Soap Box Derby, Akron, Ohio

All-American Soap Box Derby

Akron, Ohio
Greetings form Derby Downs and the Annual Soap Box Derby. Entries from all over the world gather in Akron each year for this, the greatest amateur racing event in the world.

unused, sent to me in 2010, but the postcard is older

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Derby Downs, in Akron, Ohio, has been the home track of the All American Soap Box Derby since it was built as a Works Progress Administration project in the late 1930s. The three-lane asphalt track starts near the top of George Washington Boulevard and drops in a straight line down the wooded hill in the shadow of the Rubber Bowl, ending under final approach for runway 25 of Akron Fulton International Airport. Many people every year come to the "Downs".

There are three car categories (divisions) each having a different type of car: Stock, Super Stock, and Masters. They only race in their own categories. Each time a competitor has to race down the hill they race twice. Each time they go down it is called a Phase, and two Phases are called a Heat. When going down the track just nudging the steering wheel may cost you the heat. A win is determined by a fraction of a second. Rarely do they ever get a tie or a "Dead heat" especially during the All American Soap Box Derby.

Belgium Map with a stamp from Spiennes

Today is a little different - Someone sent me this great postcard of Belgium, but the stamp is from a very interesting place! So I'm writing about the stamp today. Thank you very much for reading my blog.

Map of Belgium

postmarked in 2010 with a Belgium Spiennes stamp


Belgique - Belgie (Belgium) stamp from 2009
Spiennes

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Spiennes is a village in the municipality of Mons, Belgium.
It is well known for its neolithic flint mines, which are on the list of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The entry on the list describes them as "the largest and earliest concentration of ancient mines in Europe" and cites the level of human technological development they demonstrate as justification for their inclusion.

Neolithic mines of Spiennes
The mines cover some 100 hectares of downland near Mons in Belgium and are interesting for showing the transition between opencast and underground mining for the flint nodules. The nodules were extracted using deer antler picks. The stones were then rough shaped into axes, and finally polished to achieve the final state.

The axes were used initially for forest clearance during the early Neolithic period, and for shaping wood for structural applications, such as timber for huts and canoes.

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If anyone is from the area of Spiennes, I would LOVE a postcard from there!

Wat Phu in Champasak, Laos

Champasak, Laos

Wat Phu, Champasak, Lao P.D.R.

Photography: Jatuporn Rutnin

postmarked in 2010 with two Laos stamps

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Wat Phou or Vat Phu, which means "temple on the mountain" in Lao language, is a ruined Khmer temple complex in southern Laos. It is located at the base of mount Phu Kao, some 6 km from the Mekong river in Champasak province. There was a temple on the site as early as the 5th century, but the surviving structures date from the 11th to 13th centuries. The site later became a centre of Buddhist worship, which it remains today.

Wat Phu is listed as a world heritage site by UNESCO.

Humpback Whales and Star Trek IV, The Voyage Home

Humpback Whale
(Megaptera novaeangliae)

Length: to 56 ft (16.2 m); calves 12 ft (3.7 m) at birth
Food: small fish, sand lance, herring, krill

Humpback Whales are very acrobatic. They jump and break out of the water, often spinning and landing on their backs. The population is estimated at 10,000 worldwide. and they're on the U.S. Endangered Species List.

Illustration - Maracom Corp.

postmarked in 2008 with a 27 cent 'Kiwi' stamp

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In the movies:

George and Gracie were a pair of fictional humpbacks which featured prominently in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home. In the film, Earth is threatened by large object that transmits a signal disabling the global power system and causing extreme weather patterns to develop. Spock determines the alien signal matches the song of humpback whales, extinct on Earth since the mid-21st century (at least 200 years). The crew devises a plan to go back in time, before the extinction, and return with a whale.

Arriving in the late 20th century, Kirk and Spock are able to quickly discover a pair of humpback whales, "George" and "Gracie," at the Cetacean Institute, an aquarium devoted exclusively to whales, and are told by the Institute's whale expert, Dr. Gillian Taylor, that the whales are shortly going to be released into the wild, making the pair ideal for their needs. Despite some upsets and the threat of whalers, the crew is able to return to the future, splashing down into San Francisco Bay, where Kirk releases the whales from the cargo hold. The whales respond to the alien signal, causing the object to restore Earth to its normal condition and to return to the depths of outer space.

