Etiquette 101

Okay......I probably should have mentioned this when I wrote about the weird things about me. I have a thing about thank you notes.

My mom taught me how to write a good thank you note as soon as I learned to write and I was expected to write one for everything I received and I did faithfully. It was just what was expected, proper etiquette. If you give me something, even as small as a piece of candy, you will get a thank you card from me within two weeks.

Because of this, I expect thank you notes in return. I know it's petty and, honestly, I realize people are busy and such, but having this beaten into me all my life I can't let it go. I figure if I buy someone a wedding gift or a graduation gift or especially anything I have mailed far away, a thank you note isn't too much to ask for me to know if you got the gift or I need to start calling the post office and inquiring about cashing in that insurance. Now, kid birthday parties are a little different, mainly because most kids we know can't read or write yet and they say thank you while we are there and, really, in this world a verbal thank you is great, but my kids have and always will send a thank you card even if I have to be the one to pen it.

Last year I mailed out one wedding gift, two baby gifts, and a graduation gift. The giftee should not have been disappointed either as I gifted well for all occasions. I am still waiting on those thank you notes. I eventually even emailed the wedding gift recipient after giving her the requisite three months and then some to see if it actually arrived because it cost me dearly and I got a short reply. Basically, yep we got that, thanks. Uh huh. The other ones, nothing, nada, yet I know one of the baby gifts was received as I got a mass email with a picture of said gift on kid a few months ago. Uh huh. I know it's a lost cause at this point, but I know I will forever remember that I gifted these people and was not thanked appropriately. I hate being like that, but it's just how I am, so sue me.

A few days ago I went to the mail and found a thank you note from the couple whose wedding we attended back in November. Score. I was so impressed to see that envelope with the big thank you sticker that I was promoting them in my mind to stellar human beings, when I opened it and found something like this (now is when I really want a new scanner because it's much better on paper):

Derrick/Andriea (spelled incorrectly although they got it right on the invite)

Thanks for the gift card.

L..../M.....

WTF???? That chick couldn't even bother writing out the word and! Did she not get the little memo about how to write an appropriate wedding thank you, like maybe thank us for coming to their boring shindig? The real kicker.......we didn't buy them a gift card. I spent an entire morning perusing her registry (third marriage) for a kick ass gift and they have no idea what we bought for them. Amazing. I can still point out all our gifts and tell you who sent what and I sent out awesome thank you notes too, thank you very much.

What happened to the art of writing? When did it become okay to be so lax when dealing with others? What is wrong with sitting down and writing three lines expressing appreciation for something? It's so sad. I miss thank you notes.