TO SEND OR NOT TO SEND
Thanksgiving has past and now the holiday season is upon us (we won’t discuss how the retailers think the holiday season starts after Halloween. That’s a different post for a different time). For the Cullen family that means putting up the tree, dragging out the decorations, and Christmas cards.
It saddens me that over the years the act of sending out Christmas cards has dwindled. I love reaching into my mailbox and finding a stack of cards, of reading the Christmas letters and looking at the pictures of everyone’s kids.
I guess in this age of social media and being so connected through Facebook and Twitter that people just don’t feel the need.
I’m not bashing Facebook or Twitter or any other social media site by any means. I’m addicted to all of them. But there are still some “old ways” that I cling to and one of those is sending out my annual Christmas cards.
Another one is my address book.
Yes, I still have an address book. The physical kind that has the three rings and the little laminated letters on the side so you can flip to the correct part of the alphabet.
Every year I dig that address book out (it seems I only need it at Christmas time) and I look through it. I’ve had the same book for about twenty years and that means there are lots of addresses crossed out and new addresses written beneath it. My grandmothers, both now deceased, are still in there as well as friends I haven’t seen in a long time.
It’s sort of a walk down memory lane for me to open that book. It makes me smile, reliving memories of the people written on those pages.
I hope that sending Christmas cards never truly goes away because I think it’s a wonderful way to reconnect to people that you normally don’t “see” on the internet or real life.
What about you? Do you still send out Christmas cards?
In Sharon Cullen’s sizzling novel of scandal and seduction, a headstrong beauty is pursued across Europe by London’s most notorious rake.
Having vowed never to wed again, widowed viscountess Claire Hartford is about to do the unthinkable: travel unaccompanied across the continent in search of a lover. Her adventure begins sooner than expected, when she meets a magnificent cloaked stranger on her ship’s gangplank. He is Lord Blythe, a man whispered about in London’s ballrooms and drawing rooms, a scandalous rogue hell-bent on seduction.
Nathan Ferguson curses the day he agreed to look out for his best friend’s wayward sister. The charismatic earl is traveling to Paris to uncover the truth behind his father’s death, but his desire for Claire threatens to be his undoing. From France to Italy, on a journey of passionate discovery and danger, Nathan is honor-bound to protect her—from himself most of all. What can he offer Claire? Only love, as he sets out to prove to the woman of his dreams that she belongs to him—body, heart, and soul.
Advance praise for Loving the Earl
“Loving the Earl is charming and fast-paced. It’s filled with passion, intrigue, a resourceful heroine you’ll love, and a delicious hero you’ll fall in love with. An absolute delight!”—New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jacquie D’Alessandro
“Sharon Cullen is a natural-born storyteller. Her twists and turns will keep you turning the pages.”—Margo Maguire, bestselling author of The Highlander’s Desire
“With its bad-boy hero and spunky heroine, Sharon Cullen’s Loving the Earl is sure to please readers looking for more than the typical Regency come-out story. Intrigue and romance fuse seamlessly in this adventurous romp that takes the reader from Dover to Paris to Venice and finally to a sigh-worthy happily ever after.”—Shana Galen, author of True Spies
Sharon Cullen’s BIO:
Sharon Cullen is the author of the historical romance, THE NOTORIOUS LADY ANNE, LOVING THE EARL, and PLEASING THE PIRATE (available February 2014). She’s also published in romantic suspense, paranormal romance and contemporary romance.
Her other job descriptions include chauffer, laundress, cook and mediator to her three very busy kids, her husband and two dogs. She lives in southwest Ohio with her brood although her dream is to someday retire to St. Maarten and live on the beach.
If you’d like to find out more about Sharon and her books, you can visit her website. She’s addicted to social networking so you can find her on Facebook, Tumblr and Twitter. Friend her! Like her! Follow her! She’d love to hang out with you and talk about her passion—books.
Links for LOVING THE EARL:
Amazon | Barnes and Noble | Random House
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I don’t just send out cards. As a scrapbooker, I MAKE my cards. Admittedly, I’m down to 30 – family, close friends, and the few people that don’t fall in there but that I KNOW really look forward to my homemade cards.
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Sharon,I also send out real Christmas cards because Its something you can keep and to be honest ,a lot of them I use in decorations,like the one where you take an empty coffee can and go round and round with yarn and then you slide the card thru the yarn and after enough cards you have like a round rolodex of cards,I love it,over the years before the web I would get 40 or so cards so every 4 or 5 Christmas’s I would make a new coffee can,some of the cards I used crafters glue and made glass plates into decorations to hang on the wall,it sounds corny but it really means a lot to me now specially since so me friends now just send an ecard which is gone even if you store it,so I love the idea that you also love them,maybe its just cause we are both named Sharon LOL but I so think its an old tradition that I hate to see go away
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I send out a few
I sent one to my cousin that ADORES Christmas the other day
I had picked her up some postcards Ricks Place
Casablanca the movie 🙂
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I haven’t sent cards out for years. It’s at least $1.50 a card with postage, I’d prefer to save the money for tangible gifts. I will admit though, I love receiving a really attractive, quality card.
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Hi Sharon
Yes, I send out Christmas cards and hand write the addresses. It’s a personal touch and a little something from me. I purchase several boxes of cards after the holiday at reasonable prices.
I’m impressed with all that you do considering you have 3 kids, 2 dogs and a husband.
Many thanks,
Ginger
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Sharon,
If I send you a Christmas card, will you send me that droolworthy Earl from the cover?
Alexia
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I always INTEND to send out cards…I have them and I dig out my pretty pens…but somehow, by the time I write a letter or two to catch folks up on what is going on in our lives (I don’t really like those form letters)…I get distracted and don’t get around to sending out the rest. Maybe I will do better this year, lol!
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I’m so glad to see that people still send out cards. I’ve never heard of the rolodex thing Sharon. I’ll have to look that one up. And I LOVE handmade cards, Charlotte. I appreciate all the time and effort people put into a handmade card. All of them are so beautiful. And, Alexia, I wish I could send you the hunky guy on the cover. LOL 😉
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I make & send hundreds through Operation Write Home (blank inside for deployed troops to send home, which is now up to 3 million sent) and Cards for Hospitalized Kids. I make them year round so I’ll have them ready. I made cards for agent & editors & penguin themed cards for my NAL editor’s kids thanking them for sharing their mom with me. I also make them for family and friends, vet, stylist, etc, then neighbors last. I send cards all yr for all occasions. I started yrs ago, thinking it’d be cheaper. Ha! So much for that idea! I now have an entire cardmaking room filled with paper, inks, stamps, embellishments and various machines. I don’t even want to figure out the cost per card, lol. Happy holidays!
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LOL, JoAnn. I can’t even imagine how much it cost for all of that. I looked into scrapbooking once but it was cost prohibitive. I’ve heard about and I’ve seen your cards and they are beautiful.
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I still send handwritten cards to a few family members out of state. However, the last three years my 10 year old and I have sent handwritten Christmas cards to military personnel overseas at the holidays, to let them know we remember them and recognize both their sacrifice and that of their families when they have to be deployed during this time of year. They love getting them too! I use anysoldier.com to get names and addresses.