Kitty Flower Power

I am not myself the greatest hippy fan, but I do like the series with kitty illustrations by Verkerke, one of which is this - the main reason, because they were one of the first non-view postcards I've ever bought! That was some 25 years ago, when I was studying in Zadar, and there was a great newsstand with such a vast choice of all sorts of postcards, a place I remember fondly, but also with a certain melancholy, as any true postcrosser I am sure can understand...in my country at least. I've decided to give this one a new life by posting it to my sister's address in Germany, with a special postmark...which reminds me...should check if there's anything interesting in that field these days. I find most of the special postmarks by our Post rather dull, I have to admit.

And yes, I have received some mail, after a month's hiatus, due to one of the mailmen quitting while the other one was on annual leave...! I think it was the last of it, as I haven't done any swaps in the last few months. I think I'll have plenty of time this winter writing posts on this year's mail...it's time, even if noone reads it lol

Hygge

Hygge is a word describing the Danish way of life, or rather a concept of escaping the daily rush to relax and enjoy life's quieter pleasures. Various definitions of the word exist, and can be traced even to the Middle Ages, where a similar Old Norse word meant 'protected from the outside world'. The term hygge was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2017.

I particularly like the image at the bottom left :) The stamps, which I have found at the local 7/11-type-of corner shop, seem to depict familiar sayings; the 2nd and the 3rd one I think are international - when the cats are away, the mice play :) - burnt children shun the fire. The first one seems to say: every bird sings with it's beak? It should mean that different people express themselves in different ways i.e. to the best of their abilities. It's interesting, and I am now trying to think of a Croatian saying with a similar meaning...

Two Giants By Ivar Rodningen

'I am sitting at Evita's Espresso Bar, across the road is the Oslo Spektrum, where I have seen, and listened to, and MET Röyksopp last night...' This happened in February; and a few weeks ago, in October, I have seen them in Amsterdam and London as well...I am still a bit on a high, so I am posting this postcard/image from Rodningen's popular Norwegian Trolls series that I have sent from Oslo. While there, I met some other fellow Röyksoppians, and discovered new parts of the city that somehow eluded me during my two-month Xmas market stint the previous year. It was a great weekend overall! I will be living off such memories for a while now, I think.

Winter Bunny

As I will be away for a few weeks I thought I'd better do a quick post, something striking and which doesn't need an introduction (as I really should be packing!), so here is a supercute bunny which travelled all the way from a Postcrossing meeting in Moscow - thank you Svetlana, and everyone who 'signed' the card (I just love all the different stamp designs; still haven't come around to making my own) 🐰🐾

Happy World Postcard Day!

So did you write any postcards today?

It wasn't in any plans for me, as I am still hating the new postage prices...but still decided to ´jump on the wagon´in the last minute, and arranged a few nice swaps for WPD postcards :) I didn't think any of the cards will arrive on time for me to post them on my blog, but this one took mere three days to reach me! So I am happy to include it here to celebrate this day; vielen Dank Monika :)

New Kitties On The Block

Just as I had to decide to pull a brake on my ever increasing postcrossing activities, I have discovered a new type of postcards while in Zadar, which I thought would normally be a very nice addition to my offers, darn it! As it is not so often that one comes across uniquely illustrated postcards around here. I have sent myself one example, to see how it would fare in transit. It is very sturdy, which makes the postmark even less visible than usual, but on the other hand it is more likely to arrive unharmed. In any case I think the kitties are cute!

Vacances à Saint-Tropez

July has knocked on the door and let itself in - the peak tourist season is almost here..! Now wouldn't it be nice to chill in St Tropez, if only for a day...Love the matching theme stamps 💛 Merci beaucoup Laurene!

Life Is Beautiful...

...is what I try to remind myself while I am facing a busy working summer..! Merci beaucoup Karine for this joyful card :) As always, I am jumping at a chance to tag for a postcard from France. Progressing really slowly with learning French on Duolingo...losing lives like strands of hair. One fine day I would love to watch all those excellent French movies without subtitles. That's the life goal! 

Bratislava Cats

 

My last trip before this 'new era' was a short bus adventure through central Europe, and in each city I visited I went to a Cat Cafe - Vienna, Bratislava, Warsaw, Krakow and Prague. The last time I visited Vienna and Prague was 12 years prior to, and the remaining three were my 1st time, yay :) The Mackafe in Bratislava was the real deal, and there is merchandise sold to support it, which surprisingly isn't that common for a cat cafe...I think its a great way to additionally support such places. I mean, like this cute postcard :)

I post this in relation to my day...as I got quite a scare today. I have two cats, sisters Pixie & Suri, who were found in a dumpster by my friend, together with other three siblings. They were teeny weeny things not yet able to open their eyes...but my friend is fierce and she helped them all grow strong and independent. That was almost 12 years ago...Suri is a placid cat but Pixie is a bit naughty...I didn't see her all day, which was very unusual for her, and as the night was falling and she wasn't showing up to get fed I got really worried, walked around the block calling her. As I came back home there she was, and my mum told me she was in a box in the storage room and she couldn't get out. But she didn't make a sound the whole day as we were calling her. Cats are weird! lol I was just so relieved, and she was extra cuddly. Right after she had some food of course! Ah, all's well that ends well. A huge stone fell off my heart, as we would say. And here is a kittie from Mackafe:

Kantarellsmörgås

Another official yum card comes from Sweden from Jessica, and after some internet search I learn that Kantarellsmörgås is a Chantarelle sandwich, Chantarelle being a mushroom type. I am a big mushroom fan, so yea this is yum :)

Pusheen

If you are a regular on social media you'll know this cutie :) Pusheen, a domestic shorthair, was born in 2010 and started her life as a comic strip on the 'Everyday Cute' web-site; then she transitioned to Facebook, and the rest is history.

