Stamp Math, + Some of my latest favorites, received from Canada, England, Germany, Italy, Japan, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Singapore, and South Korea

U.S. Postcrossers, how are you doing with the latest increase in stamp rates? This, plus my recent discover of old discounted postage for sale, has resulted in my doing a lot of math lately to get the right amount of stamps on each postcard — and often, it’s resulted in my running out of space to fit the stamps across the top of the cards!

Some postcard manufacturers barely leave enough room for a small single stamp in the corner of their cards. I wonder sometimes if the people designing the back of the postcards ever actually send cards. How do you handle the challenges?

My mailbox has been very happy, though: so many cute animals & cool ‘toons! Check them out…

This beautiful otter came to me from a Postcrosser in Okinawa, Japan.

More wonderful sea creatures, these from Germany. A funky scan of a great card.

Uh-oh: watch out, seals! This beauty came to from a Postcard Uniter from Poland

In from Japan, on a Postcrossing Forum tag. I love it!

And I love this gorgeous pup, received from the same Postcrosser! She says it’s an Akita Inu, known as the “Busakawa dog,” meaning “unattractive but very cute.” I find it both attractive and cute.

Also received via a Postcrossing Forum tag, this time from Russia. I’d love to have these two beauties riding in my car!

More beautiful creatures! These shore birds came to me from a Postcard Uniter in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia

Just 3 days after a sunset stroll during which I saw a family of raccoons coming out of the woods, I received this lot (no relation) from a Postcrosser in Russia!

This gorgeous beach scene came to me from Lissone, Italy (near Milan) — though by the time it reached me, the card seemed to have had a bite taken out of its bottom left corner!

From a Postcrosser in Singapore. The Sri Mariamman Temple is Singapore’s oldest temple, and you really should see it!

Received from Finland. The sender translates Snoopy’s thought: “An inspiration can surprise at any time (although sometimes it wears off before it gets off to a good start).”

Received from Portugal, love it!

Cool cubbies! From a Postcrosser in Ontario, Canada.

These fish came to me from Germany.

From England, some beaches. The Postcrosser who sent this to me says he got the card while on a trip to Scotland, but did not visit any of these beaches.

From Chiba, Japan

Received from South Korea via Postcard United

Nanu-Nanu Bars: Received from Belarus, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, and Thailand

Okay, time to press “publish” again! This post, once again, represents nothing more than a few weeks’ worth of postcards received via Postcrossing and Postcard United — but only the cards whose images were uploaded by their senders, because I have reached a very lazy time-saving phase of this blog: no taking pics of my own (and that includes stamps)!

The only organization here, really, is that my favorites are more or less around the top. What are YOUR favorites here?

Hope you are doing well & staying safe. Happy posting!

From Germany. I’m always happy to see an otter! The sender decorated the back with an otter stamp, sticker, & even return address label.

A lovely bunch of walruses, received from Germany.

A lovely pair! Received from Belarus

I really love this image of Charlie Brown & Linus I received from a Postcrosser in Bremen, Germany. The big, close-up focus is just so great.

This postcard came to me from China, & it is delicious.

Wow, so rare to receive a postcard from Thailand! You should see the wonderful stamps on the back — but even the basic posts I’ve been submitting lately are time-consuming enough.

I received this funny card from Kirov, Russia, by request. The sender writes, “I never thought that someone will pick this card. It’s a bit strange, but I like it, too. These toys are from a children’s show called ‘Goodnight, Kids.’ Every child in Russia born or grown up in the 90’s knows who they are: Stepashka, Mryusha, Karkusha, and Filya.”

Received from Oxford, U.K. The sender tells me that she is supporting a local artist who lets people download his art for free. She contacted the artist, Joshua Squashua, to get his blessing to print his work on postcards. He agreed, and as a thank you, the sender raised some money for a homeless charity he supports.

Received from Netherlands

Received from Canada

This cute hedgehog is from a new Postcrosser in Russia, who is also a postal worker who admits to “having looked with interest at small messages from all over the world.” Glad I don’t write anything too scandalous on the cards I send out, how about you?

From Saint Petersburg, Russia

Krtek the Mole & friends, Received from Munich, Germany.

