Yet another loose end.

It must be something in the postal waters.  As quickly as one is cleared up, another one takes it place.  A couple of posts ago I wrote about a postcard which was returned to me - the post office could not deliver it to the address given.  After multiple attempts to contact the buyer, with no response, we opened a case to cancel the transaction.  The buyer agreed.  Which meant that they logged on and responded to our case, but would not respond to our request to verify their address.  So we cancelled the transaction, refunded their money, put them on our blocked buyer list, relisted the item. 

So, what should happen a couple of days after this?  Another card return ANK - "attempted not known", this one from a buyer in North Dakota.  Same thing going on, he's not responding to our attempts to contact him. The address we mailed to is a confirmed address in PayPal.  This is a bit stranger though, he went ahead left positive feed back and good DSRs.  I know he exists, but other than that  I don't know what's going on.

In both cases the envelope did not appear to be opened, but the packaging did - the tape was torn, very neatly & I'm positive I didn't put it in that way.  But why go to the trouble to expertly open and reseal an envelope, then leave torn tape on the inside?  Am I freaking out? 

And we still have the buyer who bought and paid for a card then told us not to deliver it until he contacted us again.  That was over 2 weeks ago I think.  Haven't heard from him.

This is just plain odd.  I don't like it.

Loose Ends

I dont like loose ends, and there are a couple I'm dealing with at the moment. 

The first is a buyer who bought and paid for a couple of postcards.  I got them in the mail that very day, but then a few days later it ended up right back in my mail box.  The post office returned them with a yellow sticker on the envelope saying they could not forward them to another address.

Weird.  So I've attempted to contact her to verify her address, and I've received no reply.  I can understand a person being hesitant to give out their address to someone, but I'm doing it all thru eBay (so I have an "official" eBay record of it), and I don't really know any better way to do it.  This has been going on since June 24th.  So I sent her another message today and told her I'd refund her money in a couple of days if I don't hear from her.  

My only other choice is to mail the card again, on the assumption the PO screwed up.   A couple of times the machines have read the return address & and an envelope has ended up back in my mailbox, but that wasn't the case this time.

The other loose end - recently someone bought a snapshot, paid for it, then told me not to send it for a week or so "until he knows where he's going to be".   Ok, he's moving or something, I can understand that.  But I really want to mail these things out.

The worst that could happen?  2 negatives, and low DSR ratings, potentially costing some money.  That probably won't happen.  We'll see. 

People are such untidy creatures.  Almost nothing is straight forward when you're dealing with people.

Early 20th Century German Postcard

This is an early 20th Century German postcard we have for sale - it is actually part of a lot of 2, combined with another similar (but not quite the same) postcard.

Actually I can't date this exactly, but it has the looks of an early 20th century card.  It also has the look of a hand tinted card.  There is a sheen around the edges that makes me think of a gelatin-silver photograph, but I don't know for sure.

It's a pretty card, with a little rhyme in German and I remember enough German to understand what it means.  It does not rhyme in English.

Click on the title to go to the listing if you're interested.

Hearts & Heads Early 20th Century Postcard

This is kind of a strange early 20th century postcard - not really sure how to list it, or what to call it, but I'm sure it must be appealing to someone out there.  It is embossed and gilded, and a little strange with a heart shaped back ground and people with heart shaped heads singing in what appears to be snow, but maybe not.  I mean who whould think of such a thing.

Anyway,  click on the title to go to the listing if you're interested.

Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson

This is an underground exhibit at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, located in Tucson, Arizona. It has been mailed and is postmarked 1970, but based on the clothing and hair styles, I'd say the picture is 10-15 years older than that.

I'm not sure why I like this postcard, I'm not sure anyone else besides me does.  Maybe I like it (and maybe no one else does) because it screams 1950s at you.  Or maybe it's because everybody is looking at an exhibit with an arm extended out on a railing, and I can imagine them moving from display to display with some unintended Kafka-esque alienation, relishing the cool of the tunnel while contemplating the reality of their pending mortality, personified by the blistering heat they walk into upon leaving the tunnel, way down there in the desert of southern Arizona, amongst the cacti, rattlesnakes and scorpions. 

You can click on the title to go to the listing, or click on the picture to make it bigger and search for the quirks. 

Cathryn at San Marco, Venice, Italy, Feb 2, 1930

This is an Italian RPPC  (Real Picture Postcard) of a well dressed woman standing in front of a monument, and surrounded by pigeons. 

Written on back, "To my Valentine, much love mother dear, Cathryn".  And below that, "Taken at St. Marks, Venice, Italy, Feb 2, 1930".

The scene, if not the era, is very familiar to me.  Approximately 52 years after this picture was taken, to the month, I found myself standing in San Marco's square in Venice, very close to or possibly right at the same spot this woman is standing, also surrounded by pigeons.   Italy is quite a bit warmer than Germany in February and March, and it was a good place to go for a week or so, just to remember what warmth was like.

