While I’m sure Dr. Joe could very easily conjure up the necessary postal data to confirm or refute a similar trend in the U.S., in the U.K. at least—if this blog post on the Guardian’s site is to be believed—postcard writing (or, more to the point, postcard mailing) is experiencing a bit of a Renaissance. Or at least it was two years ago (the most recent year for which there are data).

The conventional wisdom has it that e-mail and text messaging have supplanted the printed postcard, and there may be some truth to that; on occasion, I have made my own e-postcards using my digital camera, Photoshop, and e-mail. But, you know, it hit me that that was too much like work! So a printed postcard that someone else has photographed and designed makes for a nice vacation. Would that they were pre-written, too. I suspect I am not alone. I also prefer receiving printed postcards. Come to think of it, I get so little snail mail anymore—even catalogs—that I find somewhat to my surprise that I rather miss it. Harry & David, come back!

I do love this quote from Stephen Fry: “The email of the species is deadlier than the mail.” Indeed.

Of course, Someone We All Know who took a long world cruise singlehandedly kept the postcard industry afloat (as it were) for the past six months. I bet world postal data will show a big spike for Q1 and Q2 of this year, unless the S.S. Victoria had Franking privileges. (Ahem.)

But then some of us just blog about our travels.

However, if this WSJ story about “staycations” (that is, taking a vacation in the privacy of one's own home) foretells a larger trend, maybe the postcard issue will be a moot point, at least for a while. But perhaps there is a business opportunity in producing picture postcards of people’s homes. Not a lucrative one, of course...

Here's an idea: making and selling picture postcards of really prosaic places, like the local mall, the Blockbuster Video parking lot, the local supermarket, one’s laundrette, the Law Offices of Kenge & Carboy, the town landfill, and so forth. I say let’s add a little more irony to the phrase “wish you were here.”

Oh, and here’s a green tip from the Guardian post: Sending birthday postcards in lieu of cards with envelopes saves paper and the need to recycle or discard the envelope. And postcard rates are slightly cheaper than letters. Just a thought.