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.
keep calm and drink tea (the Netherlands)
I’ve requested postcards of food and drink, and these two lovely senders filled the brief perfectly!
beautiful spring day (British Columbia)
This terrific burst of spring color comes from my penpal Ray in Victoria, BC! He sends news of the spring flowers that have begun to color his landscapes.
And how!
hand-drawn Golden Gate Bridge (California)
How quickly the student surpasses the teacher! I introduced Tracy to PostCrossing just this past December and now, not only is she exchanging cards with a fervor, but she’s begun drawing her own cards as well! Combine that with her thriving penpal hobby and I’m starting to feel a bit left in the dust — proud, but behind. Ha!
Steamtown National Historic Site (New York)
Mejdulene and KB have been exploring the national and state parks in New England for years now. This postcard, sent with yesterday’s, is even older she writes! Terrific!
McGraw Hall and Libe Slope (New York)
I’ve written before how much I love later-cards — postcards that were purchased with an intention to send them but which were lost of forgotten for some time. I believe it was a postcard from this sender, the inimitable Mejdulene, that first sparked my love of later-cards. Here is another one, found early during her stay at Cornell but now that the end of the visiting gig is in sight, dropped in the mail. It’s like a fine wine or cheese - aged to perfection and the perfect expression of its time.
Rothenburg (Germany)
Voici la première carte postale allemaine que je reçois de mon ami Dominique depuis assez longtemps. Il écrit que Rothenburg et une des plus belles villes d’Allemagne. Un jour, j’espère, je pourrais la visiter!
Opéra cake (California)
This past weekend, I made an opéra cake and I shared it with Tracy and Cynthia. In return, Tracy hand-delivered a hand-drawn image of the cake I made! It’s great to trade creative pursuits with such great friends!
mushroom taxonomy (Arizona)
I love that this sender hasn’t updated his profile since he was a kid! Terrific!
flamingos (Oregon)
Who doesn’t love a lawn flamingo?! I admit I thought these were those plastic jobbies, but it turns out, it’s a real flamingo! Thanks, Linda!
Paso Robles (California)
This postcard comes from Paso Robles, which is one of our favorite places to go wine tasting!
sunflower greyhound (California)
This darling postcard arrived in the mail written simply “Thank you for the help with the manuscript.” The sender has a beautiful signature which may be a T or an L, or a quite stylized M. I’ll have to do some digging to see who sent it! I do love it, though!
All Dressed Up (France)
Cette carte postale vient grâce à Dominique en France. La pièce s’appelle “All Dressed Up” (2022) par Elmgreen & Dragset. Je l’adore!
Petra (Oregon)
This postcard comes from Linda’s series of “places [she’s] never been” which I love. I also have a collection of postcards from places I’ve never visited, although none I don’t think as spectacular as Petra!
hand drawn poodle (California)
A dear friend of mine, Ron, has an impressive penguin collection: penguin everything! He said it started from a joke gift decades ago that has since grown into a monster that’s taking over his home. I think I’m looking down the tunnel at my future as someone who collects all things standard poodle. This card, however, is special because it’s hand-drawn by my other dear friend Tracy! She hosted Pinot for a few days this month so my father and I could have a bit more quality time. Dear friend, indeed!
natural night lights (Australia)
This comes from my penpal Matty in Australia who writes that he’s never really been to the interior of the country where the deserts are. There are many things that attract me to Australia, but the deserts are not one of them I have to say. I’m just not particularly partial to them either!
l’Église Saint-Paul (France)
Dominique m’envoie cetter carte postale avec l’Église Saint-Paul, une église protéstante construite par les allemands au fin du 19ème siècle. Je vous jure qu’il n’y a peu d’églises comme ça aux États-Unis, protéstantes ou catholiques.
silver blue drawing
This postcard was a big surprise when it arrived from Malaysia. I bought a whole pack of these postcards at La Postté in Las Vegas! Such a coincidence!