Received from Netherlands

Received from Germany

Received from Petrozavodsk, Russia

Received from Minsk, Belarus. The sender says, “Belarus is a beautiful country. It has many rivers, lakes, and forests, rich flora and fauna.”

Received from Tula, Russia

I received this card from a Postcrosser in Canada, and I think I shall have to make these delicious-sounding nanu-nanu bars! The card’s sender tells me the dish originates from Nanaimo on Vancouver Island, where she lives.

Received from Brazil: “Based in a waterfall in the south of Brazil among your favorites, I decided to send you this postcard with mountains.”

Tilt your head to the left. This one came from Taohuatan, China (via registered mail!) The sender recommends this place in the Anhui province, saying, “there are lots of beautiful sceneries, delicious food, and the air here is very fresh.” I really do look forward to safer travel again…

Now tilt your head to the right. This has arrived from the U.K., and the sender tells me it’s “a very apt postcard seeing as the rain is currently pouring outside after a weekend of sunshine. Typical!”

Received from the Czech Republic. The sender wrote a lot about his country, but unfortunately I wasn’t able to read much of it, due to the tight cursive writing. This has happened pretty often lately.

Received from Russia

This in from Poland. If the town name sounds familiar to you, it may be because the sender’s daughter played volleyball there, and her team won the championship.

Received from Russia

Received from Udmurtia, Russia. The sender writes, “We have a joke. It’s cold for 3 months, and the remaining 9 months are very cold!” Well, I would hate that, seeing as I don’t even like to see photos of snow.

Catch-Up Edition: Received from Belarus, Bulgaria, China, Finland, Germany, Netherlands, The Philippines, Poland, Russia, Slovenia, South Korea, & the U.S.

It’s kind of false to call this a catch-up edition, because at this point, I don’t think I’ll ever be caught up. I thought this would be a good way to keep track of my postcards, but who has time? Anyhow, after a very long absence, here we go with SOME of the cards I’ve received over the last few months since my last post.

Could there be any postcard more wonderful than this Grandma Duck card that found its way to me from Lelystad, Netherlands?

I also love this postcard from Qingdao, China!

More Doraemon! This one from Poland.

from a friend in the U.S…

from Germany…

Also from Germany:

…and again.

…and again, again. This one below is from a guy who describes himself as a 30-year-old enthusiastic tobacco pipe smoker.

Received from Colorado, U.S.A. I had no idea Ikea sold postcards, did you? I don’t even know where I would start to look for them. The second I go in, the only thing I’m really looking for is the exit…

Here comes something tasty from Korea. The sender says, “nakjibogguem is a stir-fried octopus. It is made with chopped octopus and vegetables. Then make a marinade with red pepper sauce, soy sauce, garlic, salt, and sugar. Mix, marinade them and fry everything. It is pretty delicious with spicy taste. Hope you like it!”

I love this tasty dish of Chairman Mao’s Red Braised Pork from Shanghai, China:

From Quanzhou, Fujian Province, China:

Here’s a dish of food (“pyshenka with butter and piroshki (patty)) from Russia, and I it was dated 2015, about 4 years and 1 month before I received it. It turn out that the sender just apparently had the mid-20-teens on his mind: it was issued and mailed less than a month ago.

More Russian bread:

Received from Shanghai, China:

Received from China–must have been a Postcard Uniting meetup–lots of signatures!

From Hangzhou, China:

From South Korea:

From Shantou, China:

From Finland:

From Belarus:

More pink edibles from Belarus:

Something sweet from Russia:

From Poland:

Bulgaria:

Slovenia:

From the Philippines:

This one from Russia kinda freaks me out…

…if you think it’s not freaky yet, pair it with the message scrawled on the back:

Why are you so prickly, Hedgehog?
–That’s me just in case. You know who my neighbors are? Foxes, wolves, bears.
Happy Postcrossing!

E E E K !

 

Let’s Just Agree to Ignore One Another: Sent to Hong Kong, Indonesia, Japan, Poland, & Thailand

A mere 10 postcards this time! What’s the story with the title? We’ll get to it, but not too much into it–later.

Elephant & Piggie are going to Asahikawa, Hokkaido, Japan.

The recipes from a box of cake flour went to Niigata, Japan. Do you ever try the recipes on a food package? I have, from packages of chocolate chips & cocoa powder. I heard from the card’s recipient, and she does not cook anything from the recipes printed on food packages.

