Maybe some just make a call or write a letter, then drive to the donut shop on the other side of town for a curb-side pickup, and then go back home, get on-line and talk for a half hour or so before writing another letter.
That helps to "keep the routine."
For return visits, call the same person you called earlier. Then apologize, make an excuse, tell them you are sorry to have bothered them, and count it as a return visit.