Here are the postcards!
I’ve been collecting postcards since 2008. Since then, I’ve sent and received over 1800 postcards from all over the US and dozens of countries. I respond to every postcard I receive, so I’m always open for private swaps.
My origin story: Back when I was a young boy, I got the idea to write a letter to several world leaders, but I only ever ended up writing the US president and the Queen of England. I was so tickled to receive responses from President Bush and then Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II! Well, they weren’t directly from the world leaders, but rather from their staff members. President Bush sent me an autographed photograph (which I lost later in a show-and-tell accident).
One of the Queen’s ladies-in-waiting sent me a very detailed letter, typed on Buckingham Palace stationery, answering all of my questions about the Queen’s horses and her corgis and her favorite foods. I marveled at the strangely-sized paper, the texture of the embossed coat of arms centered at the top of the page, and the stamps on the envelope. A real person had spent time reading my letter, responding to it, folding it and placing it in an envelope, and then more real human beings had taken the time and effort to transport it from London to some mail distribution center, to an airport in England, to an airport in the US, and back through the various USPS chains until it arrived in a plastic mailbox at the foot of my driveway in southeast Michigan.
I’m still fascinated by this process today, and all for less than the price of some chocolate! So I maintain correspondence with about a dozen penpals across the world, and send and receive postcards. At last count, I have a little under 2,000 postcards that I’ve received. Keep scrolling to see the most recent postcards that have arrived in my mailbox.
Alice au Pays des Merveilles (France)
Ceci est une carte postale venue de mon ancienne étudiante Faith, qui étudiait à Oxford et passait des temps dans la France, un de ses pays préférés. Elle écrit d’avoir appris sur Lewis Carroll et une vrai fille Alice Liddel, qui doit avoir inspiré le roman si célèbre! J’adore l’art-ci, et aussi le timbre que - malheureusement - vous ne pouvez pas voir. Merci, Faith!
the Dark (Wisconsin)
This postcard arrives from the Great Lakes region, from a fan of old sci-fi movies, both the good and the bad! I am also a lover of science fiction. I think part of it was inspired by the space operas and other science fiction (especially, Robert Heinlein) that my father used to read to me, him sitting on one end of the couch reading out loud and me on the other end watching the pipe smoke curl around our heads. I remember his hearty laughter at jokes about military rank that I lacked all context to understand. In my memory, he would plead with me “But a Rear Lieutenant could never be so insubordinate to a Left Reverend Platoon Admiral!” I had no patience for military ranks or the subtleties thereof, but I enjoyed the time together and the stories of fantastic worlds and creatures.
Sleeping Beauty story sketch (California)
Another terrific card from our friends Kimee and Michael, this one a story sketch by a Disney Studio artist originally in ink and crayon. I haven’t seen Sleeping Beauty since I was very young; although I’m not typically a big Disney fan, this one might be worth a re-watch, given it’s from 1959!
le campanile de Santa Maria del Fiore (Italy)
Ça peut semble incroyable mais voici une des peu cartes postales que j’ai reçoies de l’Italie. Celle-ci a été envoyé par mon ami Dominique pendant un voyage à l’étrangère. Je n’ai jamais visité la Florence, mais j’espère pouvoir la voir très tot. Dominique m’envoie des conseilles pour obtenir un très bon Chianti (il semble qu’il faut chercher l’etiquette avec un coq noir). Un jour, je vais gouter du vin et manger un bon repas avec Dominique. Jusqu’à ce jour-là, on a toujours des cartes postales. Grazie!
pecan pralines (Texas)
Sometimes I really wish I could share the backs of postcards publicly, but it’s just not fair to the sender. This person has sent the most delightful story about how she met her husband! Of course, I also love this recipe, which I may try, yet. Postcrossing comes through again with the great connections!
Rider Strong, autographed (Michigan)
This is one of my more unusual postcards, having been sent in 1996 from Los Angeles to my friend Leah in Michigan. At that time, she sent a lot of postcards, some to celebrities. A portion of these would respond with their own letters or postcards, band in this case we have Rider Strong’s autograph and a doodle. On the back is written “Thanx for your support Best Wishes, Rider [doodle]”.
I’m really flattered that Leah has sent it to me, from her large collection of ephemera. What a terrific holiday gift!
United Nations in the Winter (UN, NY)
This postcard comes from a former student who visited the United Nations while on a trip to New York City! She writes about how beautiful and magical NYC is, about encountering places she first learned about in the movies. That’s one of the great things about traveling to world cities like NYC or SF or Paris; you’ve already seen corners of them before you get there!
One of the best things about this postcard is that it was sent from the United Nations, which maintains its own postal system. So it doesn’t have US stamp on it, but rather a United Nations stamp (although the cost is listed as 37¢, which leads me to believe they sell their stamps in the currency of the host country. So great!
late(r) postcard (China)
This postcard arrived to my mailbox with quite a bit of surprise. It comes from a person I’ve never met in China and was originally written in March 2021 but perhaps not posted until June. Dorothea writes that she was asked by my friend Mélanie to send me a postcard due to my interest in China.
