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.
lenticular Oh, Those (Nevada)
I love lenticular postcards, even though they don’t scan very well! That must be why Andy picked up this really stunning one from Meow Wolf with quite a lot of movement! I was delighted to receive it in the mail.
Lima the Llama (Hawai’i)
My brother-in-law Tristan was in Maui visiting friends and family and volunteering with the clean up and humanitarian situation. He sent this very cute postcard, which I hope is a representation of the resilience of indigenous and local communities in the face of disasters, natural and human-made.
München (Germany)
Wow, I haven’t been to Munich since 2013! Our dear friends Julian and Salvo are traveling in Italy and Spain this month, but somehow found time to send this postcard upon arriving initially in Europe!
artistic cheese (Nevada)
Andy traveled to Las Vegas last weekend with some friends from grad school. While there, they visited Meow Wolf, which he had visited together in Santa Fe way back in 2016. What a trippy experience! At first, this just looks like cheese, but if you look a bit closer, you can see that there’s more than initially meets the eye!
downtown Detroit (Michigan)
Our niece Emily moved to Detroit earlier this year to be closer to her work as a pastry chef. She found this delightful historic postcard of Detroit, and even included some historic stamps on the back!
la quiche Lorraine (France)
Voici une recette que je connais bien. J’ai bien préparé cette quiche plusiers fois. Je ne sais pas pourquoi, mais beaucoup d’américains pensent que les quiches sont difficiles à préparer. Je peux vous assurer que cela n’est pas le cas. Merci, Dominique!
Chinese University of Hong Kong
This postcard from the Chinese University of Hong Kong comes from a former student I worked with who’s now working at the CUHK. I’ve only received a small number of postcards from HK, so this is a special treat!
tourte lorraine
Mon ami Dominique m'a envoyé cette recette pour la tourte lorraine, un repas que je ne connaissais pas. Elle a l’air très bon, donc il faudra que je l’éssaie bientôt.
“où diable se trouvent mes pantalons?” (Oregon)
Ha ha ha. How funny is this re-casting (ha! See what I did there?) of the classic Rodin sculpture?! Thanks, Linda, for sending it.
Lego birthday balloons (Indiana)
Nozomi got these great Lego postcards a while ago and has been generously choosing a few here and there to send to me. This one is a great one, of course, in honor of my birthday which passed recently. Thanks, Nozomi!
cartes d’anniversaire (France)
Car mon amie ait passé son août en France, elle m’a envoyé cette carte postale glorieuse pour fêter mon anniversaire. Je l’adore tellement, ce qui n’est pas surprennant car elle me connaît très bien.
Rose City (Oregon)
Who doesn’t love a good wooden postcard? Kimee and Michael sent this one from their recent trip to Oregon. It’s quite appropriate that it be made of wood, given the heavily wooded nature of the Pacific Northwest.
“How to succeed…” (Indiana)
My friend Nozomi sent this postcard from a performance she saw a while ago. I haven’t seen it yet, but after my incredible experience at Cabaret in London, I’ve got the bug for live shows!
crabby post office (England)
This postcard I sent to my husband to thank him for arranging our trip abroad. He noticed this image when we were in the Postal Museum in London and was taken by the anthropomorphized crab. He loves seafood to eat, but also to admire!
Notice, though, that the postage for a postcard is lower for “postcards containing name of sender, date and a conventional phrase of not more than five words.” What constitutes a “conventional phrase”?!
the Midwest: it’s like this (Iowa)
I’m not sure how ironic the makers of this postcard intended it to be, or whether this is a genuine depiction of the openness and beauty (and whiteness) of the Midwest. In either case, I think both interpretations hold, which is probably why our wry friends Edmundo and Renée chose to send this from a recent family trip to Iowa.
Koblenz (Germany)
This is the summer of cruise ships it seems! Dominique sends this one from Germany, writing about how many Alsatians choose to take cruises down the Rhine. Dominique and his partner, however, prefer a car trip down the romantic valley. After our other friends’ experience on a river cruise down the Rhine, I might be convinced to give it a try, however!
Elk Rapids (Michigan)
The same day as Arthur’s card arrived, so did his brother’s - Walter, my youngest nibling. He, too, was visiting the family vacation home and sent this delightful postcard. Kudos to the USPS for delivering the postcard, even though the address was written on the wrong side of the card and semi-legibly, and was only addressed to me as “Tío Geda.” Kids bring such joy to every task!
Elk Lake (Michigan)
I am, sadly, not in the habit of posting the obverse of postcards, but it’s a shame in this case because this card comes from my third-youngest nibling Arthur from a trip his family took to the vacation home in Elk Rapids. He send important news of his new stuffy, a rainbow chameleon. I hope to see the new friend some time soon!
knoedel stein (Austria)
By now, I can recognize these lovely Tiroler Volkskunstmuseum postcards from a meter away. The design is absolutely iconic. Thanks to Dominique for sending this postcard from a quick pop over to Austria while on a trip to Austria.
Monticello (Virginia)
My former colleague and now friend Heather visited Virginia with her husband, including a stop at the infamous Monticello. She aptly writes “History is quite captivating and thought-provoking.”