Penpals, Scrapbookers, Postcard Artists and Other Creative Types

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by candy_coated_bitch

My project went out today, priority mail. You should have it Thursday.

Fantastic news!!!

I'm so glad you didn't give up.

Penpallers, I know a few of us have struggled this month for a variety of reasons and real life has gotten into the way for some of us as well. Please do whatever you can to make sure your projects get to me on or before Monday, March 7th. Guaranteed US mail, UPS, FedEx, carrier pigeon....whatever it takes....

If they don't, I will wait for all projects to arrive and send out the packages, but unfortunately those whose art work does not reach me by next Monday will not be able to participate in future projects for the remainder of the year. I was very adamant about the date requirement from the start of this round so this should not be a surprise, especially since we've had the tardy rule in effect for some time now. I'm crossing my fingers, toes and eyeballs that everyone's work will get to me on time. This is a great project and I look forward to seeing everyone's goodies.

[candy_coated_bitch]

PS the $5 is coming separately.

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by candy_coated_bitch

PS the $5 is coming separately.

No worries. A few have said that.

[Bèsame*]

I boxed my cards up Sunday to get in the mail on Monday....I came online to get your address and saw the post from CCB. So I took a set out of my box. And then I saw her get a quick turn around, so that extra set went out this morning. My leap year postmark should be there by tomorrow!

And....I think this is the first time I got the postage money inside the box!

That you Gemme for inspiring us all!

[candy_coated_bitch]

Originally Posted by Bèsame*

I boxed my cards up Sunday to get in the mail on Monday....I came online to get your address and saw the post from CCB. So I took a set out of my box. And then I saw her get a quick turn around, so that extra set went out this morning. My leap year postmark should be there by tomorrow!

And....I think this is the first time I got the postage money inside the box!

That you Gemme for inspiring us all!

Thank you for sending the extras! I appreciate it.

[clay]

My USPS Tracking number says my package was delivered to you,Gemme @1052am...yay.....glad it made it on time.........Enjoy!

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by clay

My USPS Tracking number says my package was delivered to you,Gemme @1052am...yay.....glad it made it on time.........Enjoy!

I didn't get a package from you today, clay.



My mail always comes early. I had packages from Besame and Katniss in today's mail around 10ish.

I'd already received a package from nycfem also.

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by clay

My USPS Tracking number says my package was delivered to you,Gemme @1052am...yay.....glad it made it on time.........Enjoy!

This is how much I love our clay.

I suited up (it's 20 degrees with up to 40 mph gusts) in my puffy jacket and my boys' snow boots that I got at Wally World and walked out into the night in my jammies.

There's one business that sometimes gets our mail, so I walked down the road to check their mail box. Like us, they have a box right at the road.

So, I opened their box and lo and behold, I found a manila package from FL. Rest easy, clay. They would have brought it to us tomorrow and it would have been straightened out in the morning but I figured why not go traipsing in the dark and break some federal laws while I'm at it?



I was so excited to report back that I haven't even opened the package yet!

[clay]

I feel so special!!!!!

I would do that plus more for you, too, Gemme!!!

I was so worried it wouldn't show up & I would have to sit out rest of year......HUGE relief!!!!

YOU are amazing, Gemme!!! I <3 you......and this is but one of many reasons I love this group so much....

Yay! Now I can rest easy......appreciate your efforts my friend....>>>

Originally Posted by Gemme

This is how much I love our clay.

I suited up (it's 20 degrees with up to 40 mph gusts) in my puffy jacket and my boys' snow boots that I got at Wally World and walked out into the night in my jammies.

There's one business that sometimes gets our mail, so I walked down the road to check their mail box. Like us, they have a box right at the road.

So, I opened their box and lo and behold, I found a manila package from FL. Rest easy, clay. They would have brought it to us tomorrow and it would have been straightened out in the morning but I figured why not go traipsing in the dark and break some federal laws while I'm at it?



I was so excited to report back that I haven't even opened the package yet!

[Gemme]

I do have to say that the work I've seen so far has been fantastic. You all have done such interesting twists on the theme!

Besame, the little gift is adorable! I've named her Priscilla.

