"Miss Manners", Peggy Post, addresses emailing thank you notes in the issue of Good Housekeeping in February 2008.
Dear Peggy,
I hate it when people e-mail thank you rather than take the time to write proper notes- or is this now acceptable?
Miss Manners says:
Email may be quick and easy, but it doesn't convey the say effort and personal warmth as putting pen to paper. Thus, gifts for weddings and other significant events should always be acknowledged with a handwritten thank-you. However, you can email your gratitude in more informal situations- thanking a friend for treating you to lunch or running an errand for you- as long as you believe that an electronic thanks is acceptable to her. |
Dear Paper Princess,
Is it overkill to thank service people with a little note?
Wondering in Watagua
Dear Wondering,
It is never overkill to be friendly!! So, if you want a better relationship with the plumber, the electrician, or the cleaning service, don't just send a check or leave an envelope with cash. Include a simple thank-you note from time to time: "the house has a new and welcome silence now that the toilet doesn't hiss all day long. Thank you." The benefit? "We'll go out of our way for people who thank us for a job well-done," says the owner of a landscaping and lawn service in New York. In addition, being thankful and appreciative is a great example and encouragement to a person in a job that might not get many thanks!!
Love, the Paper Princess |
Dear Paper Princess,
There is one friend who, every year, without fail, remembers to send me a thoughtful birthday card. Not an email or a voice mail but a bona fide handwritten note, stamped and sealed, that arrives on the very day I blow out the candles. My gratitude is quickly eclipsed by my guilt: Did I send her a card on her birthday? Do I even know when her birthday is?!?
What is the best way to make sure I don't let her special day go by without returning the kindness?
Forgetful in Fargo
Dear Forgetful,
Instead of trekking to the card store every time a birthday rolls around, buy enough cards to last you for the year. In fact, Come Together Cards is a great one-stop-shop!! Keep them all in one place, along with an address book, stamps, and a list of birthdays organized by month. You'll never feel guilty on your own birthday again.
Love, the Paper Princess
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