Off to Bangkok, Thailand, in a “marine life & sea creatures” tag, goes this sun star from the Monterey Bay Aquarium. I tell the card’s recipient I enjoy visiting aquariums when I travel, and have been to her local, Sea Life Bangkok Ocean World.

Piedras Blancas Lighthouse goes to Saitama, Japan. I go to the area often, but never to the lighthouse; in fact, I just learned you can get a tour! For me, the draw of Piedras Blancas is the thousands of elephant seals. As it happens, on the very day I wrote this postcard, I took a little day trip down there to see the current denizens of the beach.

Far, far north of Piedras Blancas are Northern California & its coastal redwoods. This card goes out by request to a Postcrosser in Lublin, Poland, who noted, “blank in an envelope, please.” I’ll ignore that like she ignored my notation that I send my cards stamped and written, as the snail mail gawdz intented. And as I suspected, her “profile”is nothing but a list of cards she wants.

For a food tag, this goes to Jakarta, Indonesia. I may have already mentioned that this vegetarian Chinese restaurant in San Francisco’s Chinatown isn’t the best representation of its genre–but I sure liked getting free postcards!

Aladdin, Jasmine, & Abu are off to Hong Kong in a Disney tag.

This cool Totoro card should end up in New Taipei City, Taiwan.

Franklin is off by request to Taichung, Taiwan. I sure wish he–or any of the Peanuts characters–had won that election!

More Peanuts: Li’l Lucy is headed for Yokohama, Japan.

Before stamps, stickers, & washi tape, let’s look into my Postcrossing Forum U2U inbox. I just got a thank you from an earlier send to Taichung City, Taiwan, with a little museum report:

Thank you so much for the beautiful cards! They arrived at the same time 😀 We don’t have a lot of museums in Taiwan. There are two in my hometown, the science and art museums. But the museums are small and do not have a lot of works contained. I once took my foreign friend there and she said it was boring compared to those in her country. Thank you for always using great stamps 😀 Have a great day!

So Hard to Keep Track, Though: Sent to China, Greece, Hong Kong, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Taiwan, & Thailand

Lots of cards to show off this time: more than I can actually keep track of, as you’ll see. Mostly Postcrossing Forum tags, with a couple of Postcard United sends. Please let me know what you like!

I love sea otters! This one goes to Bangkok, Thailand–and I am jealous.

Trinidad, California goes to Lublin, Poland

This beautiful tiger is headed for Hong Kong. Also to Diessen, Netherlands!

The pelicans should land with a brand-new Postcrosser in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. Although he is participating in the forum tags, he has yet to upload a profile, which is always a disappointment to me.

California Coast Highway 1 went off to Larissa, Greece, and the Grinch (from the Dr. Seuss National Memorial Sculpture Garden in Springfield, Massachusetts) went to Saitama, Japan.

Uhm, I didn’t do a good job keeping records on this next pair, but one is going to New Taipei City, Taiwan. This stuff is hard.

Here we have one off to Sarsborg, Norway. I hope the recipient enjoys this dramatic coastal scene.

Time for stamps, stickers, & washi tape. Do you have any favorites?

Blast Off to the Eclipse! Sent to Canada, Finland, Hungary, Japan, Poland, South Korea, & the U.S.

Here comes another post that I started, but shelved for some reason. I had pretty much finished this one, but did have to go back & fill in a little detail here & there. You can tell it’s been sitting in the fridge here for a couple of months or so, seeing as it relates in part to that well-hyped eclipse, now pretty far in the rear-view mirror. Read on, & enjoy!

This great work of art is from 10 Little Rubber Duckies by Eric Carle, and I picked it up at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, Massachusetts.  The card went off in a Postcrossing Forum tag to Saitama, Japan, to a recipient who enjoys picture book art.  If you scroll down to the bottom of the post, you’ll see there is more picture book art on the back of the postcard: Green Eggs and Ham washi tape, purchased at the Dr. Seuss Memorial Sculpture Garden in Springfield, Massachusetts.

To a cat lover in Echizen, Japan, I sent this Jetoy postcard.  It also goes out in a Postcrossing Forum tag, and since the recipient says she likes reading, watching movies, & traveling–and I do, too–I told her about my last read, last movie attended, and last trip taken.