I have to apologize for those who've struggled with this project. I think I sucked up your usual crafty mojo because I've got craft ADHD this time and I have a lot going on with my sets. Most did one beautiful set and I've got umpteen sets with varying degrees of beauty and/or creativity.



Oooopsie.

Anywho, so here is the updated list:

1. Gemme -done, except the bonus pieces and I'm doing those as the packages come in
2. nycfem/Jennifer-received
3. CCB-en route
4. Breathless-en route
5. Bèsame*-received
6. GeorgiaMa'am
7. Katniss-received
8. clay-received

I'm so so so excited about this project, y'all. I just can't speak on it enough.

[clay]

Originally Posted by Gemme

I do have to say that the work I've seen so far has been fantastic. You all have done such interesting twists on the theme!

Besame, the little gift is adorable! I've named her Priscilla.


I'm so so so excited about this project, y'all. I just can't speak on it enough.

<SNIPPED>

Now I am even more excited to see what everyone has done......see what ya started now Ms. Gemme....making us drool having to wait.............this was one of the most interesting & funner (is this even a word...lol) projects we have done....thanks for being such an incredible wrangler, even traipsing off into the coldest night to retrieve my misplaced package.....giving whole new meaning to "wrangler"... following up, & never giving up on any one of us my friend....

[Gemme]

CCB's arrived today!!!! Love them. Sooo glad you figured it out and I'm glad you opted to mix your sizes up.

[candy_coated_bitch]

Originally Posted by Gemme

CCB's arrived today!!!! Love them. Sooo glad you figured it out and I'm glad you opted to mix your sizes up.

Yay! Thanks for the compliment. I felt good about how they came together, amazingly enough. Thank for encouraging me not give up!!!

[GeorgiaMa'am]

My cards went out today by FedEx. Gemme, you should receive them by 3pm Monday.

Thanks, everyone, for your patience and supportive words.

-Georgia

[Gemme]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaMa'am

My cards went out today by FedEx. Gemme, you should receive them by 3pm Monday.

Thanks, everyone, for your patience and supportive words.

-Georgia

Excellent! I will keep my eyes peeled for the package.

Once I get Breathless' and your packages, I'll finish things up with the bonus pieces and get the ATC packages back out to you all before the end of the week; the 12th at the latest.

[Gemme]

Today's the day! I'm hoping the last of the projects comes in today. Everyone has done such lovely work thus far.

[Gemme]

I received Georgia's package and Besame's last piece today. One more to go!

[nycfem]

I think we have to keep in mind that breathless is mailing from Canada so it is understandable if hers arrives after today since she had to mail out on the 29th.

Thanks for keeping us posted, Gemme!

Originally Posted by Gemme

I received Georgia's package and Besame's last piece today. One more to go!

[GeorgiaMa'am]

Originally Posted by nycfem

I think we have to keep in mind that breathless is mailing from Canada so it is understandable if hers arrives after today since she had to mail out on the 29th.

Nycfem is quite right, of course it is understandable that breathless's project will take a little longer to arrive.

At this time, I would like to ask for some consensus on the "tardy rule". My understanding was that "a week late" refers to someone mailing out their projects 7 days after the due date - not ensuring that the wrangler receives packages within 7 days of the due date. My reasoning: (1) Since projects mailed on the due date would take several days to reach the wrangler, a package that arrives 7 days after the due date is not really a week late, it's less than a week late. (2) If a person is mailing from a different country than the wrangler, they would not be able to take advantage of the "tardy rule", because the only way they could get it to the wrangler within a week of the due date would be international FedEx, which I believe would be cost prohibitive for most people and unfair.

I believe that the wording of the rule should be clarified. I also understand that it is very annoying and disappointing to receive projects a long time after the due date; I have been annoyed by others in the past, and of course I was late on this recent project (and again, I do apologize for any annoyance you all may have experienced). I believe that fairness would call for allowing a tardy person a full week to mail out their project, and that the postmark should be within 7 days of the due date. However, I was not around for the original discussion, and I may have misunderstood the rule since I wasn't privy to the conversation. Whatever the rule is, I would appreciate the group's clarification. It won't affect whether or not I participate (unless, maybe, the wrangler is in a different country - I would have to carefully consider that); I just want to be clear before signing up for any more projects.

