I've had a few participants cards seem to get lost in the mail and then show up 10 days or more after the send date. One of them was you and you remade your cards and sent them. Then both sets arrived the same day!! How frustrating! Anyway, I wouldn't worry about your reputation when you have tracking numbers to prove your send date. I personally haven't had trouble with my cards taking longer when I send them...but maybe a day or two longer. So that would really put me at about 5-7 ship days or so. But that is only a few sets. Hugs to you.

Did I step into the Twilight Zone and now have service through the Pony Express and not the USPS??

Maybe izts not zvhe Twilight Zone. I svee zvhat youst poot DC ast zhour locazhion. Zvhat place hast und cvertain . . . aura abvout it. Perhhaps zvhe postals svervice encvounters und Galactic barrier around youvr cvity.

I was in a postal tracker. My package made it back to me before it had gone around the ring, which confused me, and I couldn't tell who had mailed it to me, but from the logs, I knew it hadn't gone all the way around yet. It was being sent from I think CO to GA. It bounced around the country for a month before coming back to me (the return address in NY). I had to mail it back to the next person on the list in Atlanta, which is where it was supposed to go (see tracking # here - 9500100021517071000405)... bizarre.

I will say - with LTCs it's a little harder. At least with postal trackers, I always use the machine at the post office to weigh them and buy a label, so that comes with tracking. But when I send LTCs, for most of them I have just used stamps and sent them from home, so there is no tracking. It always makes a little nervous that if it doesn't make it where it was supposed to go, I have no way to track it.

It's not just you. I sell on eBay and have had 2 packages disappear into the twilight zone recently. Both were sent first class mail. One took a month and a half to arrive! According to the tracking, it sat in a post office about an hour from me for 4 weeks. It took multiple phone calls and emails to get it moving. I was not happy. The other took 3 weeks to arrive. So far I have only had that issue with first class mail - not Priority.

I am just getting back into LTCs. I hope I don't have that issue with any that I send/

OMGosh!! That is crazy! It literally when back and forth like 10 times! Super bizarre!

I dont usually have trouble with mine, but one took 14 days once. That's insane. However, sometime I get mail in NY from California a day and half after it's sent. So weird.

I've been encouraged by these trackers (well, two of three) to do more art than craft. By this I mean that prior to these I got into an LTC sync: find an image to carve from the internet, carve, craft an interesting background, package and send. The art trackers encouraged me to make my own art, which is a stretch after I've felt so comfortable using the art of someone else as a pattern for my carving. My crafting partner and I have worked to fine tune our craft creating LTCs. Where we can grow is in the stamp. I feel comfortable carving anything someone else has drawn. I even feel comfortable carving from photos. Why do I fight carving from my original drawings?

Yeah, I hear ya. Even though I've done a lot of original art in the past it is kind of easy to fall into the shortcut of using an Internet image. We are enjoying the process of creating art of our own. I consider all LTCs "art", but I'm really looking forward to seeing what comes back from this tracker.

I have renewed hope. Today one of the missing trackers that was on its return home to me got here today. Posted June 6th!!! A month, for real?!? Pony Express for sure! So maybe there's still hope for my lost set.

I frequently send care packages (if it fits, it ships small box, priority, with tracking) to my son in Washington DC. On two instances in the last six months, my packages were correctly labeled at my local post office but instead of going from Clayville to Providence to DC, one package went:

Clayville, Providence, St Paul Minnesota, San Francisco, Charlotte North Carolina, Wash DC

The other went:

Clayville, Providence, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas/Fort Worth, Atlanta, Wash DC

So ...... you aren't alone

Warrior Woman
feels your pain

Clayville to Providence to DC, one package went:

Clayville, Providence, St Paul Minnesota, San Francisco, Charlotte North Carolina, Wash DC

The other went:

Clayville, Providence, Chicago, San Francisco, Dallas/Fort Worth, Atlanta, Wash DC

I be telink yhou zhat yhour kapital czity izst part of zhe Twvilight Zhone. Lhook aht yhour pheople who decidz zhe lhaws in yhour cvountry.

Animal Silhouettes. The send-by date is October 20, so you have plenty of time!

I'm carving something right now that is really pushing my limits and is making me just about loose it. I didn't think it would be this difficult and it's starting to own me. So I decided to take a break and look at my book of LTCs. It is full of beautiful little works of art. I can't even begin to tell you how much joy all these LTCs bring me. But they do. So many people refer to them as "just paper" but to me they are so much more. They are little pieces of each of you...time you have invested...little gifts... There are so many times that as I color/create each of my LTCs I bring up the list of participants and think of each participant as I create "their" card. Weird I know...maybe creepy...but it's true. So as I looked at my book today I just want to tell you that I appreciate the effort and time all of you invest in making cards. They are truly a mirror of you. :)

They are little pieces of each of you...time you have invested...little gifts...

I agree. :^)

Thanks for this wonderful post, Linden Leaf!

I agree that art mirrors their maker. I understand the sentiment that you think of the person that the card is for as you make it too. I feel that way about quilts. When I sew for someone, I think of the person while making the quilt. Then, when someone uses their quilt, it's like wearing a hug.

My "just paper" comments are usually for people who are struggling to fulfill a commitment due to things happening in their life. Ultimately, they are "just paper". That doesn't mean they aren't REALLY AWESOME paper.

That's good to know, because when I join or list a tracker I choose my image from what calls to my deepest depths. A lot of times there's personal emotion or memory/experiences in my image choices.

I think most people that stick around in doing LTCs feel similarly. I do the same thing, I start to create the card, then change things based on how I think people would like it. It's been a while since I've done any, but maybe this fall, I'll make another set.

I love seeing everyone's skill levels change as they get better with each contribution! LTC's are a lot of fun!

I was going to ignore this thread and chalk it up to random-ness. But, I'm sitting here next to a package I just got today. It was mailed out back on 4/24/17.

Have you tried brand new envelopes with clear tape and printed labels? Maybe that's an experiment you can do?

I had one ltc that was made for a tribute to a letterboxer who had passed. It reminded me how brave she was and I actually put it on my bedside table while I recovered from a difficult surgery. Some ltc's are fun, some are cute and some are awe inspiring....something for everyone. I wish my life had room for them, but it is not in the cards right now.

I really enjoy your post. Thank you. <3

:( One of my favorite subjects and it filled up so fast!

I'll add you to the waiting list, if you'd like! Just let me know.

Please do!

Done! :^)

I am going to duck out of this one so Peachfaced can join.

Thank you.

Okay folks, I'm hosting my first LTC swap, in anticipation of co-hosting my first LB event! Wish me luck!

If you like video games, carving for events, and making LTC's, then please join my tracker! Woo-hoo!
https://www.atlasquest.com/showinfo.html?trackerId=9486

lol, this sounds like a fun event. will there be annoying music to follow us around while we hunt for the boxes?! will have to see if I can send a stamp with LTC's

It should be a very fun event! Now I can't give away our secrets, but I do realize that music is an important element in video games. ;)
I hope you can participate in one way or another!