Next up, the card on the left (a scene from the Hearst Castle gardens) went to Chantilly, Virginia; and the Rocky Mountain National Park scene went to Chicago, Illinois.

Another Postcard United draw: this reading kitty went to Räyrinki, Finland.

And ANOTHER Postcard United draw–this one went to Seoul, South Korea–and I like that this user offers writing prompts:

*If you don’t know what you should write me, here are some hints 🙂 May 2017 question :> Pick one and answer it please! 1. “Why some people are fascinated with vampires?” 2. “If you can get a superpower, would you like to be a superhero or a villain? and why?” Backside ideas :> -your favorite book / writer -your favorite movie / series -favorite animal, have you got a pet? -favorite food -favorite quote -your hobbies -your love story 🙂 –

One of the types of postcards she wanted was movie-related, so I sent her this l’il movie poster picked up at a local cinema.

The next trio of cards are hewn from food packaging, all sent off in the current round of a swap-bot “Chunk O Cardboard” trade.  Babu’s Kati–Masala Pizza flavor–was okay, but too sweet, I think.  Needless to say, it was munch better than any Hot Pocket.  It’s on its way to a swapper in Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Instant update on Babu’s Kati!  The card has been received:

Hi there! Thank you so much for the Masala Kathi chunk o cardboard. I especially like the orange price tag on the front, and particularly the postage you used. The postmark situated itself just between the spaceman and the solar eclipse! Was very fun to receive, and brightened my day!

The gardening tips went off to Topeka, Kansas.  They are from a box of off-brand Chex cereal.  Actual quality cereals do not have room for gardening tips; they use all of that space telling you what cool toys are inside the package.

The DeliChoc panel landed in Prince Rupert, British Columbia, Canada.  I don’t remember where or when I got this stuff, but doesn’t it look delicious?  I love these dark chocolate/biscuit combos, like the LU Little Schoolboy.  Mmm.

BraveStarr here went to Budapest, Hungary, to–well, I just don’t know whom. I was assigned this user when I clicked “send a card” on Postcard United, and the user had absolutely no profile at all. I wrote a friendly note:

Greetings from California, U.S.A.! I was sad that you have no profile. Most of the fun here is getting to know a little bit about other people. Maybe soon?

Another Postcard United, this one to Rybnik, Poland:

Stamps, stickers, & washi tape time. Do you have any favorites?

 

Here comes the scan that gives this post its title.  I’m glad I finally found a use for these spacey stickers I bought quite a long time ago.  If you compare this scan to my previous post, (or if you’re lazy, even just the moon stamp that appears right above this text block), you will see that in the day between those scans and this one, the temperature in my house (and of course, out) has risen considerably.  These heat-sensitive stamps are showing their full moons. At the very bottom of the post, you will see a colder version of the stamp.

We Begin with Buns & a Dragon: Received from Australia, China, Germany, India, Poland, South Africa, & the U.S.

NINE (count ’em!) cards to share this time around!  They come via Postcrossing, Postcrossing Forum, Postcard United, & swap-bot.  Let’s start with my two very favorite, one of which is this delicious image of char siu bao!  The card is from Shanghai, China, and the sender writes:

You know the picture of the food on the postcard? It’s steamed bun and it’s a little sweet. You can usually eat it in Guangzhou province in China.

The beautiful seahorse card is from Australia.  Pretty cool how the postage “stamp” is part of the printed image.  The sender tells me:

The weedy seadragon is native to Australia and are a threatened species.  They are found in seaweed beds along the southern parts of Australia.  They can grow up to 45 cm (18 in) in size.  They are slow moving and rely on their leafy body parts as camouflage in the seaweed.  Although I haven’t seen a seadragon in the wild, I have seen them at Seahorse World in Tasmania, which is a working seahorse farm who have guided tours.  I could have stayed there all day watching them and the seahorses!

Otters!  That one is from Lowell, Indiana, and was part of a swap-bot “recycled postcard” swap, which means this sender received the card from someone else, but slapped a new backing on it & sent it my way.  I like this one enough to keep it around!

I’d regift this nice couple, though!  The card came to me from Poland, from a Postcard Uniter who tells me she is 20 years old, and she loves to travel and cook.

