Speaking of Postcards

Here's a belated one for Valentine's Day (which is generally ignored in my household).
Postmarked probably in 1902 and addressed to Mr. R.C. Kloss, Kent, ILL. No note is on the card.

For Postcard Friday.

Mail Geek

I feel like such a geek and one problem with being a geek as a kid is that your never get over the trauma of being thought a geek. Wow, did you know you could use the word geek three times in one run on sentence? I have been a letter writer since I was a kid. My grandmother, my favorite person in the whole wide world after my kids, saved my letters because she thought one day I'd be famous and they might be published. What a nice thought. I sure miss her. She used to have my first letter ever, in those giant letters you learned in kindergarten, taped to her closet mirror.
I wrote most regularly to my grandparents in California (at the time I lived in Seattle) and an assortment of letters and cards to other people.
While I lived in Paris in my senior year in college I sent a number of air letters (what ever happened to them?) to friends and family, especially my grandmother who had terminal breast cancer. I couldn't afford many phone calls home and those involved dropping all my loose change into a pay phone until my call ran out and was abruptly terminated. How much life has changed with cell phones, e-mail and Skype. Although I adored being in Paris it was lonely at times and I lived for letters from the States.
I stopped writing, and thereby lost a few friends including the couple of friends I made in France, as graduate/medical school began and I got bogged down in work and later family. Now I have regrets, but what can you do?
I am happy to find like-minded, extremely cool people (unlike me) who are trying to keep the postal service alive and keep the hand written letters moving. Postcrossing, sendsomething.net and some letter-friendly bloggers net some letters and postcards from home and abroad. It sure beats bills and junk mail. It also gives me an excuse to buy odd postcards and the latest US postage stamps.
As to the images I've posted here, they are my thanks to thesnailmailer who enjoys seeing her letters posted and who sent me the above envelope and card which truly deserve being shared. I have to confess, I've never tried Jello-shots--geek that I a--but one good envelope deserves another. Speaking of alcohol, have you ever heard of bubble gum flavored vodka? Now that is really gross. Have a lovely weekend and write lots of letters.

Free Syria

I was downtown on Saturday and happened on this protest march. The people carried flags and posters and chanted: "Free, free Syria." Good luck to them and others in finding political freedom.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-Changes

Or, you're never to old to do something new.
Today I changed some light bulbs. I know it doesn't sound like anything to brag about but these were on my car. Sad to say, I've been driving around for months with only one working headlamp on my car. This has annoyed my spouse to no end but not enough for him to get the bulb changed. Last night I was set to win the procrastinator of the year award when the second bulb gave up the ghost. Today being Sunday, of course no one was going to be able to service the car so I took the reins and Googled how to change a car light bulb. Next a search for an open auto supply store with the bulbs in stock and off I went hoping I wouldn't mistakenly buy the wrong product. Then for some time under the hood doing little praying that I wouldn't break something in my car. There were a few missteps--a dropped bulb, fingerprints on said bulb necessitating solvent to clean off the grease (as per instructions), some scrapes and grease on my hands--but things seemed to finally go through for the first bulb. But then the light still didn't work. Assuming I'd misconnected something, I looked more closely at the second light and changed that carefully. Still nothing. Finally, I figured out my mistake--I'd changed the high beams which were working, not the low beams. Feeling very glad no one was watching, I got back to work and replaced the other two light bulbs! Now my car has 4 working lights and I am, despite glitches, very proud of myself. And my family and I can drive to tonight's Super Bowl party safely.
In honor of "in the picture"--this month's theme "write on!" I commemorated the moment on my somewhat battered and greasy hands.

Night Shots

Well, I got a bit stuck again after a good run at posting but last night I went out and looked for some neon to shoot. I find it hard to get the right amount of color, light and contrast on these shots but came up with a few that were at least satisfactory.



The largely Hispanic neighborhood west of my house is great for finding neon signs. It also made me crave tacos as there were a lot of tasty looking restaurants in the area. Unfortunately, last week I had a similar craving for Mexican food and found a little taqueria. One burrito, many chips, and 10 hours later, I came down with a nasty bout of food poisoning. Long story short, no tacos for me last night.

A Piece of Me

Urban Muser has a lovely photography blog and is running a year long self-portrait project. I'm not all that keen on self portraits as I don't like to see myself, ever, in front of the camera, but what can be better self-therapy for camera shyness than posting pictures of myself. Muser started easy anyway with a request for a piece of oneself. This little piece of my came through playing with a mirror and my arm reflected. I kind of like the effect.



Here is another piece of me. The wedding ring was my grandmother's, now mine, and the mirror was my mother-in-law's. It has a warm feeling although the two never met and both are now gone.

The Sketchbook Project

Sketchbook cover

Last summer a touring exhibit came through my local art center. It was called the Sketchbook Project and was a collection of sketchbooks from artists from all over the country (and some international folks too, if I remember correctly). The little books could be checked out and viewed and I just loved looking at and handling them.



I decided with heavy trepidation to try one myself for 2012. The trepidation results from my awareness that I am not talented in the drawing/sketching department and don't want to parade myself as being on a par with the talented folks who will be submitting theirs. On the other hand, there were many styles of sketchbooks and why not? Don't I need to lighten up and live a little? At 50 do I still care if my peers think I'm a dork and a geek? (Answer is, often, yes). So in the light of getting over myself I am submitting my little sketchbook this week (the deadline is the 31st). It will be out there for others to mock, ignore or enjoy as they will.



The theme of my book is Travel with Me. There was a choice and I chose to take my little book along with me to France this summer. As you can see from the pages I'm posting, mine is a cross between journal and scrap book with a few awkward sketches thrown in. I rebound the book and added additional sheets of paper, some from recycled paper items and a few from purchased sheets. At this point, I need to say, "It is what it is" and release it. I'm in the process of putting on the finishing touches and will likely post more scans in the next few days.