When was the last time you (by hand) wrote a letter?

[vash]

Wow, my handwriting sucks.

I went to my card shop and they were closed. Not surprised. Looked across the parking lot to Target, and there was a line waiting to get in. Screw that.

I went home and wrote my mom a letter! For Mother’s Day. It was surprisingly nice to sit down with a nice smooth pen and crank out a bunch of sentences I thought my mom would like to hear. I had to go slow and easy. I tend to rush and literally SKIP letters. For example: The word “love” might look like “L.VE” with just a big pause in the pen strike denoting the important “O”. “I live you” has a different impact.

Again, my handwriting is shameful and lazy. I wish I could write more. I just don’t have anyone’s physical mailing address. It’s a dead skill.

I remember my parents had a leather-bound notebook with everyone’s address and phone numbers. They also had stationary. Whoa! Old school. I don’t even know where my fountain pens are! Or my ink jars. Shameful.

( I bet my nutty mom is still pissed I didn’t spend money on a proper card - oh well, I can bring this up with my therapist)

[stevej37]

In my grade-school classroom, we were hammered with cursive writing. Our desktops had built-in ink wells for our fountain pens.
Now, after not using that skill for years...it takes a few reps to get it back...but it does come back.

[masraum]

My handwriting has never been good (I probably should have been a Dr). I went to a private school from the 5 grade through half of the 8th grade. We had to write in cursive all of the time for everything, and we were graded on penmanship, at least for 5-7. It used to keep me off of the honor roll due to getting Cs and Ds in penmanship.

Now I rarely hand write anything, and when I do it's almost entirely printing. If I need or try to write in cursive, it's abysmal. I can read it, and I can write it if I go really slowly and concentrate.

I don't hand write anything unless I absolutely have to.

[flatbutt]

I wrote a February birthday letter to my friend in Kuaii. We've been friends for over 40 years and a present (other than for Christmas) just doesn't work anymore. So I wrote to her about our friendship and what it means to me. I used my good fountain pen and nice high grade paper that really takes the ink.

[Jesset100]

Boot camp 1982. Drill made us write letters home under threat! Good times!

[flatbutt]

Originally Posted by Jesset100

Boot camp 1982. Drill made us write letters home under threat! Good times!

HA! I remember doing that in '70!

[svandamme]

I had chitty handwritting back in school, now as an IT'er, i'm so used to typing things.. i can't write clean to save my life.

I have a dymo label printer to print adresses for letters
and a stamp with my name and adress on to stamp return adresses or put my tag on forms

[KFC911]

Dear Penthouse Forum....

[Danimal16]

My Grandmother had the absolutely most beautiful hand writing. Reading a letter or note from her was to view a true work of literature and art. I still have the letters she wrote me all those years ago. It is as if you are being touched by her all over again; through the ink and paper.

[stevej37]

^^^ Yes, it's almost a lost art now. Penmanship means nothing..compared to 50 years ago.

[Rikao4]

Like Dan and Steve..
I'm the keeper of old..
letter's written during WW1 and 2..
Calligraphy like..

btw..
most German kid's learned cursive's using a Pelikan pen..

Rika

[GH85Carrera]

My handwriting is horrible. I have a 8.5 x 11 piece of paper that is usually the back of some invoice or statement I was going to send to a client but I noticed a change to be made. So keep those mistakes and a something to scribble a note to myself and make a list of to do things. It takes a few weeks to fill it up before I shred it. Sometime it is comical to see the different reminders I scribbled down and try to remember why I wrote down 291052-56 or 9:45 or the name of a street or county.

I can't image trying to write a actual letter by hand. I can type it and proof it and print it but mostly email it or whatever.

So to answer the original question, likely sometime in the very early 1980s before I got my first computer and printer.

[Tobra]

I write letters to patients fairly often, today for example.

[onewhippedpuppy]

My handwriting is comical. Thank God I type fast!

[stevej37]

Originally Posted by Tobra

I write letters to patients fairly often, today for example.

But it must be readable by patients.

[wdfifteen]

It's been decades since I wrote an entire letter by hand. My handwriting is variable. Some days it's great and some days it looks like it was written by a chimpanzee.

[A930Rocket]

Mine’s not too bad. If I could read it, it would be nice. 🤪

[pwd72s]

Originally Posted by Danimal16

My Grandmother had the absolutely most beautiful hand writing. Reading a letter or note from her was to view a true work of literature and art. I still have the letters she wrote me all those years ago. It is as if you are being touched by her all over again; through the ink and paper.

They were taught "The Palmer method"...a method that didn't stick with me. I now wish it had. I was amazed at how legible, flowing, and similar in style the writing of my mother and her friends was.

I developed my own style..easy to read when I was younger. Looked at a song mix cassette I made maybe 4 decades ago...amazed I could write so small yet clearly. Today? Now age 76, with a problem my PA says is a "non specific tremor"? Can't write for beans.

Just in the nick of time came along printers that let me play with font styles and sizes..

[vash]

Odd but true. My handwriting is best using a #2 wooden pencil. Not a brand new one. One sharpened down third. The lead has the perfect drag for me.

[Bob Kontak]

Originally Posted by vash

Wow, my handwriting sucks.

I hand wrote a short note to Seahawk for the Christmas gift exchange. It felt awkward and looked terrible.

Back in college one of my study tricks was to use a Pentel 0.07 with soft lead and recopy all my notes immediately after a lecture in the student union while watching the girls walk by. It was decent and legible.

My skills have degraded.