Michael Jordan In Chicago

From regular sender, Rachel, who lives in Chicago. I love the way the card is dye cut to accommodate Michael Jordan's leaping legs.

Shalun Monastery, Tibet

From my friend Yolanda who is currently living in Shanghai (unless she's moved to Beijing!), a postcard from the Shalun Monastery in Tibet.

I'm Just Saying....

I've got nothing to post today.

Vintage Postcard Humor

Some things never change, but it certainly seems like what's considered funny does change. These vintage cartoon postcards are probably from the late 40s, early 50s, and were sent by the Mystery Sender. In fact, the one on the lower left included a recipe for moonshine on the back!

They are not at all "politically correct", and I love the goofy double entendres in all of them. If you like this genre, check out Postcard Funnies. It's a blog with nothing but these kinds of postcards.

A Fish Out of Water

Today I participated in a family golf tournament. Talk about a fish out of water! I am no golfer, although I come from a family of avid golfers. Today was the family golf tournament, and all family members were invited to play, novice or expert. I fall in the novice, at best, camp.

In any case, it was a lot of fun. I swung at a few balls, moved a few forward a bit, but most of all had a pretty good time. The things we do for our families.....

Christmas Day

Merry Christmas, one and all!

Christmas Eve

In my friend's entire collection of Christmas postcards, very few had any sort of reference to the Joseph and Mary, or shephards, or the birth of Jesus.

Except these three. They were made somtime between 1907 and 1912. Whatever your spiritual calling, the story of Jesus is about love and peace.

Love and peace to all, this Christmas Eve!

Christmas Eve Eve - Christmas in 1910

Crazy days and I suppose I've been giving short shrift to the copy on my posts. Christmas Eve Eve, and the frenzy is rising!

In all theses old postcards, there are very few images of angels. I love that in older images of angels, like the one to the right, the angels are most often blond!

Additional Christmas Flora - 1909

Two more cards from Christmas 100 years ago, neither of which features holly, but do feature poinsettias and cherries.

A while back, I researched a variety of Christmas symbols and their origins, for possible use in Christmas retail advertising. I learned a lot about the poinsettia. Did you know that the poinsettia is native to Mexico, and was called "Cuetlaxochitl" by the Aztecs who used the sap to control fevers and the bracts (leaves) to make a reddish dye? Or that the plant was introduced to the US by Joel Roberts Poinsett, the first United States Ambassador to Mexico, in 1828. He took cuttings from the plant and brought them back to his greenhouse in South Carolina. Or even that 80% of poinsettias are grown in California, with the great majority sold in the six weeks before Christmas? There is a website, The Poinsettia Pages, which shows more history and poinsettia facts.

Cherries didn't come up in my research then, so I wondered about their significance, especially in that they are quintessentially such a summer fruit. Geo-centrism strikes again. Given my northern hemisphere location, it didn't cross my mind to think of summertime Christmases, but in Australia, they are a part of a Christmas dinner. Then I stumbled across a story which includes a Christmas miracle (the cherries), a famous King (King Arthur), and a bit of just desserts (in the metaphorical sense). Give it a quick read: "Sir Cleges and The Christmas Cherries".

Christmas 1909 - Holly Days

Don't know what happened in 1908, but there are no Christmas postcards from that year in my friend's collection. These are all from 1909.

Two things I notice. One is that all cards feature holly in some way, thus today's title. Two, the X is used as an abbreviation for the "Christ" in Christmas. I thought that was a more modern development, but I guess not.

Christmas from Russian 2009

Christmas in Russia! This card arrived this week from Irena, through Post Crossing. I don't know what the greeting says on the front, but I love the image.

More Christmas 1907

More Christmas 1907, without the backs of the cards. Some of these have messages on the front (the two on the right) and some on the back.

I find the pine cone as spaceship card a bit bizarre, especially the catatonic looks on the kids' faces, but love the candle to the left. The message on that card is written in a Scandinavian language, probably Swedish. I think my friend whose cards these are is of Swedish descent. If you double click on the card on the right, you can see a man trudging home with a load of wood, across a small bridge.

Christmas 1907

Here's an unusual card from 1907. On the front of the card is a little teensy envelope, and inside that card is a little message. Both are shown here.

