maps come in all shapes and sizes

 

New Jersey is the fifth smallest state in the US, at 7, 354 sq mi (19,050 km²) but is the 11th most populous with over 9.6 million people.  I think this map is the busiest one I have of any state!

Then there is Utah, with a population of around 3 million, it is the 11th least densely populated state within its 84,899 sq mi (219,887 km²)

If you're feeling peckish, how about Taiwan, which does an excellent job of promoting their foods

Actually, Taiwan may be the one country I have the most maps of, including a few that are shaped

but, I really like this series that I call 'wallpaper maps'

This is my 2,000th published post in this site, and I decided to make the cards larger so you could actually see some of the details - and in the process lost some of the details.  Still learning...

elf owl

bird of the week 

around the size of a sparrow, this is the world's smallest raptor

seeing red

 I have so many of these New Year stamps from

China, but I haven't seen one in awhile

an Italian flying envelope

and a (battered stamp) poinsettia 

nap time

 CATURDAY

something to smile about

100 years

The first Winnie-the-Pooh book was published on this date 100 years ago.

Illustrations by E.H. Shepard

hummingbird

 

bird of the week

a light repast

pancakes (blini) with caviar

I did not know that avocados grew in Madeira,  (ours all come from Mexico)

nor that watermelon has been in Japan since the 8thC, and is celebrated every July 27 

and some cheese for later

pale

 this little one has the most watery blue eyes!

CATURDAY

totem poles

 

some indigenous sculptures for Thursday Postcard Hunt

kiwi

 BIRD OF THE WEEK

a taxidermy kiwi

birds

 a magpie with her young in a nest from Australia

a cartoonish (but no less attractive) mandarin duck from Japan

fluffy

 

CATURDAY

ancient city, ancient gate

Torun is a city on the Vistula River.  It is one of Poland's oldest cities, first settled in the 8th century, and has been a world heritage site since 1997.  According to the sender, it is renowned for its gingerbread which has been made there for over 1,000 years.

The Porta Nigra in Trier, Germany is even older, having been built as a Roman Gate around 170A.D.  No one knows what the Romans called it, but it has been called 'nigra', or 'black', since the middle ages, when the original grey sandstone became darkened.   It is the only one of four city gates remaining and was designated a world heritage site in 1986.

Two UNESCO World Heritage Sites for Thursday Postcard Hunt

junco

BIRD OF THE WEEK 

telephone

 we owe this guy a lot!

imagine what communication would be like without the telephone.  we'd still have postcards for snailmail, at least

harvest moon

the harvest moon is the closest to the autumnal equinox

 

 

 

 

 

CATURDAY 

bascule

 

Crossing False Creek in Vancouver.  Built around 1905, but demolished in 1921 after years of filling in the shallow creek for the railway.

Another bascule bridge, this one in Kingston, Ontario.  The Lasalle Causeway was demolished in 2024 after being severely damaged during maintenance and rehabilitation work.  It was in operation for more than a century with a temporary modular bridge in its place that opens for marine traffic.

So ends our theme of bridges for September.  For October, there isn't really a monthly theme - I guess it'll be miscellaneous.

west coaster

bird of the week 

fat bear week

 

It is the beginning of Fat Bear Week at Katmai National Park, a joyous competition to crown the chunkiest bear, all of whom are oblivious to our human fun. 

lions and fish

 My apologies ... 

I should have written 'commemorating' or 'celebrating' historical events

sad faces

 CATURDAY

royal albert bridge

Joining Plymouth in Devon to Saltash in Cornwall over the Tamar River.  It was opened by Prince Albert in 1859 and would be Isambard Kingdom Brunel's last work as he died 3 months later.

a cutout

 

It may be pedantic of me, but I do not approve - the correct name is Canada Goose (Branta canadensis)

opera

 

Joan Sutherland was a renowned coloratura soprano.  Her last performance was in 1990 at age 63.  She died in 2010, six years after these stamps were issued. 

you can hear an example of her range here

a famous and accomplished woman for Sunday Stamps

next week: 'historical  events' for our month of learning

eye of the tiger

 

CATURDAY

unique and exquisite

Ross Bridge over the Macquarie River in Tasmania 

You can read more about one of the oldest bridges in Australia that was built by convicts here

heron

 BIRD OF THE WEEK

mackintosh building

 this stamp was issued long before the devastating fires

the first one in 2014 which caused severe damage, followed by another in 2018, after a massive renovation project, which destroyed the building built in 1909.  

Fortunately for the students, there are several other buildings located in the heart of the city

'places of learning' for Sunday Stamps

guardian cat

 

CATURDAY

lake superior

this name is from the French le lac supérieur meaning "upper lake" because it is  higher and upstream from Lake Huron.  the Ojibwe name is Gitchegami (or gitche gumee) which means "big water'' or ''great sea"