ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1997, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, March 27, 1997 TAG: 9703270003
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: KAREN WOLF KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE
Face it: It's easier to zap an e-mail to a friend, or pick up the phone, than it is to write a letter.
No envelope, stamp or trip to the mailbox required, thank you. And no illegible handwriting to worry about.
The art of letter writing is far from dead, however. Not everyone owns a computer, and long-distance bills can add up. Besides that, it's kind of nice to find a personal letter in your mailbox, isn't it?
But how often is that happening?
James Zackery, a delivery supervisor for the Fort Walton Beach (Fla.) Post Office, figures that about 65 percent of the mail he sees are personal letters. ``It's still a good portion,'' he says.
Still, since Zackery started working for the post office in 1987, the amount of personal mail has decreased 15 to 20 percent, probably because of the convenience of e-mail, he says.
Mike Bickers, postmaster of the Shalimar (Fla.) Post Office, doesn't think the practice of writing letters has changed much at all, even though the ``younger generation'' may be caught up in e-mail.
People who have always used the telephone to communicate are still doing it as much, as are the people who have always written letters, he guesses.
Besides, there's something about receiving a card or letter in the mail that makes it different than communicating the other ways, he says.
``E-mail and telephoning doesn't seem to do it,'' he says. ``It's not the same thing.''
John Collins, associate pastor of the Shalimar (Fla.) United Methodist Church, used to write letters frequently. Then, telephone calls took over.Now, he's a big e-mail sender. ``It seems like it's more immediate and simpler,'' he says.
For example, his sister, who lives in the San Antonio area, recently sent Collins an e-mail. He read and returned it on the spot. He also communicates frequently with his Dallas-based brother via computer.
Over at the Bayou Book Company in Niceville, Fla., sales of stationery and cards are actually going up, says Mary Sargent, who orders the materials.
``They do quite a good business,`` she says.
Sure, sending e-mail and faxes is convenient and the price of stamps keeps going up - but those factors don't seem to be stopping letter writers, she says.
Candice Foster, assistant manager of Bayou Books, is a big letter writer, and has a computer with e-mail capabilities at home. But it's rare you'll find her using e-mail, even to write her daughter at the University of Florida.
One reason is that Collins isn't comfortable with the security of her electronic mail. ``E-mail might be more convenient, but what worries me is that anyone can read it,'' she says.
That's important, considering that Collins likes to write a lot. ``I write books, I don't send letters,'' she says. ``I send books.''
And she loves to get mail the old-fashioned way, as well.``I like having it in my hand,'' she says. ``I can read it as many times as I want.''
LENGTH: Medium: 61 linesby CNB