Office Supplies

My sister and I love office supplies.  We have enough stationery, folders, colored paper and assorted note pads, markers, and colored pens/pencils to stock a  small warehouse. When I was a little girl I used to play store and pretend to sell cards, Lindy pens, and nice writing paper. Later on, especially in college, I would write letters on stationery that you could almost see through and use sealing wax on the envelopes. The light blue and gray were my favorite colors of this paper, but the off-white was also special. Was it called onion skin or something like that?  As I grew older I continued to love to write letters on nice writing paper.  Now that I find typing easier than writing by hand because I can keep up with what I am thinking better, I often find special printer paper to use, but it's not quite the same thing. Further -- times have changed and I am disappointed to find that fewer and fewer people actually write letters. I rarely get a response by snail mail -- it's always email or text or a phone call.  Email, texting, and phone calls are nice... but somehow too easy, too convenient.  I suspect that many people our age have piles of writing paper yellowing in desk drawers along with dried out markers, old fountain pens, and a few tablets of post-it notes curling on the edges that are just too cute to use. Why are we saving these things?

More to the point though is that I am now thinking that this love of office supplies may be hereditary.  On a rainy day recently, my two little grandkids were at my house, and when I went into my office to write a couple of checks, they followed. They have a tendency to do that... which is totally fine with me. I like it.  They each have their own work area in my office as they have their own business to conduct -- like pages to color and "stuff" to cut up into little pieces.   Each child loves to have a "desk" full of office supplies like stickers, envelopes, little scissors, scotch tape, and... a stapler. I am telling you -- it's amazing.  They will sort, stick, lick, cut, tape, and staple for a full hour.  We also pass notes to one another.  Did I mention that I have colored paper?  Oh my...! My granddaughter particularly likes to sort her markers and crayons and then draw on lavender paper, purple being one of her two favorite colors.  Anyway... while they were working at their desks, I managed to write those checks and to get things ready to mail. It all worked out nicely.  They worked hard -- although I have to mention -- they did take breaks from playing office to dance to The Eagles, whose music my grandson had blasting on my Bose.  Now that I think of it, I think every office should offer dancing breaks.  Would you agree?  

I need to check with my sister to see if her two little grandkids also love "desk work".  I am thinking that they do. I know for sure that they would love digging through all her office supplies. I would like to do that myself.  Unlike me of rural America, she actually has several office supply stores where she lives. She can go inside and touch things and check out all the new stuff.  She even owns a label maker... and uses it. I am so jealous.  

I am also thinking that her grandkids may love dancing breaks as well.  Like I said -- some of these tendencies may be hereditary.