Have you ever wondered what kind of mail your publisher Raimo Kaarna receives from abroad ? Read on, I'll expose penpal publisher's great secrets to you just now... Yesterday I got 30 letters, from around the world, let's read them together.
The first one is from Linda Persson in Sweden. She publishes her own 28-page A5 size photocopied penpal magazine The IPC-Paper. Fine paper, good contents and layout, 270 friends, we swap ad space with each other. The second letter is a paid order, mailed from Hong Kong but sending year's subscription to the printed Signal to be sent to Fred M Wahl in California USA. Danial Hrominchuk in Canada sends the next letter, information about Around A Dollar Mailorder, business propositions welcomed, imports and exports.
Japanese girl called Naoko Nakahigashi from Niigata sends two International Reply Coupons (from your post offices) for a back issue of the Signal. Her penpal listing will be seen here later. Begging letter from Ghana - former Gold Coast in Africa - sent by a school boy, George Osei-Bonsu, age 10. I receive up to 20-30 letters like this daily every now and then, without payments of course. Unfortunately I'm not rich enough to send any Signals free, return postage necessary to get reply.
USA calling, USA calling, multi level money making opportunities, this time called "Co-Operation", sent by Louis S Cruz. Sorry to say but I don't believe in wonders or nonsense, I NEVER take part in any MLM | pyramid | chain letter schemes. Have "earned" lots of money in saving the vain postage costs ! Harazi Ahmed from Blida in Algeria asks for penpals, not even return postage enclosed. He has seen my worldwide club directory, the 1992 edition. Letter from Israel, Dinu Bratulescu sent US$ 2 for postage to receive names of penpal clubs in Portugal. He'll get them from the new WWCD. USA again, J P Laumeyer from Florida pays for Signal issue 87, it will be airmailed soon. I usually reply mail and stuff the envelopes with magazines 3-4 times monthly, 100-150 at a time...
La Casa from USA sends one inch display ad for his "Honduras Women" penpal service. You'll see it also in the web later. Paid order. Two IRCs from Japan, sent by 17 years old Nozomi Matsuura. She'll get Signal 82 and her listing in the next issue. Post & Telekom from Austria mails information about new postage stamps for publication. I use the photos occasionally as space permits. Two Indian Rupees, 5000 Romanian Leis, $ 1.25 in Canadian coins, 30 used postage stamps are received from Iulia Gavrilescu in Romania. She is 24 and looking for a man... 'Send $ 5 for reply and sexy photos'. Brien Duarte from Honolulu in Hawaii USA sends $ 6 for his ad and a back Signal.
Letter from FINLAND ! Unbelievable, 99 % of mail mail comes from abroad... Pertti Karppinen orders the latest Signal, I must remember to enclose the invoice. Our old agent C Kennedy sends her one incher for displaying in the printed Signal and in the web, $ 20 enclosed in cash as payment. Mail Order Plus is the magazine sold. Then a letter from down under, Australia, postage AU$ 1.20, two nice stamps. Paid order for the Worldwide Club Directory, Signal 87 - in web you can read newer edition free !
Houssenaly Karim from France is interested in trading consumer goods, world trade developments. He is buying a sample copy of the Signal. 25 years old Mandana H from Tehran in Iran asks for foreign penpals, no payment, no return postage.
Andre Rheaume from Canada is paying US$ 5 in Canadian Postal Money Order for the Signal and his ad. Finnish banks charge US$ 14 to cash this foreign $ 5 check. Do NOT send any small amounts of money abroad in checks or postal money orders, banks' service charges are more than the value of your payment. Send banknotes or IRCs...
Hiromi Kuwahara from Kanagawa in Japan buys the latest Signal, $ 7 enclosed. Kharisma Fans penpal paper from Indonesia contains 36 pages, photocopied but neat, mainly in Indonesian, Signal's 2" ad on the back cover. We swap ad space. Our agent Karael Enterprises in England orders the latest Signal for their customer Gisele Poissant in England, I'll drop-ship it soon. The payment was enclosed.
Ten IRCs from Morocco, sender Doir Ait Boussaaden, a penpal magazine order. Swedish firm called M & B Import sent their catalog of Bitte Collection, handbags, shopping bags, purses, umbellas, leathercases etc. Two International Reply Coupons from Japan again for a back issue of the Signal, from Naoko Kawauchi, age 14, girl. William A Snover from Michigan, USA ask for more information - no return postage.
Andera Angela from Kenya has seen Signal 63 - it was issued in 1986 - and sends her penpal listing for publication, without payment ! She is 20, 5'5", beautiful... Photocopied letter from the rich Saudi-Arabia, from M Salem. He asks for more information and says to be willing to pay, too. Mushtaq Ahmad Zuberi - a Pakistani by birth ? - lives now in USA and is willing to advertise in several penpal magazines. The payment missing again...
Well, that's it, thirty letters, a few payments, some ads, information and offers. Most ads will be composed, printed, added to these Signal's pages also in the Internet. Return postages nowadays some $ 1 per letter, that makes $ 30 for this lot.
- - - - RAIMO KAARNA,
the publisher,
FINLAND
- - - - - signal@sci.fi
