The Paiwan are one of several aboriginal ethnic groups in Taiwan, which used to be known as Formosa. The postcrosser who sent the card wrote that Taiwan is the original site of all aboriginal groups found in the Pacific Ocean, from Madagascar to Easter Island and Taiwan to New Zealand. I used to follow such theories when I lived in Japan but confess to having lost track of them. Do love the juxtaposition of stamps used on the card.
A photo turned postcard turned altered card. This was a popular Polish deli, with outstanding soups and pirohi, but it suddenly went poof.
Mrpotani sent this card from a recent trip to Los Angeles. It shows actor Robin Shou of Martial Kombat and the late Sifu Steve Herring of Two Dragons Martial Arts Studio in Pasadena.
A Dutch postcrosser in Amsterdam who loves sculpting sent a card showing the work of one of her favorites, a sleeping Venus by Jan Meefout. The sender takes a sculpting class each week and writes that she is always surprised by the results "because all stones are so different." Many of her sculptures find their way to her "wild garden" where, she says, the birds love to perch on them.
Ozawa Yasuko sent another marvelous cat postcard by Tamio Maita. This one, of a cat on a mesa (Spanish for table) evoked memories of a lifelong fantasy of mine,which had nothing to do with cats or mesa.
Tokyo friend Motoko sent this outstanding card showing the felicitous matching of a cat and books. The stamp, meanwhile, should thrill the manga/anime crowd.
I altered this card to send to a friend in France who was active in the anti-fracking campaign there this year. They got it done, too, getting at least a temporary halt to the controversial practice of fracking by the natural gas industry. Sad to say, their success was based in part on the use and consequences of fracking here in Pennsylvania.
I took this photo about ten years ago at a railroad crossing and have been meaning to turn it into a postcard ever since. Something about the colors, I think.
This postcard was made from a photo taken by the sender, a retired teacher in Finland, at Lake Puujarvi (Wood Lake), where her children have summer cottages. She writes that she has found solace from a recent bout of loneliness in postcrossing, while allows her to 'travel' the world. Thanks, Eeva, for the lovely photo and cool stamp.
The German postcrosser who sent this vivid card of canoodling pigs wrote that she has more striped socks in her drawers than plain ones. Yay, stripes!
These stamps were on a very cool postcard sent by a Dutch postcrosser. The card featured a photo called Take Five by Rene de Wit, which had a stern warning that reproduction was forbidden. It brought up once again the blurred meaning of copyright in the electronic realm. In the end, I decided to post the stamps not the card, which was great. The postcrosser, a retired teacher who worked for 42 years while raising children, is now enjoying life with her blind husband in a flat in the center of Amsterdam. Good work by her!
The Russian postcrosser who sent this sweet card says that ice fishing is popular among "strong men". Cats, too, it looks like. The sender likes the contrast between "cold and frosty" winter and the "very warm" smile of the grandfather. She goes on to say that her husband is very good at cooking. Her favorite is duck foie gras with raspberry sauce and, of course, fish.
The postcrosser who sent this great card of rice fields in Taiwan said she picked it because she likes the green of the fields. I like the tiers of green in the card. Quite stunning. I also like the intersecting line of schoolkids on bicycles. The card reminded me of Tono.
Artist Jozef Bajus sent this announcement for a fundraiser at Buffalo State College on May 6. Bijutsu means art in Japanese and artwork of all kind has been donated for sale by students, faculty, and local artists. All proceeds will go to the Japan Society's earthquake relief fund. Definitely a worthy effort. I got a letter the other day from some farmer friends in Tono, who mentioned that Mashiko, a famous, old pottery center not far from Tokyo, had suffered damage in the March earthquake. Among the noborigama (climbing kilns) damaged or destroyed was one at the Hamada Shoji Museum. Hamada Shoji was, of course, a luminary of Japan's mingei movement.
I sent this vintage postcard of acacia blossoms to a postcrosser in Russia. What I could not send was the distinctive fragrance of the trees, which I last smelled on a street in Berkeley, on the way, I think, to Vic's Chaat Corner, a fabulous place that specializes in Indian street food.
I wasn't going to indulge in making baseball cards this season but somehow ended up yesterday with this one, the thin edge of the wedge, I fear.
A Dutch postcrossing mother of five sent this tilted view of Dom Square in Amsterdam, with a note that the monument commemorates World War II.
"Wait, I got more sand in my shoes again." The German postcrosser who sent this wry cartoon also supplied a translation.
Adorable but what kind of creature is it? The card is from a postcrossing dentist in Poland but she did not identify the subject.
Venerable, and indefatigable, artist Liz Whitney Quisgard sent this card from a new show which opened on April 29 at the North Charleston City Hall down in South Carolina. Called Structures, it features Quisgard's sculpted and wood-turned columns, towers, and obelisks, all decorated with marvelous geometric patterns. A special exhibition of the 2011 North Charleston Arts Festival, the show lasts until June 12.