Here is the rule (as a reminder):

"For 2016, the rule is if one of us is more than a week late or drops out of a project for whatever reason, that person is welcome to continue posting but is not allowed to sign up for a group project again until January 1st, 2017. No exceptions. This rule applies to participants and to wranglers. This rule must be posted at the bottom of all new projects that are being wrangled so that members can thoughtfully consider whether we wish to commit to a new project. And for the purposes of clarification, if someone drops out before the deadline to sign up has been closed then they are not excluded from future projects because they are still following the rules."

Thanks for your time and attention.

[nycfem]

Hi, GeorgiaMa'am, glad you brought this up. Here's how I would clarify it:

""For 2016, the rule is if one of our projects is received by the wrangler more than a week late or drops out of a project for whatever reason, that person is welcome to continue posting but is not allowed to sign up for a group project again until January 1st, 2017. No exceptions. This rule applies to participants and to wranglers. This rule must be posted at the bottom of all new projects that are being wrangled so that members can thoughtfully consider whether we wish to commit to a new project. And for the purposes of clarification, if someone drops out before the deadline to sign up has been closed then they are not excluded from future projects because they are still following the rules."

However, I do not feel this rule applies to Breathless for this current project since Breathless was given the specific instruction to mail on the 29th, and she followed that rule. It would not be fair to ask her to pay more than what traditional mailing costs since she followed the rule.

I personally don't think it's a good idea to say that it has to have a postmark within a week of the due date because then that means someone's project could hold up a mailing out of projects over a week, which seems excessive to me. Also I'd be worried that someone might say, "I mailed it" and we'd have no way of knowing if that were even true. If something must be RECEIVED by a certain date then we know projects will definitely be mailed out within a week of their due date (Again, this project was a special situation because of Gemme's special Leap Year rule.).

In the future, without the special circumstance of the current project, people from other countries can simply plan to mail out by whatever date is needed for the project to arrive on time.

If the majority are okay with it, let's change the paragraph to include the clarified paragraph at the end of every project (the one I started this post with but with the bolded part included).

Thank you for bringing up the need for clarification. It is definitely necessary for future projects.

Originally Posted by GeorgiaMa'am

Nycfem is quite right, of course it is understandable that breathless's project will take a little longer to arrive.

At this time, I would like to ask for some consensus on the "tardy rule". My understanding was that "a week late" refers to someone mailing out their projects 7 days after the due date - not ensuring that the wrangler receives packages within 7 days of the due date. My reasoning: (1) Since projects mailed on the due date would take several days to reach the wrangler, a package that arrives 7 days after the due date is not really a week late, it's less than a week late. (2) If a person is mailing from a different country than the wrangler, they would not be able to take advantage of the "tardy rule", because the only way they could get it to the wrangler within a week of the due date would be international FedEx, which I believe would be cost prohibitive for most people and unfair.

I believe that the wording of the rule should be clarified. I also understand that it is very annoying and disappointing to receive projects a long time after the due date; I have been annoyed by others in the past, and of course I was late on this recent project (and again, I do apologize for any annoyance you all may have experienced). I believe that fairness would call for allowing a tardy person a full week to mail out their project, and that the postmark should be within 7 days of the due date. However, I was not around for the original discussion, and I may have misunderstood the rule since I wasn't privy to the conversation. Whatever the rule is, I would appreciate the group's clarification. It won't affect whether or not I participate (unless, maybe, the wrangler is in a different country - I would have to carefully consider that); I just want to be clear before signing up for any more projects.

Here is the rule (as a reminder):

"For 2016, the rule is if one of us is more than a week late or drops out of a project for whatever reason, that person is welcome to continue posting but is not allowed to sign up for a group project again until January 1st, 2017. No exceptions. This rule applies to participants and to wranglers. This rule must be posted at the bottom of all new projects that are being wrangled so that members can thoughtfully consider whether we wish to commit to a new project. And for the purposes of clarification, if someone drops out before the deadline to sign up has been closed then they are not excluded from future projects because they are still following the rules."

Thanks for your time and attention.