Help Save the BPP

If you are a fan of the BPP, like cereal (or similarly boxed foodstuff), have a pair of scissors, a pen and two stamps, I need your help. Please follow the following ten steps:

Step 1: Open pantry and select a cereal box.

Don’t eat cereal? Any similarly sized paperboard box will work, or go knock on a neighbor’s door and ask for some Cheerios.

Step 2: Cut off the front panel.

Clean up the edges so that you have a nice straight-edged rectangle.

Step 3: Put the Clear-view box back in the cabinet.

(Don’t tell the spouse you did it. Blame it on the kids. When you finally have to fess up, ask your spouse to follow these instructions using the back panel.)

Step 4: Flip the front panel over and pretend it’s a large post card. Write a short message in the area directly under where your return address goes.

I went with something clever that ties in the breakfast cereal theme ("Every morning I wake up and wish the BPP was still on.") Feel free to copy or make up your own. For example, "The Bryant Park Project was Greeeeeeeeat!" or "You’d be cuckoo not to bring the BPP back!" or write something truly heartfelt or whatever.

Step 5: Fill in the Address.

        National Public Radio
        Attn: Kevin Klose, President  
        635 Massachusetts Ave, NW
        Washington, DC 20001

Step 6: Fill in your return address and apply stamps.

My box panel is 7.5" x 12" and just squeaks in under 1 oz which means it takes two stamps. These are not post cards. They’re classified as oversized envelopes so they require a minimum of two stamps. If you have a larger cereal box it will weigh over 1 oz, so use three stamps. If you’re really not sure, or if you did something dumb like use a square box, did a bad job cutting the edges, or you wrote your address across the short end, use three stamps and just be done with it.

Step 7: Drop it in the mail.

Do it today. Tomorrow at the latest. Or this weekend if you forget. But seriously, do it today.

As you can see, I dropped mine into a rusty old mail box. You can do that too, or you can put it in a nice new mailbox. Or take it into a post office and mail it there. Or put it in your household mailbox and put the little flag up. Do whatever is easiest for you. I’m not picky.

Step 8: Go do it now!

Your kitchen is like 10 feet away, slacker. Why should they keep the BPP if you can’t be bothered to go cut up a box? It’s not even corrugated for pete’s sake. If you’re still reading this, you should be getting up from your seat and grabbing a cereal box RIGHT NOW! PUSH THE KEYBOARD AWAY AND GET UP!

Step 9: Send a digital snail mail.

Contact NPR

and

Contact NPR's Ombudsman

Ok, it's really called an "e-mail" but I'm pretty sure they just print everything out and put it in a manila folder on someone's desk. (Select "Contact and NPR program and select "the Bryant Park Project" from the pulldown.)

Step 10: Spread the word.

Go tell everyone to cut up their cereal boxes. Or, if you’re really pro-active, cut out a box (back panels are ok) address it, stamp it and hand it to a friend. They can fill in their return address, add a short message and drop it in the mail themselves. They’ll probably get a kick out of it, so go make their day by handing them a cereal box panel.

Also go to This Facebook Page and join

and This other Facebook Page and join

and The Twitter Page and do whatever you do on Twitter

and The Other Twitter Page and do whatever you do on the other Twitter page

and The BPP's NPR Page and leave a comment on the blog

and Go Here to Radio Sweethearts to see what else is going on.

Thanks!

Questions for me? (not the BPP.)