Smiles & Smirks

From Hemi

Thanks Katerina, I mean, Santa. Very thoughtful of you.

New trashion for 2020-2021! Thank you  Sabrina. 
This seasonal outfit with pre-worn holes and techy adaptations is only available in Walmarth. One size fits all.

I dont know Diana, we have to ask the designer, Sabrina.

Snap buttons, Diane. Because nobody has time for this inconvenient regular buttons when your work collegues ask you spontaneous for a "short talk". 

Thank you Sabrina por clarifying a point of law. Snap buttons are required by law in Retailia in all garments, except in straightjackets.

I am sorry Diane, the blazer is not reversible because, you know, some folks add some diy stains on their pullover for brighten up the pullover and that may ruin the whole outlook of the blazer... 

By the way, are you Diane the lost DK queen of trahspo?

Thanks for the clarification Sabrina. DK lost queen of trashpo? Is Walmarth selling Bill's fairy tale series?  

Yes she is, Sabrina, but too modest to admit it.

Walmarth Cascadia Holiday Menu Suggestion: If you are in a quandary about what salad to serve at your New Year's Day meal, consider the attached suggestion recycled from from the Walmarth food recycling dumpster archive:

I hope Walmarth carries celery and mixed vegetable flavor

Lovely salad! One modification that I would make. I will use plain gelatine and add sherry it. I always do, this is the Argentinian variety I learned from my Italian grandmother. She use Marsala.

I don't know but it carries all kinds of booze.

I don't know what aspic of this idea makes me cringe the most; onions, carrots, or olives in my Jell-O.

The whole horse hoof thing doesn't make it pair well with anything edible to me

I think the oly kind of jelly you need is the one big enough to bounce on outside -

Now that is funny Michael, thanks. I had begun to despair. 

Hahaha Love it Michael! 

It's Ali Khat from Mail Art Martha:

opps...the cats wandered here and should be at "Cat Lovers" group, how did that happen? Well, Ali Khat must have brought them here, ha!

Oh yes  Katerina he is very sociable! They are welcome, as is your contribution of the comic, thanks.

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RAYJOHNS.ttf

2021 Year of the OX...

Thanks to Keith Bates!

Amazing love it 

This sticker sent by the Sticker Dude on an envelope requires a well developed sense of humour of the darkest kind. I find  it superb in a smirking sort of way.

Reminds me of Terry Pratchet's only too human Death.

From Cascadia,  do not miss all the details, very amusingly topical.

And the reverse. I did try the dance pattern but I fell down.  Failed! just as the Coo-Day-Tah. Very clever Jack! but why does the USA mail service has a stamp with a covid picture on it?

ha! it does look like the Covid virus,

but it really is a beautiful chrysanthemum flower.

Oddly it was put out by USPS for 2020 long before they "saw" the virus!

Why does the US Postal Service feature an international stamp resembling the Covid? To show the world why we're so exceptional, of course! ;-]

14.01.21 Dare Ms. Katerina N., ...I see the term "Forever" has been marked thru---I hope that is correct postage after all. SinCelery , Richard C.

The Forever on my Covid stamp has not been crossed! That is strange, what does it mean? Do you know, Monsieur Canard?

Cascasdia Artpost! you are not so exceptional 'cos you have not your own variety of the Covid, we Brits do, the Kent, where I live lucky me.

And it was the first mutation, somewhat obscured now by two others.

11.01.21 Dare Ms. Mail Art Martha, ...recent t.v. news here reveals that science  believes that the the u.s. of a has recently developed it's own Covid  variables. So..., perhaps  we are not all that far behind after all??? ( we do try upon occasion)------& in regards to Ms. Katerina N.'s (& previously noted by the astute Mister Jack Latteman) Chrysanthemum Covid twin "Forever'" crossed out illustration ..... I'm not a serious philatelist (unless it has some mail art attached) but the "Forever" business is a declaration( from a few years back & because of constantly rising postage rates) adopted by the U.S. postal system in an attempt to make clear that that particular stamp could be used as current postage  in the future. As far as I know, it only applies to "First Class" & "Global". I'm guessing but the crossed out "Forever" is the result of an illustration only of the stamp so as not to be confused & or reproduced by some charlatan (can you imagine?) & used as actual postage??? SinCelery, Richard Canard .........Post Scriptum: I always (am trying to keep up) enjoy  your commentary & that Jack Latteman  "WalMarth" business is terrific.

Nothing is forever as we all know.  All stamps, presidents, pandemics etc. will be confined to the dustbin of history.  A bit of mail art from 1972 - just fished out the dustbin for you all -

Michael I feel you need to make time capsule's for all of your great work. 

I am very pleased to read Martha is familiar with DEATH of Terry Pratchet. Great guy. 

The crossed-out "FOREVER" is indeed intended to prevent duplication and consequent forgery.  The image was captured from the USPS web site where all stamp and postal stationery images (envelopes and postcards with pre-printed frankings) have the denomination crossed-out.

I am seriously envious. I wish we had a forever. Our post ( as soon as it was privatised) goes up every year. Currently £1.45 for 10 grams (that is less than half an ounce) outside Europe and to the US. Tat is why I invented the Foldilope. Its name I owe to Fike.

Michael! Amanda is right, remember the postcards, or were them envelopes, we used to bounce back and forth? I will see if I can dig some up.

Sabrina! a Pratchett fan? Cool!

Thank you Richard for the info and for the nice things you say. Flatterer!

Ah, £1.45, now that's a sad story. It seems, since circa 1 Jan 2021, that price is no longer valid for Europe and, for the USA, is only if you send by the economy boat that will take about three months (I think all my mail has been put on that boat!). To send to Europe now - because there is no slow boat (but I think many of us will dispute that) - the cheapest rate is £1.70. And if you go over 0.5cm, a customs form is mandatory too. I'll add all of this to the woes, on top of Merlina's disappearance (thank for informing me of this, Martha), and all the rest. 

We do have a 'forever' in the form of 1st and 2nd class stamps. And you can use them on foreign mail at the current rate, with extras to make up the required value.

Forever, forever, forever! 

'wish we had such nice circle stamps in the HELLenic Post :-)

But at least, for international mail, 20 grams is still "only" 1 euro IF it goes "B" rate , which we assume is on-foot? by slow boat? maybe a ferry to Italy and by truck to Europe, at least? Maybe "air mail" to Canada, and then by pony express to that country to the south. Real "snail mail"!

Aha! Finally found the first "Covid" US stamp that arrived here, back in the summer, from Cascadia ArtPost, of course:

(couldn't find it earlier, thus I "scanned" one from USPS with scratched out "forever" :-)

Ahem...could only be from David Stafford:

Walmarth Cascadia promotes weekend shopping with its "banner-walkers", who also pick up what they find for the store's "Catch of the Day" in-store bin.

Do the banner walkers do a  half time high wire act like they do in the chandelier department at the Stupor Walmarth?

Because of almost everything being shut down due to the pandemic, Vermina is doing some necessary grooming on Infecto at home, while Ali Kaht waits.