Sunday, March 9, 2008

Week #2 - Question #3 - The Importance of Mail

On page 89 Matt's family discusses the important news from Pennsylvania which comes in the form of a letter. Matt's mom even comments on the speed with which the mail arrived to Missouri from the east coast: "A bit less than two weeks in transit. That seems quick, for these times."

Mail in the mid 1800's was a big event. Today we often find junk mail and ads on a daily basis but for the time period described in the book, each piece of mail was treasured. Have you ever waited for a letter or a package to come to your house by mail?

What is the most anticipated letter or package you have ever received?

Please leave your answer below by click on the "comments" link and then responding using your pen name under your comment and then selecting "anonymous" Please use correct grammar and remember to not include your first and last name.

38 comments:

Anonymous said...

It would probably a birthday card!
-WCAHans

Anonymous said...

A few years ago, I was waiting o a pair of Nikes that I ordered, but they got shipped to Shanghai (I don't know how that happened), but I ended up having to wait for a really long time to get them, and it was annoying.

-WCA$amuel

Anonymous said...

One time my family was sending me a very valuable present in the mail. I couldn't wait for it to come.

-Lang Chow

Anonymous said...

All of my family(except for my dad, mom, little sister, my two dogs, my cat, and I),live in Kansas City, Kansas. Whenever my family sends me presents for birthdays, Christmas, and other holidays, I have to wait for a long period of time before I recieve all of my gifts. Usually the packages come about three or four days late, and it happens EVERY year! I guess I'll always have to wait to get the good stuff!!!

-Tater Bear

Anonymous said...

One time I ordered a new pair of shoes that could only be mailed, not bought in a store because they did not have the size. It seemed like forever before they came. When I received them, I was relieved that they were not lost.

Le Bron

Anonymous said...

The most important pagage I waited for would be for my labtop to come throught he mail.
wcazach

Anonymous said...

About a year ago i waited outside my house everyday because my mom and dad oredered this Betty Boop doll for me, And i really like her a lot!
*WCAKay*

Anonymous said...

Once I left my retainer at my dad's house and he lives three hours away. My mom always asks where it is if I'm not wearing it so I knew she was going to be mad about it. After about a day I found out that I wasn't going back to my dad's for another two weeks. I called my dad and asked him if he could mail them to me. He said they were in the mail and it seemed like it took forever for them to get to my house because I was so scared that my mom was going to get really mad. They finally came and my mom never found out.
~La Goober.

Anonymous said...

I think mail was so important in the 1800's becuase that was the only way to communicate long distance. I have waited for many christmas and birthday presents in the mail. I also wanted to see how long it would take to get a letter from a neighbor so I mailed my next door neighbor a birthday inventation and she almost didn't get it on time.

Mickey Mouse

Anonymous said...

When I was little, my school always sent the report cards home in the mail. Every time they would send a new report card out I would get really excited and check the mail every day, and if the mail wasn't there I would wait until the mailman got there.
K I

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated letter i have ever received is when my brother sent me a letter from Iraq. It was the happiest moment of my life!!!

Anonymous said...

Once I got a package from my grandparents. It had toys and money in it. That was the most anticipated package that I have received.

Anonymous said...

Last year, for my birthday I had a Pretty in Pink party!! Everyone INCLUDING the guys had to wear pink to the party. I had ordered a pink dress online because I couldn’t find a pink dress ANYWHERE!!! My parents had booked a cruise to the Caribbean and we were leaving for a week! I waited for my dress for a week and it arrived the day I left for my vacation!!! I wanted to get home so badly so that I could try on my dress! When I got home I tried on my dress and it was 10 sizes too BIG!!! We got back 2 days before my party was planned so I had to go out and buy a new dress! The time period that I had to wait for that dress seemed like the longest week of my life. It was the extremely depressing and I haven’t ordered ANYTHING online since!!!

Anonymous said...

Yes, I have waited for a package to come in the mail. The most anticipated letter i have ever received would have to be a Christmas card.

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated package I have ever recieved was my passport. A few years ago I was attempting to renew my passport to travel to Europe and my mom called to see if my passport had been sent and it took so long to get it that we thought it had been lost in the mail. I would have then missed out on our trip, but in the end the passport came just a few weeks before we were planning on leaving.
~ Gumbie Almighty

Anonymous said...

My most antcipated letter would be my transcript to be able to ge tinto the high school i want to go to. i jus tnow recieved the letter tellin gme i did get in.
~HEY Arnold

Anonymous said...

Maybe two months ago, my xbox 360 got the three red-light error, (in regular English that means it broke), I had to call Microsoft, wait till they sent me a box, (which tooke about a week and a half), then send my xbox 360 in the box they sent to me, to them. I got it back in about 3 weeks after i sent it to them. I didn't really care, but my little brother was mad, very mad, so it was more like my brother's most anticipated package. - Thanks

- Vinny Yak

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated letter or package I've ever recieved was a birthday present from my little sister, because she lives in Florida and I don't get to see her very much! So she sent me some pictures of her and a pair of shoes!
WCALila_RyRy

Anonymous said...