Cary Grant

Cary Grant

unused, bought in 2010

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Archibald Alexander Leach (January 18, 1904 – November 29, 1986), better known by his stage name Cary Grant, was a British-American actor. He was noted as perhaps the foremost exemplar of the debonair leading man: handsome, virile, charismatic and charming.

He was named the second Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film Institute. His popular classic films include The Awful Truth (1937), Bringing Up Baby (1938), Gunga Din (1939), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), The Philadelphia Story (1940), Arsenic and Old Lace (1944), Notorious (1946), To Catch A Thief (1955), An Affair to Remember (1957), North by Northwest (1959), and Charade (1963).

On a personal note, I LOVE his movies! He really was a brilliant actor.

Inge Look - Grannies in Finland

Art by Inge Look

The sender writes that this is Kaivopuisto Harbour in Helsinki Finland and that the stamp is also the artwork of Inge Look.

postmarked in 2010 with a Finland Flower stamp

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Inge Löök (Ingebor Lievonen) is an artist and gardener from Pernaja, Finland. She was born in Helsinki 1951. Her artistic name Löök means onion in swedish.

She graduated from high school 1972 and got her gardening degree in 1974 and graduated 1979 from the Arts and Crafts University in Helsinki as a graphical designer. She worked as an gardener for six years but then her art work became a full time job.

She has drawn over 300 postcards, half of which are Christmas themed. She also designed more than 800 greeting cards and illustrated numerous exlibris book-tags. She has illustrated various childrens and young adults books and Christian literature and schoolbooks, couple of CD-covers and magazines especially gardenig magazines. She has worked for different publishers in Finland.

** The anarchistic grannies **
She is best known for her anarchistic grannie figures. Her first Grannies illustrations where born in 2003. The motto of the grannies is “Time is not money and spending it isn’t a sin”
At first her grannies were rejected by the publisher when she offered them as Valentines Day cards ( commonly known as ystävänpäivä friends day in Finland.) Pirjo Laakso noticed the grannies at a postcard fair and they were included in the Paletti card manufacturers prints. Then the grannies started their world wide success. In a couple of years grannies have sold more than hundred thousand copies. They represent a humorous approach to the world.

In spring 2008 a book and a wall calendar was published called “Paljain jaloin mummojen puutarhassa”- barefooted at the grannies garden. Grannies have now appeared in various prints and textiles and Finland has used them in stamps.

The visual appearance of the grannies comes from the artists childhood and the old ladies who lived in her neighborhood. Grannies picture a gentle caricature of the artists own attitude towards life.

Norman Rockwell

Marbles Champion - 1939

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The Tatooist - 1944

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The Four Freedoms - 1943
Freedom From Fear
By: Norman Rockwell

all are unused and bought in 2009

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For the Saturday Evening Post Magazine

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Norman Percevel Rockwell (February 3, 1894 – November 8, 1978) was a 20th-century American painter and illustrator. His works enjoy a broad popular appeal in the United States, where Rockwell is most famous for the cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios he created for The Saturday Evening Post magazine over more than four decades.

His Influences in film .....

In the film Empire of the Sun, a young boy (played by Christian Bale), is put to bed by his loving parents in a scene also inspired by a Rockwell painting—a reproduction of which is later kept by the young boy during his captivity in a prison camp. (Freedom from Fear, 1943). **above postcard**

The 1994 film Forrest Gump includes a shot in a school that re-creates Rockwell's "Girl with Black Eye" with young Forrest in place of the girl. Much of the film drew heavy visual inspiration from Rockwell's art.

In the film Lilo & Stitch, the end credits include a parody of Rockwell's Thanksgiving illustration. The participants in the dinner include three aliens, a native Hawaiian woman and child, and an African-American man. (Freedom from Want, 1943).

The 1988 film Funny Farm featured a scheme concocted by a homeowner (played by Chevy Chase) where redneck townsfolk are bribed to act like the characters of Norman Rockwell's paintings to create the illusion of ideal small-town American life, making the area more appealing to prospective buyers.

The First J.C. Penney Store - Wyoming

Mother Store of the J.C. Penney Company, was opened in April 1902, here in Kemmerer. There are now over 1600 Penney Stores, all over the U.S.A.

unused - maybe from the 1940's

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This store is still open, however it has shorter hours than most of the other J.C. Penney stores around the nation.

