Best Christmas Cards Evar...one after another after another....

I seem to have fallen mostly out of the habit of sending Christmas and other holiday cards these past few years, which leaves me all the more grateful that so many friends are keeping me on their card lists. I tape the cards on my kitchen cabinets -- a habit I started at Toad Hall -- and usually keep them up until Valentine's Day. Other Christmas decorations are packed away on 12th Night, that's a tradition that goes back to my childhood, but the cards...the cards stay up. I love how they reflect the friends and loved ones who sent them, and they're an interesting panorama of design sensibilities, too.

Today's mail brought not one, not two, not three, but four utterly perfect cards, each one a clear contender for Best Card of the Season. Three were personalized; the fourth was a commercial card selected especially for me from a friend and former boss who re-established contact this year. Collectively...wow. Just wow. ( The 4-part harmony on that )

So, yes, four remarkable cards, opened one after another after another after another. Big fun, much joy. Thanks, lollardfish, buttonlass, buttonfish, minnehahaB&K, Mike & Kathy Anderson, and bohemiancoast & family!

And thanks to everyone else who's kept me on their mailing list. I want to get back in the habit myself, and hope that I manage to return your greetings with a card next year and cards for many years after that, too.

Who knows, I may even manage to mail out a few yet *this year* -- they're on my coffee table, awaiting the next time I settle down for a few hours in the living room and my current plans are to do just that this evening. Of course, I don't know if I'll manage to address any cards at all while watching Helvetica. (Thanks, lsanderson!)