Going to Venice was like going to a different planet.  I loved it.

Click on the picture to make it bigger, click on the title to go to the listing.

Update: SOLD!

Seattle Washinton, Japanese Pagoda Lantern, Mt. Baker Park Early 20th Century Postcard

This is a postcard of the Japanese Lantern in Mt. Baker Park, Seattle, Washington.  It was a gift from Kojiro Matsukatu of Kobe, Japan to Seattle, I believe in 1912.  This card dates to sometime before 1920. 

There are many versions of this card - early cards like this one with slightly different captions, and cards from later times with a very similar view.   In my research I found the donor's name was actually Matsukata, and he lived from 1865-1950.  There is an interesting wikipedia write up about him.

Click on the title to go to the listing, if you so desire.

Breakneck Mountain, Hudson Highlands, New York, Early 20th Century Postcard

This is an early 20th undivided back postcard of Breakneck Mountain in New York.   Undivided backs were not produced in the United States after March 1907, so this card is well over 100 years old.   It is in good condition, but there is fading on the back, and indications that it was kept in an album at one time.

Breakneck Mountain is still a tourist attraction of sorts, along the Hudson River.   It has an elevation of 1,260 feet, and looks like a very nice place for a summer visit. 

Click on the title to go to the listing.

Mt. Rushmore, South Dakota, George Washington Profile & Measurments

This is a standard/chrome postcard showing a profile of the Mt. Rushmore carving of George Washington, including it's measurements.

It has a serrated edge, so I'm sure this was part of a booklet at one time.   Information on back lists Wall Drug Store, in Wall, South Dakota as the publisher.

Click on the title to go to the listing.

Valdese NC - From This Day Forward

This is a standard/chrome postcard advertising an outdoor play staged in Valdese, NC every August. I'm not exactly sure of the date of the card, but I would assume it is from the 1970s - maybe as late as the early 1980s, but most likely 1970's. It's a pretty little card showing a woman in traditional dress (traditional for the 1890 Waldesnsians that settled here, I presume), reading a bible.

The play is still performed every August.

Click on the title to go to the listing.

The first sale of 2010 - Dallas TX Chamber of Horrors

This gruesome standard/chrome postcard was our first sale of 2010 - purchased the morning of Jan 1. It is an exhibit at the Southwestern Historical Wax Museum at State Fair Park in Dallas, Texas. The picture depicts 4 men hanged in a barn, with the caption on front, "Wish You Were Here".

Information on back says this recreates an event which happened in Ada, Oklahoma on April 19, 1909, when a lynch mob took four suspected murderers from a jail to a barn and hanged them.

I could not find dating information on this card, but I'm estimating it is from the 1960s. The addresses for the publisher & manufacturer do not include a zip code. The card was written on but never mailed - and the mailing address (which it was never sent to) does includes a zip code. Zip codes came into being in 1963, but were not mandatory for awhile after that. It's probably from the '60s.

The first sale of 2010!

Comic Art Postcard - Tex Lowell

This is an example of a comic art postcard by Tex Lowell. I just found out that Tex Lowell's real name was George E. Turner, but he used this name to hide his moonlighting from a newspaper he worked at in Amarillo, Texas. If this is true, then it's quite interesting because George E. Turner became famous in certain circles.

Tex Lowell drew a lot of these types of cards - they were something for tourists to buy in the 1950s. Sometimes he just signed "Tex" and sometimes he probably didn't sign them at all. This is a pretty good example of his art.

This is a standard/chrome postcard probably from the 1950s, certainly no later than the 1960s. If you're interested, click on the title to go to the listing.

And Merry Christmas!

Art Postcard Julie Andrews, by Al Herschfeld

This postcard is an interesting drawing of Julie Andrews by Al Herschfeld in 1968, while visiting the set of the movie STAR!. This movie was directed by Robert Wise, and was based on the life of British actress Gertrude Lawrence.

It looks like a simple illustration, but at the same time there are a lot of details and expressions represented.

I like it. If you're interested, click on the title to go to the listing.

Ivars Acres of Clams Restaurant

This is a standard/chrome postcard of Ivar's Acres of Clams Restaurant in Seattle, Washington. From the looks of the cars, it appears to be from the 1940s or early 1950s. It's located on Pier 54 on the Seattle waterfront, next to the fireboat station.

But not for long, apparently. I read an article online (dated April 2009) which said it was going to be used for fire training before being demolished.

However, they still have a website and still seem to be in business, so I don't know. Their website says they've been around since 1938.

Anyway, this card is in the neighborhood of 60 years old, and you can click on the title if you're interested in going to our listing.