A Note of Thanks

1. They introduced you to that amazing little coffee shop you'd never noticed before. 2. They let you know you dropped a $10 bill instead of just picking it up and walking away quietly. 3. They let you go in front of them in the grocery line because you only had three things and they had 50 million. 4. The toilet paper incident. ' Nuff said. 5. They thanked you with chocolate. 6. They suggested you try what would become your new favorite wine. 7. They actually noticed your new hair cut. 8. They complimented you on fantastic sense of fashion/humor/taste/mind-reading. 9. They kept you from making a fool out of yourself in front of strangers. 10. They invited you to a ridiculously fun party where you met some crazy new people. 11. They invited you to a ridiculously boring party where everyone spoke only in five- syllable words, but had the best spread you've ever seen. 12. They suggested a trick that cured your acne/dandruff/unsightly itch/horrendous bad breath. 13. They fou...

I had a clean accident record up until last December. Since then, I've been hit twice in almost the same spot. Both times, I took my car to a local body shop, Central Missouri Auto Body . They did a great job, the people were friendly, and during the transaction I found out I was connected to at least two people who work there. Small world. Anyway, both times, I received a note in the mail to my home address from the body shop thanking me for trusting them with my car. Although the note was preprinted and I'm 90% sure the owner's signature was actually written by the office manager, the gesture was very much appreciated. I mean, how often do you get a snail-mail thank-you from your mechanic?

How early is too early to start setting the thank-you-note standard? Never, I say! As does my friend and mentor, Jennifer, who ordered note cards for her first diaper-wearer. And the little guy wasn't even born yet! Yet, for all the adorable little booties (for the feet...though I'm sure Casper's little booty is adorable, too) and practical bottles Jennifer received, she wrote a thank-you note from Casper's point of view. What a great start to a life-long love of thank-you notes, and a fun twist on the dozens of notes every new mom ends up writing. By the way, major congrats to Jennifer and Chris on the birth of their amazing gift! Casper is beautiful!

Remember Valentine's Day when you were in grade school? Picking out the box of Valentine cards with puppies, kitties or some popular cartoon character on them, and sending the "Be Mine" ones to all the cute boys in your 3rd grade class hoping they got the hint. It took a number of years before I realized that all they really wanted was the candy attached to it. Now, 25 years after I wrote my last kiddie-style Valentine, I got a Valentine from a good friend and co-worker this year. It was awesome. Granted, it was also attached to a monster chocolate bar, which made it even awesome-er, but it made me want to go out and buy a box of Valentines and send them to all my adult friends. It was a fun way to bring a little goofiness into what's turned into a very obligatory holiday. And of course, it's a great way make sure your friends know that "You rock, Valentine!"