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.

Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

Miss Schmoutz (France)

Je ne connais pas Miss Schmoutz, mais je l’aime bien déjà! Dominique écrit que cette carte nous montre des plats alsaciens avec des influences germaniques. Il écrit néanmoins qu’il préfère un qui ne figure pas ici: la tarte flambée. Moi aussi je l’adore! Je l’ai connu au Nord pendant mon séjour là-bas comme assistant de langue étrangère.

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

Jumbo Restaurant in Hong Kong (New York)

We were lucky enough to host our dear friend's aunt and mother earlier this month. Aunt Lisa sent this beautiful postcard as thanks for the bread I served. It's I who should be thanking her for taking the bread off my hands!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

about Albania

My new penpal Jörg sent this from Albania (it's only my third postcard from that country!). He writes that his plan was to explore the country by train taking day trips out of Tirana. Turns out, there are hardly any trains anymore! “[He] did not expected that.” LOL

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

"Blucifer” (Colorado)

Technically this postcard was sent to Andy and not me, but I often scan his postcards. Besides, it was sent by Kimee and Michael who are my friends, too! <3

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

Miyazaki series 2/100 (California)

Here comes another in our long series. J&S are planning their summer trip to Sicily and Catalonia. What a great travel-related postcard for such news; if only I could fly on my own broomstick like Kiki!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

topiary toaster garden (Colorado)

Meanwhile Kimee and Michael took a train trip to Colorado and send me a bevy of beautiful postcard! He's a very delightful one! I'm particularly interested in the unexpected scope of “topiary toaster garden” instead of “toaster topiary gardern"!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

Miyazaki series 1/100 (California)

Julian and Salvo got a 100-postcard collection of Miyazaki stills and have decided to send them all to me. I'm so honored to be the recipient of such a huge project!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

gay Vancouver (British Columbia)

Andy was in Canada most of this past week; he managed to find some time to get me a really great postcard. He wrote on it and stamped it but then couldn't find a mailbox in time to send it to me. So I got a stamped, hand-delivered postcard from Canada. Pretty great, yeah?

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

Chicago skyline (Illinois)

Mejdulene was in Chicago, a favorite city of both of ours - especially because we have such fond memories of a trip we took there ages ago. How long ago was it? Must be fifteen years now!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

vampire sighting (Oregon)

Again with the excellent postcards. I don't know what it is about Linda, but she's always able to find some great ones!

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Kristopher Geda Kristopher Geda

simple mills (Virginia)

Sometimes people make their own postcards; they can be really creative and fun, a place for people to exercise their art. This one is cut out of a box that these cookies presumably came in. I guess it's a creative reuse of packaging that will otherwise be recycled (or worse: thrown away).

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More to come from the past…