Snoqualmie Falls, Washington

Snoqualmie Falls, Washington, A fall of 268 Feet

The Falls are located 28 miles from Seattle, on a beautiful paved highway and are called the "Niagara of the West." Snoqualmie Falls Lodge is located on the brink of the Falls, where one can get a wonderful view of the Falls, and in the distance a panoramic view of the snow-capped mountains, the majestic beauty of which will long be remembered.

unused

Here is a postcard of it today ....

Snoqualmie Falls, located just 26 miles east of Seattle, is one of the main sources for hydroelectric power to the Seattle area.


Photo by Ben Harrison

unused, bought in 2010

The hotel you see is now called The Salish Lodge and Spa

Tree on Court House Tower, Greensburg, Indiana

Court House Tower, Greensburg, Indiana

Lone Tree on Court House Tower,
Greensburg, Ind. is unparalleled in the world. The present tree is about 13 years old but one or more trees have been growing on this tower for over 50 years.

unused

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The Decatur County Courthouse in Greensburg, Indiana, is known for a tree which grows from the top of the Courthouse Tower, giving Greensburg its nickname of the "Tree City.”

There have been one or more trees growing continually since the first tree was noticed in the early 1870’s. Later, other small trees appeared on the clock tower.
County officials were initially concerned that the trees would cause damage to the roof, and a steeplejack was hired in the 1880s to remove some of them. Two trees were left, with one ultimately growing to a height of nearly 15 feet. By the time it died, another tree had appeared.

Today, there are two trees on the tower.

Hershey Rose Gardens and Hotel - Hershey Chocolate Corporation

Hershey Rose Garden and Hotel Hershey
Hershey, Pa.

The Pool of the Hershey Rose Garden reflects the various colors of the Roses of the World, and the attractive surroundings. The Hershey Rose Garden contains more than 38,000 rose plants of over 850 distinct varieties, in bloom from June to frost time.

postmarked in 1959 with a 3 cent 'In God We Trust' Liberty stamp

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Today Hershey Gardens is a 23 acre botanical garden and arboretum. It is set on top of pat's hill overlooking Hersheypark. It was built as a gift from chocolate magnate Milton S. Hershey for his community and to honor his wife, Catherine.


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Here is what provided him the means to do that ....

East View, Hershey Chocolate Corp., Hershey, Pennsylvania

The Hershey Chocolate Corporation is the world's largest chocolate and cocoa plant.  625,000 pounds of chocolate is manufactured daily.  Between 60,000 and 75,000 gallons of milk are used daily in addition to cocoa beans and sugar to make the various products.

unused

Delicato Vineyards Metal Postcard

Delicato Vineyards
located east of San Francisco.
Customers enjoy browsing in the winery's delightful gift shop while sampling fine wines.
Open daily 9-5:30

Engraved on Copper
by Kopper Kard Co.

unused

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From the Delicato Website:

Founded by Gasparé Indelicato in 1924, Delicato Family Vineyards goal has always been to grow the finest possible grapes, and then use those grapes to create premium wines at affordable prices. Nearly 85 years later, Gasparé's original vision continues with the third generation of Indelicato family members. Nowhere is this more evident in the fact that Delicato has been named US Wine Producer of the Year an unprecedented three times at the International Wine and Spirits Competition along with countless individual awards for its wines.

Old Evansville Indiana Post Office

Designed in the English Victorian Gothic style, the Evansville, Ind., Post Office was completed in 1879. The construction of the three-story building is of Indiana limestone.

Ektachrome by Helen O'Brien

postmarked in 1957 with a 3 cent Andrew Mellon stamp

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The building is still there, and in wonderful condition, but now it is an office complex.

Baby Postcard

MMM-MM She's A Doll

postmarked in 1956 with a 3 cent Liberty stamp

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This is an adorable baby, but whoever this is, they are now in their mid-50's!

Finding Mr. Right

I think that
I shall Never See
A guy who's perfect just for me!
A man who's bright and doesn't bore me,
who has the good taste to adore me.
One who'll make my insides tingle, who is (dare I hope it?) single,
And who, if our lips should lock,
can send my hormones into shock!
A man whose passion doesn't wane when he finds out I've got a brain,
Yet one who'll flatter, charm and flirt
(a lot of money couldn't hurt!).
So if you see my Mr. Right, feel free to call me day or night!
And if he doesn't come alone--I'll consider Mr. wrong! -

This is a Hallmark postcard

postmarked in 1990 with 15 cent 'Buffalo Bill Cody' stamp

University of Tennessee Band - Pride of the Southland

University of Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee

The "Pride of the Southland" Band gathers to form the "Power T" for the Vols to run through before a Satyrday afternoon game at Neyland Stadium.

