complex world of pens, join me Saturday evening for a primer hour on every category of pens we carry so that you have the knowledge at (and in!) your fingertips for what pens might be right for you.
But I'm getting ahead of myself! Before that happens, taxi on over to our Prepare-for-Takeoff Party this Friday, May 29th, from 6-8 p.m. Airplane snacks and bevvies, live music by Tony Boscarino and Ali Arant, and a letter writing station will give us just the wind we need beneath our wings for lift-off!
Material Connection