Still more mentions of food on this colorful night view from Nanjing, China.  The sender asks:

Have you tried a special Chinese snack called spicy dry tofu?  It’s a famous snack in China.  It’s spicy, little sweet and salty.  Maybe you will love it!

Maybe I will!  Since she didn’t include the Chinese name in Pinyin, I couldn’t tell if it’s one of the tofu snacks I’ve tried.

More scenery, this time from India!  So rare that I have postcards traveling to & from there, so it’s a real pleasure.  The image is labeled as being of the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology in Gangtok, Sikkim, India, and the sender tells me she picked up the postcard there “when on the Darjeeling-Gangtok-Kalimpong circuit!”

The gazebo came to me from Virgina, and it’s labeled as being at Claytor Lake State Park in Dublin.

These two avid readers were sent to me by a swap-botter in Germany, and she says:

Well, I don’t know about you, but if I have to choose between the 2 newspapers–I definitely go for the comics!!!”

I took a hard look at the comics section, and was able to discern the strips printed here: Peanuts, Andy Capp, Blondie, and Prince Valiant.

The last card is made from the panel of a waffle box, and it is not as tall as most of the postcards, but much longer than any of them.  Hard to tell, as it was scanned separately!  It came from a swapper in Brakpan, Gauteng, South Africa.

Okay, it’s finally time for stamps, stickers, and washi tape!  One of my favorites this time around would be the beautiful sun conure from Australia.  See anything YOU like?

There are some Russian stamps in this card, because while doing the scanning, I overlooked the fact that I’d already logged the corresponding card.  Oops!  The stamps are still interesting though, so enjoy (again)!

A Bit Heavy on the Kaya: Received from China, Malaysia, Poland, Slovenia, & Thailand

Six incoming cards this time–let’s start with my two very favorite!

The dino is just the bottom of a 3-tiered dino stack found in Beijing, China‘s 798 Art Zone.  I would love to find myself here!  I received this postcard in a Postcrossing Forum tag trade.

I received the kopitiam card via Postcard United, from a Netherlands native now living in Malaysia.  I haven’t been to Malaysia yet, but I have been to neighboring Singapore, where kopitiams–and this breakfast–are also a big thing.  I had my kopi with milk, and I left most of my egg behind–eggs are a taste I have yet to really appreciate, at least most of the time–but I love me some kaya toast.  I love it at home, and I love it abroad.  And I will eat it here and there.  I will eat it everywhere!  I do so love kaya toast.

Staying on the topic of food, the next card was sent by a Postcrosser who tells me that she’s a foodie, and that “there are many kinds of delicious snack in China.  So I hope u could have fun in China one day!”  I would like to spend many days doing so!  This beautiful building on her postcard is the Ri Sheng Chang Exchange Shop, located in Pingyao, Shanxi, China.  It dates back to 1823, and is thought to be the first draft bank in China’s history.

More food comes my way from a Postcrosser in Slovenia.  She lists the foods (her writing is a little hard to read, but we can look these items up using the print on the card image), then says, “maybe you’ll ever eat these foods.” Not-so-fascinating fact: I don’t care for honey, olives, or olive oil (I think Olive Oyl is kinda cool, though).  You know what food I DO love?  C’mon, have you even been paying attention?  I love kaya toast!

More buildings, more Postcard United, this time from Poznań, Poland.  The sender tells me his is one of the largest cities in the country, and he also writes:

“I’m an attorney and I really like my job.  🙂  I love almost every kind of active spending time e.g. skiing, cycling, hiking or canoeing.  I hope that you’ll like this postcard picturing Liberty Square in my hometown.  Wish you all the best!”

The last card is from Thailand, received in a swap-bot trade of free ad cards.  I see it was produced by an Australian initiative that invites emerging artists to apply to have their work printed on its free cards.

Stamp time!  I especially love that one on the bottom row, sporting a photo from Krabi, Thailand.

 

The Problem with Food Tourism: Received from Poland, Taiwan, & the U.S.

Three awesome cards up top this time, starting in Hawaii with another cooool Peanuts card from the Suntan Snoopy collection!  Thanks, Cindi! And the special stamp, which you’ll see at the end of the post.

That beautiful image of a tea house at night is from Taipei, Taiwan, thanks to a Postcrossing Forum trade.  The sender writes:

“I really like America.  It is so beautiful!  I have there this year for work and travel in Big Sky.  I really had a good time there, hope can go again.”