There was a problem with the address, it seems, and the postcard was returned to her. So she put it in an envelope and remailed it with a note in August. It still took a while to arrive, but what a grand memory and lovely message from Mélanie and Dorothea.
Even after her death, I am able to cherish not only our fond and beautiful memories, but also her thoughtfulness. I miss you, friend. Tu me manques, mon amie.
coast redwoods (California)
Sad that lenticular postcards don’t scan well; all well, they just need to be seen in person, I guess! This one comes from a former student of mine who’s traveling around California during the winter break. They’re even practicing with the all-gender social title “Mx.”!
the Islands of Hawai’i
This terrific map postcard comes from a student of mine from this past Fall who traveled to Hawai’i and writes that she “think[s] it is the best place [she has] ever been to.” I’m glad she and I are of the same mind - Hawai’i is a magical and beautiful place! I’m flattered that she thought of me while in paradise and picked up this postcard to send to me.
treasure map (Taiwan)
這張明信片是從很好朋友來的。她是去台灣的還有給我發到一長非常漂亮的明信片。一些年以前，我去了台北，淡水， 高雄，和花蓮遊覽。還可有很多沒去過的地方。希望撿來可以去看看。謝謝你佩儀！
hummingbird husband (California)
Maybe you can make it out from the ghostly image of the hummingbird, but this is a lenticular postcard (they never scan well) that I sent to Andy from our trip to Sacramento. I wanted to celebrate his great success in shaving almost 15 minutes off of his marathon time in his showing at the California International Marathon. Given our shared fascination of hummingbirds, this jumped out at me when I was visiting Old Sacramento. Andy is speedy like a hummingbird, cute like a hummingbird, and most of all, he loves sweet things like a hummingbird!
St. Clément des Baleines (France)
Malheureusement, Dominic écrit dans cette carte postale des problèmes de santé et des urgences en France à cause du nouveau vague de CoVID. J’espère que ça soit vite passé et qu’on puisse retourner à une vie semi-normale.
Cependant, j’ai reçu un joli souvenir des vacances qu’il a pris pendant l’été en forme d’une phare, que j’adore. Ce qui est de plus, c’est la Phare des Baleines, un de mes animaux préferés! Je me démande si peut-être les baleines sont visibles depuis ce point-là, et c’est pour ça qu’on a mis ce nom?
canoe paddlers (Hawai’i)
My mother-in-law and her husband went on vacation recently to Hawai’i and in addition to sending great photographs via cell phone, they also sent this terrific postcard! This is from one of their first vacations ever that didn’t involve seeing family or friends; I hope it’s the first of many more to come!
ancient character writings (Oregon)
You already know who sent this terrific postcard; it could be none other than Linda! She writes that her holiday decorations are up and she’s seeing a few friends here and there already.
The postcard itself says: “Ancient Character Writings removed from cliffs along the nearby Columbia River and brought to Ginkgo Petrified Forest Museum to make a most unusual display. They are believed to have been made many hundreds of years ago by migrants from Mexico or South America where these characters are common.”
Christmas greetings (California)
I was so thrilled to receive this beautiful handmade postcard from our friends Kimee and Michael, whom I had the good fortune to see finish a marathon at the California International Marathon two weekends ago! I’m looking forward to sharing some baked goods with them later today when we meet up!
l’Éclade de Moules (France)
Voici encore une recette française arrivée de mon ami Dominique. Je ne sais pas où je trouverais des épines de pin, sauf aller à la forêt pour les chercher. Est-ce qu’ils sont prêt à manger, s’ils sont sauvages? Dans la forêt profonde, il ne peut pas y avoir des toxines… donc peut-être je pourrais les utiliser pour préparer la nourriture…
Naples Zoo (Florida)
Perhaps in response to the postcard I sent from a recent trip to the SF Zoo, our niece Phoenix sent us this one from the Naples Zoo at Caribbean Gardens near where she lives in Florida. It looks like a great place! She writes that she fed some giraffes and saw lots of great animals.
Capital Books (California)
This postcard arrived earlier this week from our friends Kimee and Michael, who also ran the California International Marathon with Andy. We spent the weekend in Sacramento, and all three of them had great runs. We also got to know the city quite a bit better; it’s really charming and there are some great neighborhoods!
“Bust of Ellen with Bows in Her Hair” (Colorado)
Ceci est une carte postale envoyée par mon beau-frère depuis son voyage au Colorado pour rendre visite un ami. Il a également visité le Denver Art Museum où il a vu cette peinture par la fameuse Mary Cassatt. Il écrit que les pièces de pastel sont quelques unes de ses préférées.