Oh my gosh! Thanks for pointing out Linda's tagline-- I ADORE it. And I 100% agree!
Glad you picked up your pens again, Lori. I hear the same kind of thing all the time at the post office, of all places. They're always amazed when I tell them I'm doing this pretty much full time, and that there's a market! It always makes me laugh. The post office workers hold the envelopes, look at them really closely, turn them over in their hands, and say things like "Mais, c'est joli, ça !" and "Ohh là, ce n'est pas imprimé !" (Oh hey, that's pretty acutally! Hey! It's not printed!") To which I answer, "C'est de la calligraphie !" The last guy followed up with, "Dis-donc, ce n'est pas mort, la poésie !" (What do you know? Poetry isn't dead.)
I always laugh out loud!