On January 11, the International Geek Girl Pen Pal club relaunched itself, with a brand new website (www.geekgirlpenpals.com) and a whole slew of updates* and improvements.

You can read their full press release here, but the basic reason is that a little idea shared between two friends separated by an ocean exploded into something much larger than anyone could have foreseen. Ten months later, the leadership team (which has grown to five, plus forum moderators) has paired over TEN THOUSAND people around the world with pen pals based on age group and shared interests, dubbed “geek loves” on the site.

10 months, 10,000 pals paired, 50,000 geek loves weeded through, only 1 #IGGPPC. Sign up now! Round 10 is open! http://t.co/4wjO4WxMcU

— IGGPPC HQ (@IGGPPCHQ) January 15, 2014

Today marks the launch of Round 10, another chance for geeky girls (and guys) to find someone to share the love of handwritten correspondence, all while discussing the latest episode of Doctor Who. Or maybe that’s just me and my pen pal… ~_^

My pal Melissa and I were matched in the fifth round, but it seems like ages ago, and we’ve had so much fun getting to know one another and exchanging small, geeky things that fit in envelopes. Okay, I’ll be honest, it’s a lot of tea and stickers. We both love tea and stickers. And she sends some amazing postcards (see above).

I think when it comes down to it, that’s the reason Geek Girl Pen Pal Club works: sure it’s thousands of people, but at its heart, really it’s a connection between people, and finding a friend you didn’t even know was out there.

On a personal note, I’m currently the resident movie-reviewer on the site, so if you want to read those, check the link in the side bar. ^_^

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*I would be remiss to not mention the achievements hidden around the site. Who knew that all those childhood hours spent with my “Where’s Waldo” books would serve me so well?