Thanks Rachel!

Historic Route 66

Its been more than four months, wow. I am even boring myself with this statement, but time does fly. I've been catching up with a friend recently and we've made a loose plan to travel across the US, riding in an oldsmobile, stopping for some line dancing. Its been almost three years that I've passed the driving test, alas I haven't had the opportunity to actually drive a car - my dad has been too protective of his, despite all the promises that I'd have the full access once I pass the exam. Oh well. I think this is finally the year I'll be buying my own car (something old and retro to start with), after all there's no other reason to go and work on the island again but to better my finances; and oh boy do I have plans, a whole bunch of them...oops since my previous plans to move on from this place have all sunken, I better be careful and not say too much here..! I just need positive vibes to help me be diligent and patient...

That's Amore

It so coincided that I was looking into some older postcards to post today, and also came across Ana's entry for Sunday Stamps which is about letter H. In this case H stands for 'Hrvatska', which is the native name for our country Croatia. Some philately enthusiasts might be interested in the fact that the light blue stamp at the top is the very first stamp issued in modern-day Croatia, back in 1991. The rest of the stamps were issued in 1992, and I feel very pleased to have all these on postcards - them being from the time when my main hobby was writing letters rather than exchanging postcards. One of my penpals from Zagreb liked sending postcards with love theme...such postcards are hard to find these days, if impossible. 

I haven't participated in Sunday Stamps (link) for quite some time, today it was more of a lucky chance, I hope to make a habit of it again. I am sure there is more interesting H-stuff to check via the link, I mean I know there is ;) 

Professor Balthazar Says Hi!

Let's start the New Year with greetings from the Croatian animated professor who made our childhoods more interesting :) A friend surprised me with this card, and for Xmas market in Zagreb they even placed a huge sculpture in the town centre. I think I have a photo somewhere :)

Professor Balthazar is a Croatian animated television series for children about an old inventor that was produced between 1967 and 1978. It was created by animator Zlatko Grgić. From 1971 to 1973, episodes were featured on the ABC-TV children's program Curiosity Shop. The cartoon inventor was the basis for the show's puppet character, Baron Balthazar, and the cartoons were shown as animated sequences of the Baron's tales of his adventures and inventions back in "downtown Bosnia".

Blue Cat By Irina Zeniuk

This is my first Blue Cat illustration card, and very apt for today as it has been raining incessantly since some time last night. Very cute, thank you Roman :)

Lali Riddle

Here it is, my first Lali Riddle card :) Wanted one example, got this cute one with pandas. The thing with these cards is, they have a 'riddle' on front, in this case to find the 'un-matching' pair. Thanks Diana!

Magic Budapest

While waiting for a new scanner to arrive, decided to 'break the silence' of over a month here by posting this cute postcard I've received recently (photographing postcards not as good as scanning but this one turned out alright :)). As I have quite a few view cards from Budapest this illustration card was a welcome novelty esp with the ginger cat snoozing there in the corner :)

Many thanks to Krisztina, who told me she participated in a postcrossing meeting with over a dozen participants in Budapest - as Hungary is not that often to be seen among swapping countries I must say that is a great number! Love also the variety of stamps.

Mail Around The World!

It is only recently that I've started considering special postmarks - I used to get them from time to time on some of the postcards and covers, but I am not living near any philately office, sadly. When I checked the programme of issuing special cancellations on the official Croatian Mail site, I realised most of them are being used in the central post office in Zagreb...I was hoping there would be at least a bit more variety re: locations. Even when there are other locations, they are still quite far away. But I was in Zagreb last autumn just in time to ask for this special cancellation on the new stamp of the same theme - celebrating 100 years of birth of Ivan Generalić, a notable Croatian naïve art painter :)

I love naïve art! Perhaps not in every form, but this kind originating in a small village of Hlebine in northern Croatia really appeals to me. My great wish is to have one of those paintings on my wall someday :)

The choice of the card was purely accidental - once in the PO I was browsing their postcards to see if there is anything I'd like to have in my collection, a single example of this card was hidden behind many that I didn't like, and I LOVE it! <3 p="">

Official - Free Card Cats Illustrations

I don't have cats or art on my wishlist on official PC profile, nor do I normally appreciate people sending free cards, but this one strangely works somehow...must be the colours :)

 

And this is my last day at work! Not sure how to feel about it...I am looking forward to my short trip in november, to mum's cooking and being alone in my room...but it sure would be nice to be able to work for  a while longer..! The scans are stored on usb and will be posted here from time to time. Hope everyone will have a nice autumn :)

 

The Cat Boat, Amsterdam

When I was in Amsterdam last November I made it a must-do to visit the Cat Boat situated on one of the numerous canals - at first it looked like there are about half a dozen cats but slowly realised they are hidden in all the nooks and crannies :) Its a unique sanctuary, and you can help out either by donation or buying little things there like postcards and badges. You can even buy them online, here is a link which you can explore and learn more: Poezenboot Amsterdam.

 

It seems apt to post this on the day that we've found home for our kittens. To explain: I live and work on an island with one tomcat and two female cats, one of which is very tame and the other quite feral (mostly because people are not nice to her). The tame one called Gigi keeps having kittens but the guys here refuse to get the male neutered :/ Gigi had five kittens last month, and we have been trying (two women here) to find them a home. Today was lucky! Here they are ready to travel to land :)

                                                          GOOD LUCK CUTIES!!