Photo: Donna Calonge in 1995

unused, from 2010

(The Word Saturday is spelled wrong on the card)

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The Pride of the Southland Marching Band has been performing at halftime for over one hundred years, but has existed since 1869 when it was founded as part of the Military Department.

It was not until 1961 that Tennessee native W. J. Julian was hired as an associate professor and director of the UT bands. Some of the many traditions established under his direction are the pregame formations.

The Pride's famous pregame show was designed by Julian with exclusive musical arrangements by Warren Clark and Barry McDonald. This six minute and forty-five second show has remained largely unchanged since the 1960s. It begins with a "Tennessee Waltz" variation in common time, followed by, starting in the 2007 season, a march version of "Tennessee River", then the "Alma Mater March". The band forms the traditional floating "U" and "T" and marches this across the majority of the field accompanied by "Rocky Top". The pregame show continues to build in excitement as the "Power T" is formed and all the Vols fans are asked to join in the Volunteer Wave and the crowd spells out "V-O-L-S" and chant "Go Vols Go!" Then the Pride of the Southland's Drum Major runs through the middle of this formation. The band then marches across the field until it reaches the opposite end zone. At this point, "Stars and Stripes Forever" is played and the band forms a large "USA" to the visiting sideline, then inverts the form to face the front sideline.

Pregame reaches its most thrilling point with the "Opening of the T" where the football team runs through a block T on to the field and to their sideline. This is one of the most photographed moments in college football and one of the greatest traditions of the "Pride", Tennessee football, and the University of Tennessee.
Although the T formation is used almost exclusively at Tennessee home games in Neyland Stadium, it has been done at other venues, most notably at the 1986 and 1991 Sugar Bowl.

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Here they are running into the 'Power T'

University of Tennessee

The Big Orange make their way onto Neyland Stadium through the famous Power "T".

Photo by Ryan & Shelly Calonge in 2005

Mascots of the Vancouver 2010 Olympics

Miga - A mythical sea bear, part orca and part kermode bear.



Quatchi - A sasquatch. He comes from the mysterious forests of Canada and dreams of being a hockey goalie.






Sumi - An animal guardian spirit with the wings of the Thunderbird and legs of a black bear who wears a hat of an orca whale. He lives in the mountains of British Columbia.


all three postcards are unused, the stamps are pre-paid and printed on the backs of the cards

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The mascots for the 2010 Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games were introduced on November 27, 2007.

Miga and Quatchi are mascots for the Olympic Games, while Sumi is the mascot for the Paralympic Games

Adventureland in Iowa, Reverse Image Postcards

Adventureland Des Moines, Iowa - unused

I have two of these cards in REVERSE image! - this one is a little larger with more background. notice the girl is on the right...look at the other card, she is on the left, also the boy in the front is looking in the opposite direction.

How to Make a Sock Monkey

Sock Monkey Makings

You can make this monkey from one pair of white heavy cotton worksocks. One sock becomes the head, body and legs, and the other becomes arms, tail, muzzle and ears. The eyes are buttons and the mouth is red stitching. Follow directions given in the sketches. After stuffing the body, fill the arms and tail. Sew these together, then connect muzzle and ears to body and head. Make some cute little cloths, and dress!

1. Turn one sock inside out.
2. Stitch along dotted lines.
3. Cut legs apart.
4. Remove 2 inches of stitching at this point.
5. Turn right side out.
6. Stuff head and tie.
7. Stuff body and legs.
8. Finally, resew stitching.

Ears: Cut and fold squares, connect corners and stitch.

postmarked in 2009 with a 44 cent purple heart stamp

Hologram 3-D Laser Cut postcard!

Antiquarian Holographica

The LASER: 50 Years in the Arts & Sciences 1960-2010

A Hologtram commemorative from Antiquarian Holographica
visit: holoworld . com

Frank DeFreitas Holography
Antiquarian Holographica Collection
815 West Allen Street
Allentown, Pennsylvania 18102
USA

Antiquarian Holographica is about the collection, appreciation, and scholarly study of late - 20th century printed ephemera as it relates to holography. As such, it celebrates the scientific, artistic, social and cultural history of this Nobel prize-winning field.

