Nobody sends postcards anymore.
Yes, post carding used to be a trip-related thing. Back in the day, you’d secure a bunch of postcards whenever you visited a city. You’d buy a few cards and bring some postcard stamps with you when you hit the road.
That’s a tradition that’s mostly extinct now. Before, if you visited Europe, your hotel concierge in Italy or France would have the appropriate foreign stamps to affix to your postcard.
Nations like the U.K., New Zealand, Mexico, Croatia, etc. possibly would have exotic stamps, including some treasures. In reality, however, you’d beat your card home because out-of-country mail is understandably slow-mo.
In days of old, you could even use generic postcards showing your hotel. Or gratis cards from your airline. Boring, but doable.
I’m so old-school and believe the postcard industry – and perhaps even the post office – have killed this element of travel communication. Bright new postcards at a curio shop cost a few dollars now, if you can find ‘em at all. The standard cheapo cards were 10 for $1, and they were OK if you don’t mind cards depicting outdated Statue of Liberty or Empire State Building images. Equally out of date: a post card flashing Times Square neon signs depicting “Phantom of the Opera” or “A Chorus Line” billboards, a pair of singular sensations long gone.
E-mail has changed the world. And I changed, too. I make my own, decorating cards pr paper sheets depicting my destination. It’s almost always a New York theme, and this year, I’m doing a Broadway jaunt.
But postal costs are also a factor. The present price to mail a first-class envelope is 78 cents, but will rise to 82 cents beginning July 12. A domestic postcard stamp currently costs 61 cent, and it rises to 65 cents starting July 12.
I’m utilizing my Forever stamps, bought earlier at discounted for eternal use.
E-mails erased the necessity of sending postcards; a quick “arrived 10 a.m.; off to a boat tour,” via your iPhone would suffice, along with a companion image of you on a tour going ‘neath the bridges in Chicago, New York, or San Francisco.
But I’m a crafter, and a crafter crafts. And notecards -to the Big Apple- with appropriate stickers or rubber stamps –are especially easy to create. It’s very basic crafting, but I enjoy sharing ‘em.
A confession: I’m bound for New York this week, to catch a clutch of Broadway shows, including “Lost Boyd” and “Schrigadoon,” both Tony winners this year.
FYI, I’m done making my N.Y. postcards/notecards, 2026 edition, and have assembled envelopes, too, in anticipation of the keeping the postcard ritual alive.
I affixed an apple with glitter inside, and chose a signature NY attraction or nameplate to complete the NY theme.
In the past, I used subway maps, adorned with tiny yellow cabs; Lady Liberty has been a favorite motif and years ago, I purchased a great rubber stamp. Two years ago, I was ambitious created a mini-newspaper filled with data of shows I was seeing and it was so easy to make, using one sheet of 8 ½ x 11 paper, folded like a book with only two scissor cuts. Grade school teachers know this trick for their youngsters— a mini book with a few actual pages to turn. I filled the wee pages with text messages.
With my homemade cards, I’ll write notes and mail ‘em in-between Broadway shows or while breakfasting or lunching. Hmmmm, not certain if I made enough notecards or will have enough time to scribble a note and affix the stamp and find a mailbox…
And that’s Show Biz…