The Not so Joy of Winter

A right of passage for Canadian Children.  and yes, I have done this, at least once.

Sent this to New Zealand earlier in the week.

Breakfast anyone?

My sister, the other member of this blog, lives in Calgary, Alberta.  When I visited her a few years ago, she took me to a diner in Turner Valley, at the Chuck Wagon Cafe and Cattle Co., that has the most wonderful breakfasts.  Imagine her surprise when she went into the Galaxie Diner in Calgary and found that it was just as good as the other one.  Turns out that the owners are brothers.  On her last visit there were two postcards awaiting on her table.  Lucky for me I received one of them in the mail.

Post Card Friendship Friday - Pixies Rule

This is the second lovely pixie that my mother has made for me.  This darling was hand delivered.

I have shown her sibling earlier, but I wanted to show the together.  Perhaps there is a triplet?

For more postcard fun, be sure to visit Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for her Postcard FriendShip Friday meme.

Treat Please

There is a little four year old girl who is going to be most surprised to find this treat in her mailbox in the next today.

From the Halloween Postcard Book by Darling & Company.

Attack of the Grinning Jack O'Lanterns

My ten year old nephew will be surprised to find this crazy gang in his mailbox.

From the Halloween Postcard Book by Darling & Company.

Driving for Treats

My dad has been an auto mechanic from a young age.  Even in retirement he doesn't stop puttering and fixing engines.  This is the perfect card for him.

From the Halloween Postcard Book from Darling & Company.

Scared Straight

This little guy is so scared by his ghost story that his hair is on end.  I am sending this off to someone who will love it,

From the Halloween Postcard Book from Darling & Company.

Be sure to drop into The Best Hearts are Crunchy for more Postcard Friendship Friday.

Ain't She Sweet

This little sweetie is flying over to my Grandmother for her Halloween treat.  

She is from the Halloween Postcard Book from Darling & Company (aka The Laughing Elephant).

All Blacks Rock

The New Zealand All Blacks won the World Cup Rugby championship held in Auckland New Zealand.  For those familiar with the All Black, you are aware that they start every match by performing the Haka.  A friend from New Zealand sent me this wonderful card.  Sorry I don't know which year this was taken.  If you aren't familiar wit hthe Haka it is a war chant done before battle to put fear in to the opponent.  Following are two examples.  The second is for pure entertainment and to show you how important this chant or rather large assortment of chants is to the people of New Zealand.

I love Orange

Puddle by Mia Rozmyn, 1993

I didn't find a web site for Ms. Rozmyn, though she did produce a quilt book at that time titled: Freedom in Desigh: New Directions in Foundation Paper Piecing.

I am sending this along to a personal friend of mine who also enjoys using orange in her quilts.

For more postal fun, visit with Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard FriendShip Friday.

Venturing Across the pond

This handsome hunk is leaving for England today.  

I don't know where in Canada this photo was taken, nor at which pow wow.  there are many sites where you can read about the music and dance at pow wows.

Drumhop

Pow wow Etiquette

We Have a Winner

Grace B. is the winner of the postcard titled: The Case of the Half-Wakened Wife.

I have sent her a private email.   Thanks to all who have entered.  I am sure to host future contests, so stay tuned.

Giant Kauri Tree

This card features the Big Kauri Tree from New Zealand.  This one is the tallest in  New Zealand at 51.5 metres/169 feet.  The Maoris named this tree, Tane Mahuta - 'God of the Forest'.  It is growing in the Waipoua Forest.

For further information about this tree, visit the Kauri Museum.  The Waipoua Kauri Forest.



This video shows the same tree as on the card.  It is estimated to be 1200 years old and still growing.

For more postcard fun, be sure to visit Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy, for Postcard FriendShip Friday.

Happy Anniversary to my Mom and Dad

I sent this one off yesterday to my parents.  It should arrive a few days before their Anniversary.  Having been married for 51 years, I'm sure they have some good advice they would be willing to share.

Which Columbia Lake would that be?

My sister is awesome at keeping in touch and loves to send postcards.  This one shows Columbia Lake, which is the headwaters of the Columbia River.  The inset photo is of the Dutch Creek Hoodoos.

For most postal fun, visit with Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard FriendShip Friday.

Thinking forward to Ski Season

Panorama Mountain Village

My sister, the other contributor to this blog, sent this card to my kids at some point.  There is no cancellation on the stamp.  She told them that it took over a half hour to ski down the run.  Also, she saw a mother and baby cougar while skiing, cool sight, but scary.

Where to Send this Card

I have a box of 100 cards from Penguin that depict book covers.  Daughter and I decided that we would send them out in the order that they are in the box, after sorting through them and shuffling them.  We are stuck.  Who to send this card to.  I don't want to send it to just anyone, as I don't want to infer that anyone's wife is only half awaked.

For information about this story, check out what they have to say at Classic Crime Fiction. 

If you'd like a chance to win this card, be sure to leave a comment and ensure that you have included your email

For further postcard fun, check in with Beth at the Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard FriendShip Friday.

Remarkable

My niece sent this card to my daughter.

from the back of the card: The Remarkables by Todd Sisson.  Spectacular dawn colour is projected onto a forming north-west arch above the Remarkables, seen here from the queenstown gardens.

The Remarkables is a mountain range on the south Island of New Zealand.

The stamps says: Kawarau Bridge: World's First Bungy.

Woof, Woof, bark, bark

Earlier in the week I sent this card off to my aunt and uncle.  For many years they bred Irish Setters and Beagles.  I felt that they would enjoy receiving this.

