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.
opossums (Indiana)
Did you know that opossums (or “possums” as I grew up calling them) are the only marsupials native to the US and Canada? This depiction of them is actually quite cute, which doesn’t surprise me since Nozomi has a knack for finding the cutest, best cards. Thanks!
Alberobello (Italy)
My penpal Lino sent me this terrific postcard from Alberobello in Italy, where he traveled recently and stayed. These houses are called “trulli” and are part of the UNESCO World Heritage site.
As I learned from the UNESCO site, these are built without mortar of limestone boulders from nearby areas!
Off we go! (Germany)
Thanks to Google Translate, I can figure out that this postcard means “Off we go!” and the image certainly captures that. Dominique has been able to travel more frequently to Germany, the country of origin for this card, where he picked up this ad card from Deutsche Telekom. What’s interesting is that the logo is the same as T-Mobile here in the US; it’s owned by Deutsch Telekom!
Pinot the Poodle (Oregon)
Some of you already know that Andy and I adopted a standard poodle last weekend and named him Pinot. He’s black and so fluffy it seems criminal. Naturally, we’ve been very busy keeping up with the demands of a nine-week-old puppy, but we’ve certainly fallen in love with his goofy face and sweet disposition!
Linda celebrated our new family member with this handmade card, and a very touching and accurate message on the back. She is the best dog-whisperer I know, and the person I turn to first for advice on so many topics (work, co-workers, career, friends, baking, plants) and now of course dog-raising.
Hôpital Stanislas (France)
Cette carte postale est venue, vous le savez déjà, de mon ami très fidel Dominique. Il a lu mes commentaires sur la tarte flambée, et il m’a envoyé quelques informations de plus. Il écrit que les tartes flambées dont j’ai ecrites ne sont pas faites à la bonne manière, comme celles en Alsace. Là-bas, elles sont faites à main et cuites au feu de bois. Il faut, alors, vraiment y aller pour les manger et faire la comparaison!
Soviet (?) Pride (Indiana)
My friend Kimberly sent me this great Pride postcard from Indiana! It looks like it’s an edited version of some Chinese-Soviet propaganda posters. I may have even seen one when I was at the Propaganda Poster Art Museum in Shanghai back in December 2019? The truth is that many of these posters are (unintentionally?) homoerotic on their own and they need little editing to bring them into Pride month, but I’ll take the wins where I can get them!
Happy Pride everyone!
flammeküeche (France)
I first encountered flammeküeche when I moved to France in 2004. There was a restaurant in Lille where you could order it. It struck me as a very Teutonic pizza, and I suppose it’s not that far from what one might expect. I always understood it to be impossible to make in the US because it required that most French of ingredients: crème fraîche (there isn’t even a translation for it in English; it’s known simply as that: crème fraîche).
But more and more supermarkets carry crème fraîche now, so it’s easy to make! Now the bottleneck is lardons, which are difficult to get in the US. I substitute bacon when I’m getting impatient for it, but now I’m lucky that there’s a restaurant just a few blocks away that serves it, and well!
So thanks to Dominique for sending this, the eightieth postcard from France, and reminding me of a dish I love so much!
El Alamein Fountain, Kings Cross (Australia)
This postcard comes from northern Australia, but the postcard itself depicts the El Alamein Fountain in Kings Cross, Sydney. This area, according to the sender, is also known as Potts Point, and is gay enclave, apparently! Never having been to Australia, I have no first-hand knowledge of it, but of course, Sydney is famous for its gay life.
Lego baking (Indiana)
I have always loved Legos - they’re such a creative toy and they featured prominently during my youth, especially at Christmas. We would often get a large Lego set as a group gift to my brothers and me (and somehow my dad always joined in, too!). And then we would spend several happy hours assembling the set together and running the train. One year, we got the lunar monorail set and we. were. smitten. Nozomi sends this baking one from her collection of Lego postcards. I adore it!
Wissembourg (France)
Comment j’adore l’architecture de l’est de la France (et, je suppose, l’ouest de l’Allemagne) comme c’est peint ici! Elle est tellement typique et me fait penser toujours aux petits villages avec leur ruelles coincées, à chaque passe un autre secret à découvrir. Il y a plein pour être heureux ici, mais j’admets un fort désir de voyager au moment donné. Merci à Dominique pour cette carte postale. J’ai l’impression de tout apprendre sur l’Alsace avec ne plus que ses cartes postales!
Oh. Happy Day! (Germany)
I’m not sure if the post office has been harder on postcards lately, or if I’ve just had bad luck - but this postcard is a bit worse for wear after its travels from western Germany. Nonetheless, its happy message resounds!
Nations Unis - New York
Voici une vue des Nations Unis à New York, envoyée par mon amie Sylvia. J’y suis allé il y a presque 30 ans et je pense que j’ai également envoyé des cartes postales avec leur poste. Les Nations Unis ont leur propre poste avec des timbres et tout. Cette carte postale-ci en a deux (il y a l’edifice et la drapeau de Vanuatu).
Eiteljorg Museum (Indiana)
There are only two disadvantages to lenticular postcards such as this one: a) they’re expensive, and b) they don’t scan well. So all you, dear readers, get is a blurry image of some deer maybe in front of a beige building. I guess you’ll have to visit the Eiteljorg Museum, like my friend Nozomi and her husband.
“Slava Ukraini” (Lithuania)
Unfortunately, this card was damaged in the mail, so it even came in its own envelope (I’ve seen this before from the post office). Luckily, it made it intact enough to be delivered! It’s a great postcard from my penpal in Lithuania - he says this postcard was issued by the Lithuanian post in support of the Ukrainian people. It’s really beautiful!
two recipes (Russia)
I won’t scan the sender’s message or the letter they wrote, tempted though I am. They translated the recipes for kocovik and skantsy. So lovely! They even drew little figures as schematics for how to shape the dough!
books and cinnamon rolls (Pennsylvania)
I love watercolors and the soft pastels of this card are really great! It arrived from another houseplant enthusiast; I’m envious of her schefflera! Unfortunately, it’s toxic to pets, so I don’t think I’ll be getting one!
peace and pride (Finland)
I’ve been trying to keep my PostCrossing queue up and running, but I admit that I’ve let it lapse these past few weeks due to some overwhelming work requirements. But this lovely peace symbol over the pride flag is a great reminder of how much I love PostCrossing!
Eagle Newel Post (Oregon)
We just recently spent a weekend in Vancouver, Washington with my in-laws and took the opportunity to visit my dear friend Linda. In response to that visit, she sent this captivating postcard!
The legend says (hyperlinks mine, of course): Eagle Newel Post, Timberline Lodge, Oregon. Designed by Florence Thomas, the Eagle Newel Post is located at the South stairway landing to the Main Lounge on the first floor. The Newel posts were carved from old telephone poles which were recycled by the WPA for this purpose. Twelve plaster castings from Paris were copied by WPA workers between 1935 and 1937, and all of the carvings are featured throughout the lodge.
board meeting (Hawai’i)
My brother-in-law is a frequent visitor to Maui and sent this terrific postcard from a recent visit there. Who doesn’t love a great pun? I’m sure one never attends a bored meeting in Maui. Eh? EH?!