Squeeze Me! Beg Your Pardon

Tracy from the United Kingdom sent this unusual and fun postcard, her first as a Postcrosser. I think this postcard will be a big hit with my middle school-age kids. If you can not read upside down, the label says "Rich Thick Obscene Noises." The card captures a common joke in many households when the over seriousness of the dinner table is interrupted by the near-empty ketchup bottle squeezed into flatulence by a giggling teenager.

Grass On Your Roof

Diane over at Artstanding Stranger sent these great photo postcards. "Trapper's Cabin" is an "alaska joe" original postcard. The other shows the Continental Divide in Yellowstone National Park. Thanks Diane, I didn't have either card but do remember crossing the great divide as a kid on a family vacation and seeing that same sign. Sod roofs are traditional structures with many native peoples who populate the Alaskan region and with modern day trappers and National Park Service restrooms in remote locations.

Speaking of Fish: or what one fish said to another

This somewhat macabre image comes from Vickie in Taiwan, a Postcrosser. She translates a Chinese proverb but a lot got lost in the translation. It is something about the two fish talking to each other on the line. One asks why the other is still laughing and the other replies because I'm lucky to still see the sky and not hang in the market. I searched the Internet but couldn't come up with any matches, so if any of you have a clue how this works please let me know.

The image is reminiscent of many fish caches in Alaska this time of year. Fish are hung and dried and smoked in the open air and the odor of smoked fish is everywhere, especially along the coastlines and river villages. Its a strong scent but after you've lived here a few years you come to expect and enjoy its pungent odor which signifies fall has arrived.

Alaska, the big one

A question for your elementary school-age kids. Which U.S. state has the largest land area? This postcard answers the question.

Alaska is so big you can put Texas, California, Montana within its borders and still have plenty of room for Idaho. Now that's big.

Compared to the world's countries, Alaska ranks 15th in size, just a little smaller than Lybia and nearly 27,000 square miles larger than Iran.

A few other facts, Alaska has the most coastline of any state and half the world's glaciers.