# One down, 656 to go. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 10, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460 "2004-05-10T14:42:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![screech-owl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@screech-owl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/screech-owl)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460/1 "2004-05-10T14:42:30Z")
I just finished writing a short letter to a friend. I send off a birthday card to a relative. I am looking through my address book to see how many more I can get rid of. I have 656 home address labels from non-profit organization charitable donation solicitation letters. These are the regular upper-left-corner-of-the-envelope sized ones. I also have 10 large labels and 2 huge ones that I could use in the center of the envelope to send a letter to myself. In addition, I have 125 stamps and stickers to use as envelope sealers proving that I care about \ or at least proof that I was sent a charitable donation letter by \. Lessee, I have some from [ul] [li]Center for Marine Conservation[/li][li]National Wildlife Federation (nice ducks on these)[/li][li]The Nature Conservancy (with the ugly chick screaming at the camera)[/li][li]National Park Trust[/li][li]St. Jude Children’s Hospital[/li][li]Wildlife Land Trust[/li][li]Ducks Unlimited[/li][li]Sierra Club[/li][li]Paralyzed Veterans of America[/li][/ul] as well as several that I have no idea who they are from, since I have all the labels in one package and the letter went away long ago (either with a donation or to the shredder). It’s a gift. If I like the place, they get money. If I disagree with their actions, policies or political leanings (either way), the letter gets shredded and I keep my name and address labels (without their logo). I’ve shredded the ones where my name was totally misspelled - I can usually tell where they came from - if the pizza box arrives with my name misspelled, I can usually count on getting charity donation letters within about a month, addressed to the misspelled name. Oh, and this isn’t even counting the dozens of books that now have my name and address in the books, for when I loan one out and want it back. If I get rid of the book, the label gets removed or totally blacked out. Sigh. 656 to go. Any other ideas? Anyone else with lots of stickers? ---
**Author:** ![FairyChatMom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fairychatmom/32/21825_2.png) [@FairyChatMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FairyChatMom)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2004, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460/2 "2004-05-10T14:53:50Z")
Until recently, I had tons of stickers acquired similarly. Most have been tossed in the trash - after all, in 2 weeks, it will no longer be my address. I started a thread ages ago asking for creative ideas for address lables, but the response wasn’t nearly as creative as I’d hoped, so it fizzled and died. So, I dunno - cover the roof of your car with them?? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![medstar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f07891/32.png) [@medstar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/medstar)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2004, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460/3 "2004-05-10T23:21:28Z")
I use my stash when I pay my bills. I still write a check and mail it off, so I stick a label on the return address space. Saves time and effort in writing that stuff in. ---
**Author:** ![Sami41](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c57346/32.png) [@Sami41](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sami41)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2004, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460/4 "2004-05-10T23:30:07Z")
I have a friend who puts labels on all of his cigarette lighters and ball point pens. I asked if he’d ever had a lost lighter or pen mailed back to him. He hadn’t but did say that he tends not to lose them anymore, because they’re not inadvertantly stolen by borrowers. ---
**Author:** ![swampbear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/swampbear/32/467_2.png) [@swampbear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/swampbear)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2004, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/one-down-656-to-go/244460/5 "2004-05-11T01:26:38Z")
Wear one each day. That way if you get lost, people know how they can mail you back home.