Postcards

Souvenirs

We’re a big fan of postcards around here. I like to send them to people, sometimes unexpectedly, like when I used them to say Thank You for the Christmas cards I received last year. Unfortunately, the mailing of postcards has fallen by the wayside with the advent of cell phones and its companion “social media.”

Santa Fe Sally has been sending some to the last embassy she worked in Bern because they have a wall that is filled with postcards and she likes to add some to that. When she sends them it is not the old-fashioned way, put she puts a bunch in an envelope and mails that. We looked for some along the route of our last road trip. We looked in the places when we had a gas stops but never found any. Nothing in Paris, TX and you’d think we could have found one, what with the Eiffel Tower wearing a Cowboy Hat.

When I went grocery shopping this morning and I had to wander pretty much the whole store because they are remodeling and the aisles are half full and sometimes on different ends of the joint. Dang, I’d never noticed before that Fred Meyer carried souvenirs. Maybe because I never went down where they were. Or perhaps they didn’t before, but with the remodel they’ve added that stuff. Either way, forget gas stops for postcards, grocery stores seem the way to go.

Take a listen of my favorite song about souvenirs, Souvenirs, as sung by Suzy Boggus.

Hammond – Day 4

Today I was up before Sally and the sun, so I walked the three blocks over to get my caramel latte from PJ’s and then walk 4 or 5 blocks further to mail a baker’s dozen of the postcards I discussed yesterday, before retracing my steps back the Airbnb. Sally and I got our hairs cut and a little shop that always goes to we she is in town.

 
Fried Chicken Showdown Results:
Saturday 1/11 – Zaxby’s 1/2 ☆
Sunday 1/12 – Popeyes ★★★★
Monday 1/13 – Piggly Wiggly Deli ★★★★★ !Winner!
Thursday 1/16 – Raising Cane’s ★★★★
Church’s, Chick-Fil-A & KFC were not nominated

I hope the crappy chicken at that particular Zaxby’s was a one off because I always loved their fingers back in my Aiken days. Today was my first exposure of Raising Cane’s and it was like my prior Zaxby’s experience. Those two are very similar in execution, breaded chicken breast strips, fries, butter thick toast and a dipping sauce. The differences are Zaxby’s has straight fries, Raising Cane’s has crinkle and Zaxby’s toast is shaped like a slice of bread while Raising Cane’s is longer and narrower. There is only a slight variation in the dipping sauce.

Our afternoon was spent at the birthday girl’s house with Sally’s first born, Claire, a cruise ship pilot in Alaska waiting for the younger son, Stuart who works in advertising in Baton Rouge to show so the “kids” could drive an hour and a half east to Mississippi to visit with their disgraced father. Below is a photo of most of the players from 30 years ago in Lexington, Virginia cutting down that year’s Christmas tree.


From left to right: Claire, Me (I still have that coat), Stuart & Sally

Hammond – Day 3

Yesterday we drove to Ponchatoula because the ladies wanted to do a little antiquing at a place called CJ’s Antiques and Collectables. While they were poking around, I was doing the same thing, only in another section of the store that had more of a guy vibe, automotive signs, license plates, NASCAR car models, etc. When I went to catch up with them, I stumbled on an open cabinet that was five feet high and six feet long that was sectioned into 6 x 6-inch segments that was stuffed with old postcards. Very few of them were already used, but that left hundreds of blank ones to pick through.

Before I left Oregon, I bought a couple of small packs of Thank You that I planned to send to everyone who mailed me a Christmas card in 2024 because I did not send out any cards for Xmas (the only card I did send, was a Hanukah card to my sister & her husband.) While perusing the plethora of vintage postcards a light bulb appears above my head, skip the thank you cards, let me send out my gratitude on old postcards of America and the world beyond. I bought 10 at a dollar each because that was my recollection of how many Christmas cards I received, but when I checked the address spreadsheet, I had highlighted a dozen. That number, plus the one I promised a neighbor back in Fairview, meant that I was three shy.

Fortunately, CJ’s was only a little less than 10 miles away, so Sally and I went back today to pick out 3 more cards. I took those purchased Thank You cards and traded them with the manager for three more postcards. While sifting through looking for three new old cards, I came across more than I needed, but wanted, so I paid for the three more. When I said a dollar, it really was $1.10 with tax, man I miss Oregon’s no sales tax.

If you would like to be sent one of those three remaining postcards, comment below with your name and address you will get a weird or obscure old postcard with a witty bon mat or your money back. Below is an example that I’m sending to a friend that I served with on CV-41, the U.S.S. Midway, back in my stint in Uncle Sam’s Yacht Club.

Slow Miata to Texas Day 14

AIKEN, SOUTH CAROLINA
Famous for its tree-lined streets and their names, Aiken abounds in flowers most of the year.
Bill,
Day 14 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Decatur, AL to Aiken, SC. 412 miles. A really long day in the saddle and mostly on the dreaded Interstate. OZ is a wonderful place, but there is no place like home. There is no place like home.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC		 Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903

Slow Miata to Texas Day 13

Greetings from ALABAMA
1. The birth place of Helen Keller, Tuscumbia. 2. Big Spring Park, Huntsville. 3. Wheeler Dam, North Alabama.
4. Vulcan, Birmingham. 5. Dock Scene, Mobile. 6. Bunker Tower, Anniston. 7. Denny Chimes, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. 8. Azalea bushes in full bloom. 9. Noccalula Falls, Gadsden.
10. State Capitol, Montgomery.
Bill,
Day 13 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Memphis, TN to Decatur, AL. 215 miles. Today’s highlight was dinner 300′ up in the Renaissence Tower overlooking Wilson Dam in Florence, AL. Good thing the view was spectacular, because the food was so-so. Got to see the lock system go through a cycle for a barge heading down stream.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC		 Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903

Slow Miata to Texas Day 12

The Pyramid soars into the sky 32 stories (321), rising out of the Mississippi Delta like a great shining diamond. It could hold 200 million gallons of water. Its base is as big as six footballl fields. The interior height, 280′ from the floor to the Observation Deck above, is greater than the exterior dimension of the Astrodome or Superdome.
The focal point of this stainless steel wonder is The Pyramid arena. This 22,500 seat sports and entertainment complex hosts a vast array of major touring family shows, concerts, sports and community events. The Pyramid is proud to be the home of the University of Memphis Tiger Basketball.
Bill,
Day 12 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Eureka Springs, AR to Memphis, TN. 315 miles. Long day, but we wanted to see the Triple A Memphis Redbirds play the Albuquerque Dukes in Tim McCarver Statium. Last time we were here we saw Tim Raines play for the Double A Memphis Chicks (1979.) This is the last year for Tim McCarver Statium as next year the team moves downtown to the new 14,000 seat “Autozone Park.”
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC		 Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903

Slow Miata to Texas Day 11

FLAT IRON BUILDING – Downtown Eureka Springs, Arkansas
The Flatiron Building, destroyed by fire many years ago, was recreated in 1985, and today has glamorous specialty shops on the lower floors and luxury lodging accomodationson the top. The photo was taken from the Basin Park Hotel, in the heart of historic downtown Eureka Springs.
Bill,
Day 11 of 14 of the “Slow Miata to Texas” tour. Hot Springs to Eureka Springs, AR. 195 beautiful back road miles. If I thought Jefferson, TX had a lot of B&Bs…this place seems as if every home in town is a Bed & Breakfast. Every business downtown is tourist related. Out on the “strip” there are several large music theaters.
Brian & Donna, Aiken, SC		 Bill Kirby
The Augusta Chronicle
P.O. Box 1928
Augusta, GA 30903