(no subject)

Ye gods. Someone just gave me a paid account.

This is obviously lovely, but I'm feeling quite ashamed. Last night in The Woodman I was ranting good-humouredly about verlaine's paid-account birthday-presents and the fact that although I regularly point out I can't do polls, no one has yet bought me one. But the only witnesses to this were the man himself and miss_newham, and I know for a fact you're both as poor as churchmice. When I said 'no one ever buys me presents', it wasn't directed at you. Honest.

But maybe it was just a random act of goodwill from someone else. Either way, as girls in comics say to masked superheroes, thank you, whoever you are!

And by the way, catskulls, who are you? I'd ask in your comments but you've disabled them. You know several people I know. Maybe I've even met you. Enlighten me?

Lettercrossing?

How much faith do you have in human nature? Are people helpful and socially responsible in general, or lazy self-serving bastards? I've had a nice idea, but I'll need helpers, and now with my new poll capabilities I can try and recruit.

This is it: Apparently PG Wodehouse never went to a postbox. He just dropped his letters out of his window on to the street. He said that they all, without exception, made it to their destinations - posted by nice helpful passers-by. I'm sceptical - I find it hard to imagine it working then, let alone now. I want to try it out.

So anyone who would like a snailmail from me, put your address in here (I've set it up so only I can see the results). It doesn't matter where in the world you are. In fact, faraway people, you'll be even better - maybe someone coming across a letter stamped and addressed to Australia would make more of an effort to post it than if it was addressed to Croydon. Or would they? Let's find out.

I will write letters, stamp them, and leave them at various locations. To make it easier, they will all be within sight of a postbox. If you get yours, let me know. The letters will also contain a slip of paper saying 'If you are not (the recipient), you have just failed a test of social responsibility' or something. Heh heh.

So come one, come all. It'll cost me a few quid in stamps, but no matter: I'm curious.

(Edit: Duh. I thought it was Evelyn Waugh, but apparently it was PG Wodehouse - but I can't figure out how to change the name of a poll. Oops.)

[Poll #366408]