Some people like to forward chain messages. Others hit delete. Some people love junk mail, and others do not. "To invent," said Thomas Edison, "you need a good imagination and a pile of junk."

Now, if you're of the "get rid of clutter" persuasion, here are some leads to help rid your life of useless paper and electronic junk...

For regular mail: If your mailbox is overflowing with sweepstakes and catalogs, and you want to stop the madness, contact the Direct Marketing Association's (DMA):

Mail Preference Service
P.O. Box 9008
Farmingdale, NY 11735-9008

The Association handles 50,000 requests a month and stops 75% of all national mailings.

In the meantime, send back the first-class junk and maybe save some trees. Cross out the address, circle the first-class postage, and write: "REFUSED - return to sender."

"Always remember that problems contain values that have improvement potential," reminded eternal optimist Norman Vincent Peale.

For junk e-mail... "SPAM"-- unsolicited commercial e-mail--is a way for advertisers to market their product. According to J.D. Falk's Net Abuse FAQ, the term Spam is based on a Monty Python sketch about spam-loving Vikings.

According to a 1999 Gartner Group survey, 91% of email users receive spam at least once a week and most want regulation or the banning of spam. The Spam Series is a comprehensive on-line guide to spam-fighting.

Problem-preventer Albert Einstein said it best: "Intellectuals solve problems, geniuses prevent them."

The delete key works neatly.