This postcard commemorates the 50th anniversary of the invention of the LASER.

postmarked in 2010 with a 28 cent stamp

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This postcard was sent to me from an unknown person from my postcard blog.

Whoever it was I say Thank you! The hologram of King Tutankhamun in the center is so vivid I want to put my hand behind the card and grab the image to pick it up! If you go to the website on the card you can buy these 3-D laser hologram postcards.

(The actual image goes from gold to green and then to red.)

Run with the Big Dogs!

You Can't Run with the Big Dogs
If you Pee like a Puppy!

Designed by John Hinde Curteich, Inc.

unused, from 2009

Aloma Baptist Church and Game Day

This Sunday is
GAME DAY
at Aloma

Wear your team colors!

2010 is the Year of Connect at Aloma! Our Game Day is all about connecting people:
to God
to each other
to His church

Wear your favorite team colors and be ready to get in the game for the Year of Connect.

See you there! GO TEAM!

Pastor Anthony

postmarked in 2010 with a machine stamp

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This is a postcard I received from my church. We did this last year too for Super Bowl Sunday. There were beach balls being passed around, we did the wave, and everything was so much fun! A word about Pastor Anthony George, he is not your typical preacher. He is so anointed from God that even the teenagers love him! You never know what he is going to say next, or what is going to get him on a rant. If you live in Central Florida and looking for something to do on Sunday morning, check out Aloma Baptist Church.

Aloma Baptist Church
1815 State Road 436
Winter Park, Fl 32792
407-671-6851

Flamingos

Florida Flamingo

unused, bought in 2009

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Every flamingo does not nest every year. When they do nest, they typically lay one large, white egg. The nest is built of mud, small stones, and feathers on the ground and is in the shape of a volcano. Mounds can be as high as 30 cm (12 in.). It can take a pair of flamingos up to six weeks to build their nest. Both parents will take turns incubating the egg for 26 to 31 days.
Newly hatched chicks have gray or white down feathers and a straight red bill. In these large colonies, parents can recognize their own chicks by their vocalizations (voice).

What do nestling flamingos eat?

Parent flamingos do not regurgitate food for their young the way most birds do. They feed their nestling a liquid substance called 'crop milk', a secretion of the upper digestive tract stimulated by the hormone prolactin. Crop milk is dark red in color and very high in fat and protein and is produced by both male and female birds.

Florida

Flamingos are social creatures, often living and breeding in large colonies.
Their most distinctive features are long legs and pink color.

This 'postcard Factory' postcard is postmarked in 2008 with a 42 cent 'heart' stamp

Caribbean Culture and Tropical Fruit Salad Recipe

Caribbean Culture
You are sure to find some of the most interesting cultural aspects of the Caribbean. From dancing Mocko Jumbies at cultural events to the sounds of the steel pan being played throughout the Caribbean by local musicians.

There is also a recipe on the back for

Tropical Fruit Salad
Serves 6 to 8

2 ripe bananas, peeled & cut into rounds,
2 ripe mangoes, peeled, seeded & cubed,
3 slices fresh pineapple, peeled & cubed,
1 pink grapefruit, peeled, seeded & Segmented,
1 fresh orange; peeled, seeded & segmented,
2 Carambolas (star fruit), cut into 1/4 inch slices,
Juice 4 passion fruits,
1 Tbsp brown sugar,
2 Tbsp light rum,
freshly grated nutmeg,
juice of 1 lemon,
fresh mint leaves:

Combine fruits in a mixing bowl. Sprinkle with sugar, rum, nutmeg and lemon juice. Mix well. Refrigerate 1 hour before serving, then garnish with fresh mint leaves.

postmarked in 2008 with with 42 cent Frank Sinatra stamp

Presidents of the United States of America

United States Presidents

America's 43 Presidents are vividly illustrated in this painting by Randy Green. Since 1789, when George Washington was sworn in as our first President, America has benefited from over 200 years of Presidential stability, a record admired around the world.


First Ladies - in the 1930's, Eleanor Roosevelt began a tradition of activism in the White House that continues to this day. Modern First Ladies such as Lady Bird Johnson, Pat Nixon, Betty Ford, Rosaline Carter, Nancy Reagan, Barbara Bush, and especially Jacqueline Kennedy and Hillary Clinton have been highly visible assets to the Presidency. Artist Randy Green has created an informative overview of First ladies from Martha Washington to Laura Bush.