March 16, 2025

🧡 I think prairie dogs are super cute (and I think you are even cuter!) 🧡

👋 Winter is going.

Paper Crane Feelings #9

Dear Friend,

Here in Aurora, CO, I think winter is on its way out. The weather has been pretty nice over the last couple of weeks but let me tell you how I truly know spring is on the way - I heard the squeak of a prairie dog today!

I love those adorable little rodents so much and missed seeing them pop out of the ground (from a distance) while taking Luna for walks.

Part of me is ready to not be cold all the time, but winter has become my favorite season over the years. One reason I appreciate winter is that the colder months are easier on Luna. There’s a lot less stuff going on outside… fewer children playing, fewer people hanging out. It’s just a little quieter, which gives her less to stress about.

Another reason I like winter is kind of silly… but I’m less likely to end up with dog poop on my shoes when all the poop is frozen! I am extremely diligent about picking up after Luna. Ideally everyone else would be, too, since we live in an area with a lot of people packed together. Unfortunately, there are some folks who aren’t so diligent, and I find surprises on my shoes pretty regularly.

When we first moved to Colorado from Kansas and Arkansas, the level of cold and snow in winter was a bit of a shock, and I was pretty miserable. However, my dad helped me purchase a nice winter coat and boots (that I still have!) which made a huge difference. Combine that with the fact that our dog, Pippi, absolutely loved playing in the snow, and winter began to grow on me.

But winter had it’s time and now we cycle to spring (in the northern hemisphere anyway). This means it’s time to bid farewell to thinking about Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman in the late 90s time capsule that is Practical Magic every day — and HELLO to obsessing over the awkward interactions between Christopher Lee and Edward Woodward in The Wicker Man instead. (I may add a dash of Nicholas Cage, but I haven’t decided yet).

If you have a moment, please let me know how familiar you are with the film The Wicker Man from 1973 (or the remake from 2006). I am thinking it may be one of the more obscure pieces of pop culture I’ve covered, so it could be fun to spend some of the future newsletters sharing information about it. For now, on to the rest of the updates!

Current Projects

Almost forgot! A few loose threads…

For my birthday, I asked if folks would consider sending some snail mail, either to me or someone else. Thank you so much if you are one of the people who let me know you sent mail to someone. And thanks, of course, if you sent mail to me! I will be responding to each letter and card soon.

And another round of thanks if you’ve subscribed because I’m deleting my personal social media accounts at the end of the month. I’m so happy you are here!

Finally, I mentioned how much I enjoy ‘loving-kindness meditation’ in the last newsletter, but — in case you’re wondering how I find time for it — I forgot to share that I only do 6 minutes each day! Ideally, I would do 10 or more, but that seems overwhelming with everything else I have going on. I think doing 6 minutes (or even less!) of meditation is way more beneficial than none, and I figure that at least I’ve developed the habit so I can always add more time later. If you think only doing something for a few minutes each day is not worth the bother, I definitely challenge that notion. Like loose change in a piggy bank, those minutes add up!

Snail Mail Club updates.

WINTER. Just a reminder — please let me know if you are an SMC member who didn’t receive your card for winter yet. I would like to get that taken care of for you as soon as possible.

SPRING. I started SMC last spring, so the upcoming spring card marks our one-year anniversary, which is wild! Thank you so much for your support. I will try to think of something to commemorate it, perhaps the membership cards that SMC Member Alana keeps requesting?

WHAT IS SNAIL MAIL CLUB? SMC members receive unique handmade cards four times per year that are inspired by the seasons. Additional items are included in every release such as stickers, bookmarks, and other surprises. If you aren’t already a member, you can sign up through Ko-fi HERE! Thank you, SMC members!

New journal entries.

I’ve been focused on finishing up the page about the Practically Magic winter mailing, so images and descriptions are now available on the website. If you would like to view the images or learn more background information, please check it out!

Luna.

If you read my zine, My Anxious Rescue Dog is Basically Edward Cullen from Twilight, you may recall that Luna does not like when people look at her — she prefers to be invisible — which is why I was a little shocked when she allowed two different people to wave at her and speak to her recently. There was a window between her and the person each time, but these were still vastly different reactions than usual. I was so impressed! (Also, just a reminder that if you’ve donated at least $15 to any animal shelters or other animal welfare organizations since December 2024, I will send you a digital copy of the zine!)

Recent Inspirations.

Watching.

Severance (2022- ). Are you watching this series? Are you wondering what the season finale has in store for us?? If it’s anything like the last season finale, it will be light on answers and big on cliff hangers, but we’ll see! The waiting between seasons last time was excruciating, but I love this show.

Reading.

Children of Dune (1976). Continuing my reading of the Dune series, I just finished Frank Herbert’s 1976 follow-up to Dune Messiah. Most reviews I’ve seen of the series claim that the books get significantly weirder and worse as they go. Maybe the things I like about these books are different than what others are referencing, because, so far, I am still really into the story. It may be getting a little weird, but each new development seems like a logical consequence of what occurred before it. I just received God Emperor of Dune from the library, so we’ll see if I’m still a fan after this one. (If you haven’t read the original Dune, I highly recommend it. I think it contains so much valuable wisdom that continues to be relevant today.)

In conclusion.

Are you ready to say, “So long!” to winter? What will you miss about it? And what are you looking forward to about Spring? Like the prairie dogs leaving their burrows, what is it that really lets you know spring has arrived? Also, what would you like to know about The Wicker Man? (Please hit reply and let me know.)

Looking forward to experiencing another season with you.

💖 Becky H
💚 Dear Chizuko

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If you’re reading this on the web, you can find my contact information at my website - www.dearchizuko.com (and probably track down any links that break over time there, too)