The Postcrossing stats for April are in, and it was a slow month in the postcard department. Chalk it up to real life getting in the way. And the added time devoted to National Letter Writing Month. This month, I sent only 61 postcards and received 76. This puts my national ranking at 28th, measured by sent cards, out of about 76,000 Postcrossing members in the USA. I remain the #1 leading postcrosser in Alabama, at least. Hopefully, I can pick up the pace in May. Write on!
Happy 210th birthday to Anthony Trollope! It was on this day in 1815 that one of the best known Victorian novelists was born. That year also saw the Battle of Waterloo, and the end of the Napoleonic Wars. It also was the year of the Corn Laws; protectionist tariffs are nothing new, you see. Trollope's life saw a lot of social change and turmoil. And before his death in 1882 he wrote 47 novels, along with short stories and travelogues. All while holding a day job with the Royal Mail. A remarkably prolific author. His books are both entertaining and thought-provoking, as they satirize many social and political aspects of life in his day. As I continue to read his works as park of the Trollope Society Big Read, I will remember this day as one that marks the beginning of an astonishing life.
Another rare card arrived today, with perhaps the lowest ID number I have ever seen. This card is only the 85th Postcrossing card ever sent from American Samoa, a US Territory in the South Pacific. Like Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, or Guam, this distant island enjoys (for now, until Trump inevitably fucks it up) the full services of the USPS. In other words, the card was conveyed 6,418 miles in 10 days for the bargain postcard stamp price of 56 cents. The card's sender, Tricia, has sent only 9 Postcrossing cards in total, yet is the #1 Postcrosser in American Samoa (indeed, she appears to be the only Postcrossing member in American Samoa). Such is the low pace of cards coming from that exotic destination. And so this wonderful card is today's Rare Card Alert.
Only hours after it began, April Letter Writing Month had to be put on pause. You see, on the morning of April 1, I was unexpectedly hospitalized for a bit more than two days (no foolin'!) Yes, only months away from beginning my sixth decade of life, I was admitted to a hospital overnight stay for the first time ever. Got to take my first ever ambulance ride, too! I'm home now, feeling very much better, and eager to jump into daily correspondence with family and friends at last. I also have a lot of postcard writing to catch up on. But to all my correspondents, fear not. I am back at my desk, pen in hand (or typewriter, as the case may be), and daily letters will resume immediately. Write on!
As I did last year, I will once again be participating in National Letter Writing Month. Each day in April, I intend to write a letter to family and friends, and send it to them through the good 'ol US Postal Service. It might be a letter composed on a vintage typewriter from my collection, or it may be handwritten. Either way, it's my favorite time of year when I renew contacts and check in with those who I don't otherwise frequently communicate with. Surprising as it may be, I still know people who are not active on social media and so I don't have much current news about their lives. Through daily letters (and hopefully replies of any sort- postal, electronic, or otherwise) I hope to get back in touch with lost friends and family. So here it goes. Want to join in? Feel free to contact me, and I'll be sure to reply. Write on!
Today is the final online book club meeting of the Trollope Society to discuss my current Trollope novel, Dr. Wortle's School. It's been a fast read, and an interesting book. One of the first Trollope books I've read that is set partly in the USA. In fact, there is a suspenseful scene in my hometown of Chicago. But with this meeting, we now turn attention to the book on the list, The Claverings. This novel by Anthony Trollope was written in 1864 band published as a serial before being released as a complete novel. It is the story of a man caught in a love triangle between two women. I look forward to the story with some misgivings, however. As is my practice, I bought a used copy of the book on ABE, and neglected to closely read the description. What arrived was an Oxford University Press edition that might be called a pocket edition. It is a very small, hardcover book, with very small type. I hope my aging eyes will be able to cope.
It was bound to happen- I finally joined the growing group of nature enthusiasts who have set up a bird feeder that features an internet-connected camera. Mine comes from an outfit named Birdsnap, and is a small plastic feeder that incorporates a digital camera with a Wi-Fi connection. This is the sort of gadget that's been for sale for a couple years, and all the while the price of them has been steadily decreasing. I installed mine yesterday, and it took about an hour before the first visitor arrived, triggering the motion detecting camera and sending an alert to my cell phone. I'm not a very knowledgeable bird watcher, so I may need to resort to the AI-driven bird identifying feature. But that requires a paid subscription service I have not yet purchased. Until then, I'll have to resort to an old-fashioned bird watching reference book to help identify the species of my visitors. I expect this new toy should provide hours of fun.
The Madness of March has begun. This year's NCAA men's basketball tournament began in earnest at lunch time today. For the next couple weeks, the initial 64 teams will be skimmed down to the Final Four, and ultimately the National Champion. Along the way, many hearts will be broken. I've gathered a group of 18 friends and family in my annual bracket contest, and even though only a couple games have been completed at this writing, I can see my chances for success are slim. I won't say the bracket is busted yet, but could well be by then end of this evening. Still, it promises to be great fun, with many memorable moments.
As predicted, it was a stormy day yesterday across much of the southeast. In Alabama, storms began in the northwest in the early afternoon, and continued on through the state until about midnight. Fortunately, these "storms are underperforming", according to the most prominent meteorologist in the region, James Spann. There were incidents of severe damage, of course. The small town of Gordo, AL was hit particularly hard, as was Calera, not far south of my own home. But as of this writing, no fatalities have been reported statewide, and injuries seem comparatively minor. At my location, we were battened down and prepared for the worst from early Saturday morning. I'm glad to report that we suffered no more than heavy rain - 1.81" - and very blustery winds for most of the day. No apparent damage to the house or property. I'm very relieved that things didn't develop to be worse. It's only the beginning of the Spring tornado season here in central Alabama, but I really hope that's the worst we'll see this year.
Not to humblebrag, but my household has more cars than garage space. Yes, the house's two car garage is spacious enough to accommodate our two vehicles and a small wooden sailboat I built myself a few years ago. But this leaves one vehicle that must be parked outside in the elements. When severe weather is forecast, I sometimes use my Hail Protector to shield the vehicle from damaging hail or flying debris in a storm. It is, in essence, similar to a children's inflatable bounce house. In other words, a fabric shell that is inflated by a constantly running electric fan. This is designed to provide enough of a cushion to protect a vehicle from large chunks of ice falling from the sky. It takes me about 15 minutes to install the thing, so advanced warning of severe weather is essential. I have it set up at this moment, in advance of expected severe weather, including large hail, later this afternoon. I've had this gizmo for a couple years, and deployed it a handful of times, as a precaution. Haven't yet had any actual hail to be protected from. Hope that streak continues today... Stay tuned.