And so it happened that I, the American, went online to look up “Big Sky.”  Now, I’ve been once or twice to a Big Sky Cafe in San Luis Obispo, California, but I assumed that’s not what she was talking about.  After my search, I asked her if she meant Big Sky, Montana, not far from Yellowstone National Park.  Indeed, she did:

yeah! the town in Montana 🙂
and I worked in Big Sky Resort, the largest ski resort in the United States

The wonderful–delicious–illustrated card is from a Postcrosser in Tainan, Taiwan.  He writes:

“I’m an university freshman majoring in education.  If you have a chance to travel, welcome to Taiwan.  We have a lot of special, cheap and delicious foods.  Maybe you will love it.”

Do you know what the problem with food travel is?  Not enough stomach space.  VERY frustrating.

The 3 cards at the bottom all came in an envelope from a Postcard United member in Wysokie, Poland.  Not for the first time in my very young Postcard United career, I have been assigned to a user that had previously been assigned to me.  This fella wrote on the nicest of the cards–the owl:

“I collect postcard and magnets from different countries.  Please send me a postcard from your region.”

Those other 2 cards, I suppose intended to be gifts in trade, couldn’t interest me less.  I’d feel guilty even sending them out in a Postcard United or Postcrossing assignment.  I ended up scanning them and adding them to my Photobucket of “offers” for when I enter such reverse tags in the Postcrossing Forum.  If this sender had looked at my favorited cards, maybe he would have seen something in his collection that woulda been a more motivating bribe for me, but, nah.  In truth, thanks to the way Postcard United apparently works, I have indeed ALREADY sent him a card from my region!

Nice stamps!  Check out the atemoya — AND THE DUMBO!

Big Hero 6 & the Unmanageable 8: Sent to China, Germany, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Poland, Singapore, & Taiwan

I thought I’d wait to share my outgoing postcards until I had sent out a handful or so–and before I knew it, it’d become an unmanageable 8!

The “Southside with You” movie poster card went to Singapore for a swap-bot “movie/TV” postcard swap.  I picked up that card at a movie theater, and was not just pleased to have a movie postcard to share–I was also excited to see the movie!  When it came out, I did indeed go see it, and really enjoyed the entire thing.  I was happy to be able to write about the movie on this card, as this swapper, though she provides a long, long, profile, it’s not about her–but about what she wants, wants, wants.  Sigh.  Well, one thing she wanted was “vintage tickets,” and though the vintage is probably late 1990’s or later, I glued a few arcade tickets onto the card as a divider.  You can see that down below.

Another movie represented in the next card: “Big Hero 6.”  That went out to Mumbai, India, in a Postcrossing Forum Disney tag trade.

Hearst Castle is next.  It went to a castle lover in Hong Kong, thanks to a Postcrossing Forum USA-Asia tag.

By the way, I’ve started sending out more cards via Postcard United!  Astro & the Dogs are headed for Shanghai, China, to a recipient who wrote, “I prefer like: Marvel, Harry potter, Game of Thrones.”  Since I had none of that, I sent her Astro Boy, UglyDoll, Battlestar Galactica.  I’m sure she’ll like it.

The Jetoy cat is also headed out via Postcard United; it’s going to a cat lover in Bergheim-Fliesteden, Germany.  She says she doesn’t like any animals except cats & butterflies.  Oof!

She also doesn’t like to receive religious themes–the exact opposite of the Postcard Uniter I drew in Łódź, Poland, who prefers them.  Since I have none of that, I combed his profile for other possibilities.  Good News: he writes,

“JAPAN and USA: please send me card from your country (landscapes, buildings, culture etc) – I am fascinated by this.”

–I can help with that!  I pulled out the Oakland card, and told him a little bit about that city.

Matisse’s “Woman Before An Aquarium” is for a regular Postcrossing draw, and it went out to an art lover in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.

Finally, the tiger went to New Taipei City, Taiwan, in a Postcrossing Forum tag trade.  The recipient is a new Postcrosser, an 18-year-old high-school student, and though she provides a list of possibilities for people who really need guidance, she prefaces it with, “no special request for the postcards, they are all surprising gifts to me.”

I just love that.

Okay, have a look at some of the stamps & stuff!