Post Card Friendship Friday - Library Renewal

While I was unpacking some boxes of books from my husband's grandfather, this postcard fell out of one of them.  It is noting that a book he had borrowed for a test had been renewed for two weeks.  I don't know if it was for a test he was taking or one he was giving to his students.

I hadn't come across a card like this before and thought it was interesting.  Hope that you enjoy it.

For more postcard fun, be sure to visit Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard friendShip Friday.

Moraine Lake, Banff National Park,

My sister Nancy sent me this card from Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada.

This is the same image that used to be on the Canadian $20 bill.

On Wikipedia there is a list of 'appearances' of this image.

July 2008 I visited Banff with my two sisters.  These are my photo  that same view.  While we were standing theres we heard and avalanche break loose.

Germany

My sister Shelley went on a trip to Germany with her choir ( Canadiana) when I was a little school girl living in St. Vincent in the West Indies. I have lived in many countries and places since then so I am amazed that this postcard still exists. It is a little tattered and has a pin hole through the top from when I hung it up.

Shelley said on the postcard that they went up the biggest mountain in Germany on a cable car, they visited two of King Ludwig's castles. She said "in fact the whole country is beautiful."

So glad to find this card I still remember receiving it.

Don't forget to visit Friendship Postcard Friday. at thebestheartsarecrunchy.blogspot.com

Winnie the Pooh

About 10 years ago I used to live in Japan. For anyone who has spent time with Japanese people you will know they are very generous with gifts. If they go on a day trip or vacation they ALWAYS bring back gifts for their friends and co-workers. http://zine375.eserver.org/zine1.html It is a very nice tradition for lack of better word.

Well when my time teaching there was coming to an end the gifts started poring in. I sent boxes and boxes of gifts home and on the last day I worked I received so many gifts that I had to drop boxes off at the post office the next day on the way to the airport.

I moved to Alberta (3000 plus miles across Canada to the west) not that Long after I came back from Japan. The boxes have been sitting at my parents house ever since. My dad started mailing my boxes of treats/gifts. There are the most interesting gifts in there, many traditional Japanese and then just silly things that the Japanese are famous for, things I can't even imagine how to use, the instructions don't help lol.

I found this postcard in the box from my co-worker Kimie. she knew I loved Pooh bear so she bought me a luscious Pooh blanket and this card to go with it.

As the card says Pooh and Kimie will always be with me, but unfortunately I don't know anymore where Kimie is :(

The post card below on the blog with the monkeys was sent from Nikko Japan a beautiful area north of Tokyo with so much history and temples and a fantastic park.

Postcard Friendship Friday - Monkey See Monkey Do

Japanese Monkey Family

My sister sent this card to my son in 2000.  On the back she wrote: "I net some of your friends (cousins) when I went to Nikko, so I took their picture for you."  Not ice that she has written the names of his four cousins at the time on the monkeys.  Unfortunately the eldest cousin Alex, passed away this summer.  One other addition to the card, the baby monkey would now be named Paul, the youngest cousin who turned 10 a week after his brother's passing.

Friday is a wonderful day, it's when Beth of The Best Hearts are Crunchy, hosts Postcard friendship Friday.

Postcard Friendship Friday - It's Cold Out Here

On the back of this card it says "Polar Bear in the Canadian Arctic".

I must have sent this to my son in 1995 when I was out of town on a business trip.

I wasn't going to show the stamp, but then realized that not all the visitors to this blog are in Canada.

For more postcard fun, visit Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard FriendShip Friday.

Birthday Girl

My mother made and then sent me this wonderful elf for my birthday.  Measures about 4 x 6 inches.  thanks Mom.

The Canadian Prairies

Life has been sad this summer with the passing of my nephew. So my mom and I decided that we should do nice things for other people and that will bring some happiness to ourselves. So my mom has been making fabric postcards to send to family and friends.

I am not that ambitious so I started with the beginning of my address book and a stack of postcards and started writing to friends I have not talked with in a long time. I know they will be happy when they open their mailboxes in the days to come and find a pretty card waiting for them in the box.

This first card of the Prairies I have sent off to a good friend who I met when I taught English in Japan. She quite often sends me postcards from her travels around the world. The other postcard went to Taiwan to a young girl whose address I got from Postcrossing. I have sent others but not going to post a picture of every single one. Maybe I will even get some back in the mail. I put my most current address on them :)

Postcard Friendship Friday - No Arguing with this Fella

This postcard of a white rhino was sent to me by my godfather.

Visit the website of the  International Rhino Foundation for further information about this endangered animal.

To view other cool postcards, visit Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy for Postcard Friendship Friday.

Post Card friendship Friday - Wild Life

I received this post card from my godfather when he was on a photo safari in Kenya in 1981.  Great note he put on the back:

Jambo(Hi In Swahili) Luv

You've got to get here someday, it is fantastic.  Last night we watched buffalo, rhinos, bucks, pigs and hyenas from our balconey (less than 100' away). This morning we took pictures of elephants 25' away from an underground blind.  Love the people, the climate and the scenery.  Today we are at the foot of Mt. Kenya, the second highest mountain in Africa, staying at the most decadent place you have ever seen.  Tomorrow we're off to Somburo to see lions, leopards, gnus etc..  Food is superb, wine is plentiful and company pleasant.

 Mount Kenya homepage

Interested in continuing your virtual travels around the world and through time, then hop on over to visit with Beth at The Best Hearts are Crunchy and join in Postcard friendship Friday.