Postcards and William Mellott

Postcards tell a story. Why are you telling it? 📬💌✨

Flea Market Lovers

• https://www.fleamarketloveletters.com/post/a-pretty-pick-of-postcards

Calvin University on Postcards

• https://origins.calvin.edu/2020/01/07/a-digital-future-for-old-postcards/

Art by William Mellott

• https://www.instagram.com/formicalage/
• https://www.tumblr.com/formicalage

Website: http://www.aitechandlife.com
Email: laynetc68@gmail.com
Phone/Text: (561) 290-2965

Transcript

Well the election is over … many have an aftertaste, and that is ok … but it is a good time to embrace some things a little more sunny or uppity.  Believe it not, we all (generally) have a lift after politics and news.

Now, I know AI is taking over the world.  But let’s hit pause just for a second.  Because AI will impact everything … unless you decided that low tech and tactile things actually matter.

So let’s do it!  Lick the stamp!  And send that postcard!!

Sounds crazy?  Not too crazy.  

I have a friend, Willie, that lives in a world of custom letters and cards.  Another old friend has this huge postcard collection … something I mocked years ago, and now think it is one of the coolest things ever.

According to Flee Market Lovers (see link below)

https://www.fleamarketloveletters.com/post/a-pretty-pick-of-postcards

As recently as 2021, 60 million postcards were sent!  Tech cometh and tech goeth.  And the postcard, it seems, may stay.

75% of post millennials say they like receiving things like postcards as it makes them feel special.

Services like Postcrossing and Pen Palooza allow people to send and receive postcards. In 2021, Postcrossing had sent 60 million postcards.  So you see, tech and postcards to meet.  Finally, some good news about tech!  And it transforms to paper.

In the age where you can text all over the world and email is overtaken by instant video, all those electrons disappear.  Sadly, I might add.  Much like vinyl and CDs, there is just something special about that postcard.  The photo and the long awaited message, feeling the stamp and postmark, pondering its journey, the info delay and what happened, and the emotion of pretty handwriting and … if you are like me … bad penmanship.

Calvan University of the great State of Michigan, discussed a digital future for postcards.  

https://origins.calvin.edu/2020/01/07/a-digital-future-for-old-postcards/

Inspired by professor Darrell Rohl, his students examined postcards through multiple lenses, as the story notes … 

“postcards contain stories about people and communities, stories that should be told. As a result, these postcards have a bright future in front of them that will give them the opportunity to inspire research for generations of students at Calvin. These postcards can provide students with an in-depth way to engage the past at a close-up, personal (micro) level. Students will be able to discover stories of hope, sickness, conflict, forgiveness, and love.”

Publishing many of these old researched postcards online, the project is quite accessible.  I love the work, but one has to wonder, beyond the historical derivative, what will AI do with all the info?  As all those intentions have now fed the AI monster to be spit back through some mysterious interpretation … somewhere, sometime.

And there is the lesson … somewhere, sometime.  Which is what a postcard gives you.  The “Hey, look at that!  So nice to hear from them!  I want to see (insert destination, here).”

I recently found a very old postcard left by an unknown person many years ago, the snowy photo of Germany and a nice message from an adoring grandchild, I am guessing.  Left as a bookmark in the dusty pages of a garage find.  The recipient is no doubt long gone.

But the gift stays with me … all that color and thick pulp and snow covered mountains … the book was good, but the postcard was much better.

Don’t let AI steal the soul and the magic of paper.  The fact remains:

Gold, it seems, arrives when we least expect it.  

As for Willie … I get a card from him every year … and have every card he has ever sent me.

… more later.

–

Willam Mellott

https://www.instagram.com/formicalage/

https://www.tumblr.com/formicalage

#postcard,#postcrossing,#postcards,#snailmail,#sendmoremail,#happymail