The card is embossed as well, which you can see better when you look at the address side of the card, as opposed to the front. Double click on any of the images, and you'll be able to see the beautiful detail better.

It's Postcard Friendship Friday, so if you get a chance, check out some of the other postcard blogs by clicking here.

Christmas Cards

My friend Debra keeps me supplied with very old (1906 through about 1912) seasonal postcards, from her family in Wisconsin. It was she who provided the old Thanksgiving and Halloween cards posted earlier.

For the next few days, I'll post a few of her Christmas cards, starting with these from 1906. Imagine that. There must be 100 Christmas postcards from these years; unfortunately about half of them don't appear to have been mailed (no stamps, no postmarks) even if they do have writing on them.

Here are the three from 1906. The one with the birds is included as moral support for my cousin, Nancy, who is going to be leading the national bird count in her area on Saturday. Go, Nancy!

New Orleans

Regular readers know that I send postcards to many of my sons' friends, freshmen and sophomores in college and most away from home for the first time. I do this for three reasons: 1) so they have something in their mail boxes - who doesn't like to get mail? 2) to remind them where they are from - in hopes they will want to come home sometime, and 3) to ask them to send me a postcard from their college, so I can include it in my "colleges/universities" sub-collection.

This postcard is an example of another reason I keep doing this. It is from our friend who goes to college at Tulane University. He loves it there, but it is a long way from San Francisco. It's the p.s. that makes it all worthwhile: "Whenever I get homesick, it's been nice seeing your cards. Thanks!" Made my day.

Christmas Spirit

I will get in the Christmas spirit. I will get in the Christmas spirit. I will get in the Christmas spirit. (Tap heels of red shoes three times.)

Found this postcard from about 20 years ago. I have been racking my brain trying to remember who the sender was. Was it the nurse who worked in Saudi Arabia, who we met scuba diving in Thailand? Was it somebody I met on a plane? Did we work together somewhere, sometime? Would all the people I've ever met in my life, if laid end to end, replicate the transcontinental railway? circle the globe?

Lion Sword in Mouth

Another card received through Postcrossing, from Copyyen inTaiwan. I've seen these images before, but I didn't know they were called "Lion Sword in Mouth" and are spirits to exorcise evil. My sender tells me they are auspicious for me, which I could use right now!

White Birds

When I was flying around Europe a lot in the 90s, Lufthansa was the airline of choice. And, as I recall, they had postcards in the seat pockets, free for the taking. This was great, because at the time I was sending postcards not only to myself and my kids, but also to all my nieces and nephews and the children of several friends. I must have been sending cards to 20 or more individuals with the singular goal of making them all smarter about geography.

In order to make this happen, I had pre-printed address labels, and when I was on a long flight, would address, stamp, and write a short message on several rounds of postcards at once, often mailing them when I got home. Stamps and postmarks were not important. The back of the card shown above is a perfect example: where I was flying (Frankfurt to New York City), but mailed from San Francisco, to myself, in San Francisco.

I found these postcards in the search for something to contribute to the Festival of Postcards. This month's theme is "white", with the deadline for submission being December 20.

[Random segue alert!]: The title made me think of a song I always loved: White Bird, by It's a Beautiful Day, from 1968. Here are the lyrics, which dovetail the white theme quite well:

White Bird

White Bird
In a golden cage
On a winter's day
In the rain
White Bird
In a golden cage
Alone

The leaves blow
Cross the long black road
To the darkened skies
In its rage
But the white bird
Just sits in her cage
Unknown.

White bird must fly
Or she will die

White bird
Dreams of the aspen Tree
With their dying leaves
Turning Gold
But the white bird
Just sits in her cage
Growing old.

White bird must fly
Or she will die
White bird must fly
Or she will die

The sunsets come
The sunsets go
The clouds Float by
And The Earth Turns slow
And the Young Bird's Eyes
Do always Glow
And She must fly
She must fly
She must fly

White bird
In a golden cage
On a winter's day
In the rain
White bird
In a golden cage
Alone

White bird must fly
Or she will die
White bird must fly
Or she will die
White bird must fly
Or she will die
White bird must fly