Next up

 Yesterday was the final meeting of the Trollope Society to discuss the current title of the ongoing Big Read.  The meeting presentation was given by Oxford University professor Nicholas Shrimpton, and was a detailed historical analysis of one of Anthony Trollope's lesser known works, The Bertrams.  As is usual in these bi-weekly Zoom meetings, I learned a great deal and gained much more insight into the novel than I would have on my own.  Each meeting has about 100 participants from all around the world, and their viewpoints in the small breakout groups and in the final full group discussion never fail to be enriching.

And so today begins the next novel in this year's reading list: Mr Scarborough's Family.  This work was published in 1883 and was one of the last of Trollope's many works to reach the public.  As always, I've prepared myself with a print copy I obtain through the used book clearinghouse webpage ABE Books, as well as a digital version downloaded from Project Gutenberg to my vintage second generation Kindle.  I'll dive into the new book later today, and look forward to discovering another work from the highly prolific Victorian author.

Rare card alert

 Today's rare card is a bit unusual.  It was not sent or received from an obscure, small country.  Instead, it is a card I sent to Denmark, a country that ended its postal system last year.  On December 30, 2025 the state run postal system, PostNord, ceased operations entirely, making it the first nation in the world to do so.  Reasons given were the decline of familiar person-to-person letters and other common mail, which has been largely replaced by digital communication.  And yet, Denmark remains a member nation of Postcrossing, and I was assigned a Danish address 17 days ago.  Instead of a national postal system, private couriers exist to provide the same service.  Think of it as sending a postcard by FedEx.  From what I can tell, it's an expensive option for Danish citizens to use the company, Dao, to send their postcards.  In fact, the Postcrossing member I sent my card to mentions in their profile that they live close enough to the border that they send their outgoing mail from Germany.  So today I present the delivery of a postcard I sent to a country without a post office.  Write on.

Pizza Passport 2

 At long last, we recently made our second Pizza Passport visit.  This is the ongoing project to visit all the prominent pizzerias in the metro area and record our experiences in a handy little booklet that we received as a Christmas gift.  Our second stop on the pizza trail was a place we've been before: Pizza Grace.  Located on rustic (and cobblestone paved) Morris Avenue in central Birmingham, Pizza Grace has been attracting plaudits for several years.  The place changed owners last year, and since then things have changed slightly.  The menu is now a little more extensive.  In addition to the well-made Neapolitan pizza standards like the Margherita, they now offer a changing lineup of some interesting varieties.  Last summer I had a delicious pistachio and mortadella pizza.  But on this visit we shared the chorizo: romesco sauce, green olives, Manchego cheese, hot honey, and generous amounts of fresh oregano.  It was tremendous!  All pizzas are made with traditional sourdough fermented crust made in a process that takes many hours.  This sometimes forces an early closure of the restaurant when the day's allotment of ready dough is used up.  Be mindful of this, especially on popular Saturdays- late arrivals may miss out on the best Neapolitan pizza in the city.  A substantial menu of side dishes, desserts, and a healthy wine list finish out a memorable meal.  Service is friendly, efficient, and knowledgeable.  Decore is stylish in a mod/industrial sort of way.  The dessert offerings are wonderful, I'm sure, but one can do no better that walk next door to Cannella for authentic Italian gelato after your pizza.  We always do.

Passport score: 5 of 5.

Pizza Grace- chorizo pizza

Feb stats

 Once again, my monthly postcard numbers fell a little short of my goals.  Real life always seems to get in the way.  In the shortened month of February, I sent 84 cards to recipients around the world, and received 94 cards.  This gives me a ranking of 26th among 78,000 Postcrossing members in the USA, and I remain #1 among members in Alabama. My longest distance card this month was one that travelled 8,179 miles in 90 days to Taiwan.  I sent off a batch of cards this morning, with a new emphasis on observing holidays throughout the year.  So a few St Patrick's Day cards are now on their way and will hopefully arrive around March 17.  Write on.