Postcard from England

Arrived today.

Art/concept by Rob aka Bumpo aka Rob.

Rob is the proprietor of Bumpo's Blog.

The Blue Mosque

I think I was drawn to this card because I thought the photograph captured a flying saucer visiting the celebrated Blue Mosque in Istanbul.

I had this dream once that I totally believed, in which the end of the world began in Istanbul.

I still sort of believe it.

Someone has used this as a Christmas card.

I believe his name reads "Ismet Turkmen."

The poet Anne Waldman wrote about this Mosque.

The flowers look very colorful and obedient.

Americans Spent a Lot of Time in Arboreta in the Last Century

This one lets me know what Homer was doing on January 12, 1912.

Homer was writing to Miss Grace L. Pratt who resided in (Edgar Hills? Elgar Hills?) in Pennsylvania.

He was writing her from Germany.

Clearly Homer liked this arboretum in Frankfurt.

I have trouble reading Homer's handwriting (in pencil) and I'm wondering if Grace did.

Could she decipher Homer's address in Germany with more success than I have had today?

Did anything ever come of this?

Did Homer want to hit it?

Or was Grace the maiden aunt, the spinster who collected postcards instead of orgasms?

So much mystery on the reverse of an old postcard!

Homer writes that he expects he will go to Weisbaden.

Weren't there spas there? Was Homer ill? Or am I misremembering that?

It's eerie to think Homer is in Europe even before WWI.

There is not anti-German sentiment yet.

But fast forward to 1941 and see how fucking tired we all are of these people.

They should have just stayed in the arboretum business.

A 10 something German stamp in red cancelled by some Frankfurters on the back.

Now I will wonder about Homer and Grace all evening.

Loki, the Original "Power Bottom"

Loki is the original "power bottom."

Or is he just bi?

Bisexual men always mean trouble.

Loki is no exception.

Another postcard I bought in Iceland like a good little American.

Isn't this postcard hideous?

You can go to Wiki and read all about Loki's exploits.

Now I want to go write a "Loki poem."


On reverse of card: "Loki, one of the Aesir and Odin's companion. He personified fire and was clever but mischievous and malicious, and an opponent of the gods as well as their companion. After having stolen the head of Mimir, the source of wisdom, he was killed by Himdallur in Ragnarok or the last battle of the Gods."

Don't you love how the future has already happened in Norse cosmology?

And notice the euphemistic use of "companion" for gaybro.

Even in Norse mythology that tired euphemism is trotted out!

Funnily enough it also says, "Distributed by Thor--box 1639 - 122 - Iceland."

I didn't know Thor went into the postcard business!

Lemon Meringue Pie at Lucille and Otley's

This one gets around a lot.

I think I actually have three specimens of this card!

This must have caught on and become some sort of cult classic of cardiana.

I'm fairly certain the poet Robert Gregory (who I do believe lives in the state where the restaurant is located) sent me this card.

And I received another from someone else (don't think it was a literary figure).

This third I found in Middletown, PA, at Saturday's Market (giant rural indoor/outdoor flea market and farmer's market that's been going for decades).

I'm guessing Lucille and Otley have passed on into the great beyond by now since this card is date stamped 1959 and has its 3 cent stamp cancelled with the six old wavy lines.

The short note is addressed to Colonel & Mrs. Blizzard, who at that time resided in Ocean City, New Jersey.

It reads, "On our vacation--at present visiting in Delray Beach. So far we have had perfect weather. Best regards from The Hagers."

A thoroughly original message, as you can see.

I'm not quite sure why postcard companies didn't have print pre-written postcards (with fake handwriting reproduced convincingly).

They would just need the 1) "Weather beautiful. Wish you were here." and the 2) Unfortunately it's rained the whole time. Just our luck!"

And they would have ninety-nine percent of us covered.

Of course, I'm going to go Google this now to see what comes up, and see if either Lucille, Otley or both of them are still kicking.

And if the restaurant lives on.

It was located at S. Federal at 10th Avenue in Boynton Beach, Fla.

Notice how they used to abbreviate names of states?

You just stopped writing wherever you wanted, whenever your hand got tired, and put a period there.

My state was often written as "Penna." That was before draconian two letter abbreviations became the rule.

I think sometimes my Mom still writes "Calif." on some of her correspondence to her sister who lives there.

Oh, just in case they are still serving this wonderful pie....

"Serving 5 to 8 P.M.--Sundays 12 to 8 P.M. Closed Mondays."

Clearly Lucille and Otley had lives outside of the restaurant.

I think people love this card so much because 1) the hideous aesthetic of the photo 2) the Verboten and wrong-headed inclusion of blackness, the Void which lingers just beyond all lemon meringue pie and 3) the awareness of what's really important in life.

I salute the designer of this card.

That would be Charles Justus Wick, who resided or had his studio at 27 S.E. 4th Ave, Delray Beach, Fla.

Back in the day.

Here it is at Cardcow.com and they want fifteen simoleons for it. That's an expensive slice of pie!

Pie for sale!

And surprise surprise!

I think the restaurant's still there. Well, it was in 1997 and it's sort of become legendary.

While Lucille and Otley retired in 1975, it continues to be a family business and continues to delight customers.

And the hours have virtually never changed! It's still noon to eight on Sundays!

They serve a "high tea," which is a vanishing ritual.

You can read all about the venerable restaurant's history here:

And the meringue goes on...

Student Prison (Karzer) at Heidelberg University

Isn't this room wild?

It looks like outsider art.

And I suppose it is.

Because this is the old Karzer ("students' prison") at Heidelberg University (Universitat).

The students had to find some way to pass the time.

Hence this great wall art.

I love the shadow people.

Edmund von Konig's name is on here. I think he is the photographer.

What a great creepy room this is.

Postcard published in Heidelberg.

Unused.

No idea as to date but I'm guessing seventies.

Center Church, New Haven, Conn.

"THE CRYPT. The Meeting House was built over a section of the ancient burying ground which occupied part of the Green, without disturbing the graves. The oldest stone is dated 1687. Three pastors of the church rest here: Pierpont, Noyes and Whittlsey."

I'm guessing this card could be the late sixties. Or possibly the early to mid seventies.

Not used.

I just noticed the tape on it now when I was scanning it.

I'm scared to remove it because this is only semi-glossy. And when tape has been on that long, it's going to leave a hurting when it's removed usually.

I'm just freaked out by this one because it looks like some creepy conceptualist art piece.

It looks like some conceptualist has put a bunch of gravestones in a parking garage.

And the sight of ancient gravestones half-submerged in modern concrete just makes it even creepier.

It's as though they're saying, "Sorry. You weren't quite buried enough."

Parking garages already feel (and often look) mortuarial and they ofen give me a feeling of claustrophobia--a low roof usually.

So this is rather like putting more graves inside something that already feels like a grave.

So we go nesting the dead like those Ukrainian dolls.