Ashley in Ohio has no complaints about the English skills of her Japanese pen pal, but this “thank you” card left her feeling like something must have gotten lost in translation. “Although I’ve been sending her e-mails and cards for every tiny holiday, this apparently hasn’t been enough to satisfy her,” Ashley says. (Ouch.)
related: Please don’t sit with me ever again.
64 responses so far ↓
#1
Bockanalia
Nothing says heartfelt letter like a Hallmark with a Minnie Mouse sticker. Am I right?
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:06 pm rating: 14
#2
Rhamza
I think that she forgot a long list of holidays to add to that ending list she had going there. Just saying…
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:06 pm rating: 3
#3
snee
Happy Halloween
Merry Christmas
Happy New Year
Happy Valentine’s Day
and
FUCK YOU American penpal!
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:07 pm rating: 218
#4
shesajem
WOW. Epic burn.
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:21 pm rating: 5
#5
Elisha
Ooooch! That’s awful.
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:23 pm rating: 3
#6
joe
i had the same thing happen. a slightly prickly japanese internet pal who traded pictures and stories with me. however i didn’t answer his questions fast enough and he told me not to talk to him again.
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:29 pm rating: 19
#7
cringeworthy
Japanese people are so polite, they always say “thank you”… ESPECIALLY as you are leaving.
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:34 pm rating: 36
#8
Stephanie
Wow.
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:34 pm rating: 2
#9
Dusa
It sounds like she doesn’t like the holiday letters because possibly the sender didn’t write a lot in them? There seems to be more to the story since she had to break up with her via card and not email (possibly not reading the e-mails she sent like mentioned in the card? lol).
Oct 27, 2011 at 10:55 pm rating: 27
#10
juju_skittles
My name is juju_skittles and I am a bad penpal. There, I’ve said it. I didn’t reply to ONE letter from my English penpal – and she had the Salvation Army check to see if I was a missing person! She sent lots of photos of her cat…
Oct 27, 2011 at 11:18 pm rating: 38
#11
Lessons
This is like every relationship I’ve ever had. Sadly, I’m always the Japanese pen pal.
Oct 27, 2011 at 11:42 pm rating: 67
#12
Palomon
This whole thing seems slightly racist.
Oct 28, 2011 at 12:57 am rating: 8
#13
Palomon
I see you ridin’ round town
With the girl I love
And I’m like; haiku.
Oct 28, 2011 at 1:11 am rating: 185
#14
Somebody Else
Jess: Oooh, that’s harsh. You don’t bounce back from that right away.
Harry: Thanks Jess.
Jess: No, I’m a writer, I know dialogue and that’s particularly harsh.
–When Harry Met Sally
Oct 28, 2011 at 2:21 am rating: 13
#15
Quietmarc
Why would you ask a question (“How are you?”) if you don’t want an answer? How rude!
Oct 28, 2011 at 7:44 am rating: 7
#16
Ozwald
Brutal. Clearly she wasn’t getting the English language practise she wanted from those holiday cards.
Oct 28, 2011 at 8:22 am rating: 3
#17
Daniel
How do you make emails look like that? What font is it? :p
Oct 28, 2011 at 8:52 am rating: 1
#18
nami
The MInnie Mouse sticker effectively plays up the passive aggressive style of this card. The cute demeanor yet the aggression hidden under that mouse’s smile communicates the penpal’s feelings toward the American penpal- “I like you, but I hate you!”
Oct 28, 2011 at 9:22 am rating: 14
#19
Jorpho
This might just be the saddest thing I’ve seen on this site in a long time.
What a swell way to start Friday!
Oct 28, 2011 at 9:25 am rating: 4
#20
Juliet
I don’t really get it, but to me it reads like she expects to be exchanging proper letters with a penpal, not just signed cards and emails. She kind of does have a point.
Oct 28, 2011 at 10:08 am rating: 68
#21
Matilda
I think it’s the “I don’t want to your friend. Please never write back to me.” that got me. A leeetle harsh.
Oct 28, 2011 at 10:21 am rating: 18
#22
Pam D
when I was a pre-teenager, I had an Asian penpal that sent me a similar letter…. I didn’t get a Minnie Mouse sticker though.
Oct 28, 2011 at 10:51 am rating: 6
#23
Dr. Chalkwitheringlicktacklefeff
Inscrutable.
Oct 28, 2011 at 11:09 am rating: 2
#24
SoupySales
Gotta give it to Sayaka… Her passive-aggressive English is better than my Japanese (which is non-existent beyond yummy yummy “unagi”). I kind of love this PAN.
Oct 28, 2011 at 11:24 am rating: 8
#25
PANs_Labyrinth
What, no Pearl Harbor jokes yet? I’m disappointed in you guys.
Oct 28, 2011 at 1:32 pm rating: 1
#26
ramon
I’d like to get Sayaka’s address. She sounds unreasonable and a little nuts. I think i could be the dedicated penpal she needs.
Oct 28, 2011 at 1:53 pm rating: 49
#27
Hanna
What got stuck in her craw?
Oct 28, 2011 at 3:10 pm rating: 2
#28
Adam
It kind of looks to me in that sticker like Minnie is peeing standing up and looking over her/his left shoulder, with her/his tail being the … stream, I guess you would say? That’s all I can see when I look at this letter now.
Oct 28, 2011 at 4:55 pm rating: 8
#29
Nick
It looks like Ashley accidentally Sayaka, given the language barrier.
Oct 28, 2011 at 5:08 pm rating: 7
#30
Kathy
Bad pen pal you!
Oct 28, 2011 at 6:03 pm rating: 13
#31
Me
Hahaha…”bye forever.” If you are reading this Sayaka, 手紙を大好きですね。
Oct 28, 2011 at 6:24 pm rating: 3
#32
Juniper
Am I the only one that totally understand the sentiment that is trying to be expressed here? The American penpal obviously only sends short and shallow emails – not the point of penpals at all.
Oct 29, 2011 at 8:56 am rating: 23
#33
chrispappas
Parentheses starting on one line with the contents starting on the other? When writing?
“…my e-mail (
I think you don’t read…”
Can anyone shed any light?
Oct 29, 2011 at 10:20 am rating: 0
#34
AyeArr
Is she mad that she is getting too many letters or not enough? I’m confused…..
Oct 29, 2011 at 12:55 pm rating: 3
#35
Mitchy
Is a former pen-pal a penemy?
Oct 29, 2011 at 6:39 pm rating: 28
#36
fricketyfrack
Not enough. She needs a penpal to practice writing and reading english with a native speaker so she can learn alternate uses for words and figures of speech and informal usage. Cards and little ‘happy random meaningless holiday’ are useless. She needs long letters.
Nov 9, 2011 at 3:25 am rating: 7
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