Oh my goodness! In February I preordered my favorite band, Stellar Kart's new CD.I looked in the mail the day it came out and it wasn't there. "Oh well! It'll come tomorrow!" I thought. But it still didn't come! I kept on looking in the mailbox, waiting and waiting for it to be there. Finally it came! But not in the mail, by the UPS truck!
- amy_loves_stellar_kart

Anonymous said...

I have never eally waited for a package to come in the mail, however when I wasn't I got a really awesome pair of shoes from California from my uncle. I was Oober excited! :0
WCAjazz♥

Anonymous said...

Probably a letter from my uncle in California.
WCANate

Anonymous said...

Just last week i sent in my ipod because it broke and i waited for it.

Mister Awesomeness

Anonymous said...

I have never really received a package or letter from someone


IM Awesome

Anonymous said...

Two years ago, my dad was deployed to Iraq, and the only way that i could talk to him was if he called us, or if he wrote us a letter. He hardly ever had time to call us, but one time when he was on the phone with us, he told us that he would send a letter and a few gifts, so everyday my entire family would wait outside of our house for the mailman to come and it took about a week, but it seemed like FOREVER.

Mohammad Smith

Anonymous said...

Once I had a game of mine broken, and I really wanted a new one, so then I got one sent to me by mail and I had to wait for 6 weeks till I had gotten it back. And I was very mad while waiting for it to come back so I guess that was the most anticipated package I have ever waited for.

-Nashomatic

Anonymous said...

I once received a Birthday card when I was little. I opened it up, and there was a 100 dolar bill inside. Since that was my first 100dolar bill, I feel that the card was the best package that I have ever opened.

Shoe Lace

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated letter I have ever gotten was a birthday card from my family across the U.S. Even though it came late, I was just glad that they remebered because I have three other cousins who have the same birthday!

~kaylee bear

Anonymous said...

I think the most treasured letter i have ever gotten was 3 years ago when my brother was in Iraq. He sent me a letter telling me not to worry and to always believe that he will make it home safe and sound. That letter was very heart-warming and touching. I was so happy to receive a letter from him.


Bratdoll

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated letter I have ever received was the letter with my blood test results from the summer of 2005. It was important that I got this letter so I would know if I had Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (ITP), Leukemia or something other disease. Luckily it wasn't Leukemia, but ITP instead.

Toussaint L'Ouverture

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated letter I have gotten was probably when I tried to apply for a boarding highschool.I really wanted to go to that highschool and couldnt wait for them to send me a letter if i got in or not.

Sally Green

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated pckage I ever recived is any from my grandma. Any Letter is fromm my grat aunt.

Ginny Weasley

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated package I have ever recieved would be my laptop over the summer. The laptop was from my uncle for helping him out.

~breezy bear

Anonymous said...

Last year, for my birthday I had a Pretty in Pink party!! Everyone INCLUDING the guys had to wear pink to the party. I had ordered a pink dress online because I couldn’t find a pink dress ANYWHERE!!! My parents had booked a cruise to the Caribbean and we were leaving for a week! I waited for my dress for a week and it arrived the day I left for my vacation!!! I wanted to get home so badly so that I could try on my dress! When I got home I tried on my dress and it was 10 sizes too BIG!!! We got back 2 days before my party was planned so I had to go out and buy a new dress! The time period that I had to wait for that dress seemed like the longest week of my life. It was the extremely depressing and I haven’t ordered ANYTHING online since!!!

~Channing Tatum~
ive posted this for the 2nd time only because the first one does not have my name on it!!!!

Anonymous said...

The most important package that I have ever received was a package that had my Christmas, Easter, and birthday presents inside.

alannacanida4694

Anonymous said...

I believe that my most anticipating packages that I have waited for where the letters that went though the mail that came from my aunt on the west coast. My family and I live on the east coast so we usually do not talk much unless it is on the phone but, a couple of years ago my aunt and I started to write to each other more. Writing was a lot better than talking because the satisfaction of when the letter from each other was a lot greater than speaking on the phone for three minutes.
William Harrison

Anonymous said...

The most anticipated package that I have recieved was a care package from my mom at camp. The camp was in New Hampshire and I had flown there on my own so I was pretty homesick. I had gotten faxes since the first day of camp talking about the package and I couldn't wait! When the package finially arrived a week later I was so excited because there were pictures of my family and friends back home.
Hally O'Riley

Anonymous said...

Last year my family sent a letter to my moms aunt asking if she would come over from Australia to the United States. We told her that we would pay for everything all she had to do was go on an airplane to Los Angeles and we would pick her up.We were so anxious to get the letter back. A week passed and finally the letter came and we were so excited that she could come. My mom had not seen her since she left the Phillipines and i was excited to meet her.
Kobe Bryant24

Anonymous said...

I think the most anticipated package I ever received was a leotard I really wanted for gymnastics, and it didn't come for like 2 weeks. That or presnts from my sister from Seattle because we don't see a lot.

gymanstics girl