Cartoon Corner

So I got two cards today, both of a more animated variety, and I just thought it was kinda funny :)

The first one comes from a lovely woman named Marianne who lives around Leidschendam in The Netherlands. It seems that where she works or shops, they've been anxiously awaiting the release of Toy Story 3. Well, I'm only just now getting around to writing about this card a bit late, and in the time since I first posted the card here, Marianne messaged me say "Toy Story 3 [is] here and I saw it FINALLY. I loved it. I think it was even better than the first two! The characters seem 'alive'. Woody is definitely my favorite :-)" I couldn't agree more, thanks for the great card!

P.S. How in the world can it be that The Netherlands have Duck Tales stamps (featuring none other than Scrooge McDuck himself, no less) and we here in the US don't?! Awesome stamps, thanks again Marianne!

The next card comes from Leonor, probably the cutest kid you've ever seen, and officially the youngest Postcrosser I've ever received from. Leonor is from Porto, Portugal, and at only 18 months old, has sent over 8x as many cards as I have! Granted, she's getting some help from her Aunt, but still, wow! The card itself is a colorful and humorous depiction of the proverbial 'wolf in sheep's clothing,' and is one of Nathaniel's favorite cards now. Thanks for that, Leonor!

Spaghetti & Sails

Both of these card were received by Nathaniel!

The first one I though was very creative. See, when I first pulled it out of the mailbox, I though "hmm, a cat card... meh." Let's just say I'm not a cat person. But on the contrary, it wasn't sent as a cat card at all! Nathaniel's profile clearly states that he loves "food cards most of all... recipes, local delicacies, tasty treats, etc." And the oh so observant Pirkko from Espoo, Finland, chose this particular card because of the cats' apparent fondness for spaghetti & marinara with parmesan. Pirkko is points out that this isn't just any cat, but a Kliban Cat, drawn by the renowned cartoonist, the late Barnard Kliban. Thanks, Pirkko!

The next card comes from YiLi who lives near Xinzhuang City, Taiwan. She must have an interest in photography, because apparently she took this great photo herself in the Summer of 2007. It's a great scenic shot of a pair of catamarans in the waters at Fu Long Beach. Thanks, YiLi!

The Niña, the Pinta, & the...

Santa Maria!

Yeah, I completely forgot to upload this one, so just like the very first card I received, this one's out of order. Oh well. Today's card comes from Debbie in Columbus, Ohio, so named after the explorer, Christopher Columbus. The card shows the city's famous replica of the Santa Maria, one of the three ships Columbus sailed when he first reached the Americas. Apparently, you can tour the ship, as Debbie and her son did. Thanks for sending me the great card, Deb!

Not from Postcrossing

So, I'd like to tell you about two acquaintances who quickly became friends of mine... and then I'll tell you about the cards they sent me!

Laura is the type who's a bit of a stranger to technology, but she gets by online and knows how to text on her cellphone quite well. She's absolutely charming, a vegetarian (or maybe vegan, I'm not sure), and she positively LOVES postcards. In fact, Laura is the one who turned me on to Postcrossing. See, I was showing off my new favorite toy, my iPad, and the best way I could think at the time to demonstrate it was to ask, "What's a website you visit all the time?" And with that, we were both whisked away... her, getting to play around on my little shrine to impotent consumerism; and me, getting my first taste of what would soon become my next obsession.

Knowing that they'd be right up my alley, Laura sent me the above pictured pink and green 'gay-friendly' postcards. The pink card with the two grooms advertises the now defunct PlanetOut.com, and the green one playfully urging those in the community to come out? It's from Chicago's Lesbian and Gay Community Center. Love em' both, thank you Laura!

The card in between comes from Amanda, who was a co-worker at Books-A-Million with Leslie, one of my roommates at the time. She's super sweet, strong willed, assertive, loves all things Disney, and we even enjoyed a fantastic weekend trip to New Orleans once with Nathaniel and Leslie, too. With her bookstore background, it's no surprise that she sent me a book-cover postcard, of Sex and Society, by Alex Comfort. I've never read it, but I might be inclined to now. What was surprising, though? She sent me the card with a Postcrossing code, and filled with all the best Postcrossing clichés. Only at the last sentence did she basically say "gotcha!" Loves it!

