Christmas Cards

Since coming to college, I have sent Christmas cards to people I don’t see too often to let them know I am thinking about them during this holiday season.  My list has grown through my years at college to include friends who have graduated or transferred, and is now rather large for someone so young I would think.  I usually go to the store and pick out some cute cards and get enough boxes to cover everyone on my list.  I usually try to never spend more than about $15-$20, and this is pretty easy since they come in packs of about 20 for around $7.  Then I buy stamps, and every year, this is the cost that really makes me think.  For a couple of books it is almost $20—as much as my cards themselves for a small piece of sticker.  I understand the huge process of sending a letter, and that hardly anyone does anymore, it’s just tough to fork out that much, especially considering the way they look.  Of course this year I could have easily gone with the Botticelli painting, but for some reason I think my friends would think I was really pretentious doing that.  So I had to opt for the nutcrackers, which look like something from a child’s nightmare.  Maybe next year they will make it easier for me to buy stamps by making them cuter so they can really dress up my envelopes instead of scaring the dog chasing the mail man.