L.A. by way of Houston

This card comes from a Laura in Houston, Texas. The card itself, however, is of the famous Getty Museum in Los Angeles, California. The building is impressive on size (not immediately a distinguishable by this card alone), and being a fan of art and graphic design, I absolutely DO want to visit on day as Laura recommends. Thanks for the card!

Kubuswoningen

Love it, love it, love it! Wouter from Rotterdam, in the Netherlands, has sent me this great card of the Kubuswoningen, a.k.a. the Cube Houses. Built in 1984, the houses still have a look that's sleek and modern. Like, this is a piece of architecture that simple, but so unique enough that I want to visit it in person. One day! Thanks for the phenomenal card, Wouter!

The Lviv Opera House

Let me first say that from a purely aesthetic point of view, blue and orange are a very striking pair. For anyone familiar with the color wheel, this is no surprise--they're complimentary colors of course. I bring it up because Carla from Cologne, Germany sent me this striking card of the Lviv Opera House of Lviv, Ukraine. Notice it's similarity to the card a few spots below from Kate in St. Petersburg. That one was gorgeous, and this one is gorgeous! Thanks, Carla!

Half a Bridge & a Lodge

So, I got two cards in the mail! The first comes from Grace in Taiwan. She's sent me a beautiful card of the Longteng Broken Bridge in the township of Sanyi. It's not a cave, and since it was more or less destroyed by an earthquake in 1935, it's not exactly "architecture" anymore either, so Grace feels it's a happy medium, and I couldn't agree more--thanks Grace!

Next, a card that has frustrated me, but not in a bad way, ha ha. Laura from Tampere, Finland, sent me a card with architecture drawings of the "A.S.K:n Ampumamaja," what Laura calls the "A.S.K:s lodge."

I cannot find anything about either of these things anywhere online! I want to learn more, and I think the only thing I'll be able to do is to message her back and ask her more about it. Anywho, for the challenge Laura, I thank you, lol.

Quit "Russian" Me!

Get it? Lol, pardon my stupid joke. It's just that, upon registering this fantastic card, I went on to realize that it had been traveling for 26 days, easily the longest any card has been traveling to me so far. In any case, it comes from Kate in Saint Petersburg, Russia, and it showcases the beautiful Mariinsky Theatre. A lovely card from a fellow dog lover... great stamps, too! Thanks, Kate!

P.S., I've got Kate beat on time traveled though. One of my cards that I sent to a Maria in Valongo, Portugal, took 32 days travel time before being registered!

Graphic Design + Harry Potter

This awesome card comes from Debbie in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I majored in advertising in college, and played around a bit in graphic design, so this card is pretty awesome in terms of composition. The photo, it's also a clever illustration of the word emblazoned on the card. There's no artist credited on the back, but the colors, too, just everything... I really like this card. And THEN she goes and chats me up about Harry Potter? Loved it!

Unexpected

Typically, Postcrossing works when you A) request an address, B) send the card, C) that card is registered by the recipient, and then D) & E) are simultanous--you get to now pull another address, while your address is suddenly next in line for someone else to pull. The point is, in theory, you shouldn't be receiving more cards than you have sent out and had registered elsewhere. Make sense?

Well, we can't really explain this one then. Nathaniel has had exactly ONE card successfully received, and a 2nd one was only placed in the mail Saturday. He has already received what we THOUGHT was the one card he should be expecting, and yet he today received a second card himself--no clue why. It comes from a girl name Georgia of the Gregory family who lives in Gisborne, New Zealand. It's a cool card too, a kiwi, and from a country I haven't shared any cards with yet. Thanks, Georgia!

Two Very Different Cards

I received today, in case you haven't read the title, two very different cards in the mail. Let's discuss.

The first card is from Lindsay (aka 郑文欣) from the small town of Shanghai, China. Not only did she provide a unique and scenic postcard (of West Lake), but she also shared with me about herself and her family (her brother, whose birthday falls on Halloween, was born in the Year of the Tiger, just like me!). On top of that, she also included a quote for me to attempt to translate, something I asked for in my profile. Lindsay, you're awesome, and yours is now officially one of my favorite cards I've received!

The next one is a fine card on its own, this one from Gerkje from Friesland, a province in the Netherlands. I particularly like the stroopwaffles pictured, a delicacy I've never had but always wanted to try. However, I wish the Postcrosser would've said something a bit more... personalized. I'm starting to gather that the more postcards you have being sent & received, the harder it is to make every message meaningful. Which is understandable, I suppose. Anywho, I like waffles, so thanks Gerkje!