This ad card promotes the annual Vegas Valley Comic Book Festival, celebrating the illustrated world that takes place on the first Saturday in November every year. In 2019, it will be held at the Clark County Library on November 2, 2019 from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m, featuring publishers, vendors, film screenings, panels and workshops, special comic and animation guests, live music and cosplay.
International Workers' Day, celebrated on May 1, is an annual holiday to celebrate the achievements of workers. Also known as Labor Day in many countries, it was related in the labor union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement that advocated eight hours for work, eight hours for recreation, and eight hours for rest in one day. In Canada and the United States, it is celebrated on the first Monday of September, marking the end of the summer holiday when most students return to school.
The featured postcard was purchased from the National Geographic store at zazzle.com, showing construction workers on beams at the top of the Stratosphere Tower in Las Vegas. Copyright: Paul Chesley / National Geographic Stock.
It is Albert Einstein's (March 14, 1879 – April 18, 1955) birthday today. A German-born theoretical physicist who won the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics, Einstein developed the general theory of relativity and was best known in popular culture for his mass–energy equivalence formula E = mc2.
March 14, or 3/14 in the month/day date format, is also known as “Pi Day,” an annual celebration of the mathematical constant π (pi), due to its resemblance to the first three digits in the decimal expansion of π. Pi Day in 2015 is very special because the corresponding date 3/14/15 represents the first five digits of π (3.1415), which only comes once a century. In addition, at 9:26:53 a.m. and 9:26:53 p.m. the date and time of the moments represents the first 10 digits of π (3.141592653).
English publisher and writer John Taylor (1781–1864) argued in his 1859 The Great Pyramid that the numbers Pi and the golden ratio may had been deliberately incorporated into the design of the Great Pyramid of Khufu at Giza. The original height of the Great Pyramid was 146.5 meters or 481 feet with a base of 230.4 meters or 756 feet in length. By dividing the perimeter (4 x base length) of the Pyramid by its height, one obtains 6.29 which is a close approximation to 2π. Since π is defined as the ratio of a circle’s circumference to its diameter, John Taylor suggested that the Great Pyramid was intended to be a representation of the spherical Earth, with the height corresponding to the radius from the center of the Earth to the North Pole and the perimeter corresponding to the Earth's circumference at the Equator. However, such significance has been discounted in recent years.
Postcard US-2543275 to India shows a replica of Great Sphinx of Giza and the pyramid-shaped tower of Luxor Las Vegas, a hotel and casino on the Las Vegas Strip in Paradise, Nevada that opened in 1993 and was named after the city of Luxor (ancient Thebes) in Egypt. The reflecting pool is gone now after renovation and a tram station is in its place.
On this fifth anniversary of Let’s Move!, an initiative Michelle Obama launched in 2010 to combat childhood obesity, the First Lady is again challenging Americans across the country to make healthy choices by eating better, being more active, and leading a healthier life, and to give out high-fives when they see someone doing just that. Vice President Joe Biden joined #GimmeFive campaign early today via a Vine video.
The cards of me doing a kickboxing move were sent to friends and family members for update during a challenging time of my life. The photo was taken on October 3, 2011 at the Exploration Peak Park with Las Vegas Skyline in the background. The park’s focal point is the 2,846-foot or 868-meter high Exploration Peak with trails leading to the top where it offers great views of the Las Vegas Valley.
Just move! #GimmeFive, @LetsMove, @FLOTUS, @MichelleObama, facebook.com/letsmove
My visit to the Springs Preserve in Las Vegas today in the monthly Bank of America Museums on US weekend was cut short as they are hosting a special event Mardi Gras Vegas that features Cajun and Creole cuisine, music and culture from 3:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. The access to the Nevada State Museum was not affected. Before I left, I picked up an advertising card for a running event "Run Away with Cirque du Soleil" on March 28, 2015. Participants can run 5K or walk 1 mile with Cirque du Soleil cast members on the Springs Preserve ground at this annual event. All proceeds support the educational and environmental-sustainability programs at the Springs Preserve Foundation and Cirque du Soleil Foundation. You can register online at active.com.
Love is in the air on this Valentine's Day. The high temperature reached 78°C today, the highest in Las Vegas since 1957, creating a sense as if we are already in spring. As the marriage capital of the world, Las Vegas sees more than 120,000 couples who come to tie the knot every year. The Clark County Marriage License Bureau expected to issue around 1,500 marriage licenses during the Valentine’s Day/Presidents' Day weekend. Outgoing postcard US-3224035 to Finland was made of an inverted photo used on Postcard US-2722698, showing a wedding decoration in a store front on the Las Vegas Strip. The stamp was one of the two Love Hearts Forever Stamps issued by USPS on January 22, 2015, depicting the ancient association between eternal love and the heart.
Because it is Las Vegas, you can get get married without getting out of your car via drive-thru or having an Elvis impersonator officiating your wedding. In addition, there are some unusually spots to have your wedding to make it truly memorable. Here are my top five choices.
The Las Vegas Springs Preserve, one of the richest and most unique cultural and biological resources in Southern Nevada, offers "green" wedding services at both indoor and outdoor locations in the 180-acre botanical garden including an outdoor amphitheater that can host more than 1,000 guests.
Flamingo Las Vegas offers wedding packages at five areas among its 15-acre garden, with waterfalls, date palm trees, exotic waterfowl, or a collage of pools as backdrop. It is known for the Wildlife Habitat that features Chilean flamingos, Ring Tealed ducks, Sacred Ibis, swans, ducks, pelicans, koi fish and turtles.
Stratosphere has Chapel in the Clouds where you can say "Yes, I do" 1,149 feet or 350 meters above ground with a panorama view of the city that never sleeps.
Las Vegas honors 2015 Martin Luther King Jr. Day with its 33rd annual parade that attracted thousands visitors and locals lining up Fourth Street downtown to watch more than 100 floats, bands, dancers, politicians, classic cars, motorcycles and people from various organizations marching in honor of Dr. King.
The theme of this year's parade was "Living the Dream: Where do we go from here?" It highlights the reflection and debate resulted from the racial tensions exposed after multiple police killings of black men last year. It is also a reminder that the struggle for equality is continuing and there are a lot to be done ahead.
An elderly spectator watches younger marchers streaming by at the 33rd annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade in downtown Las Vegas on January 19, 2015.
The featured postcard was a maxi card featuring a self-portrait of me in front of the Newseum in Washington D.C. on August 28, 2013 with a USPS March on Washington Forever Stamp and its first-day-of-issue postmark.
The Fremont Street Experience in downtown Vegas will again to hose the New Year's Eve America's Party to ring in 2015. The adult-only (21+) party starts at 6:00 p.m. with 9-hour live concerts on three stages, performed by 13 tribute bands: Crimes of Passion (Pat Benatar Tribute), Doobies Inc. (Doobie Brothers Tribute), Rio (Duran Duran Tribute), Don't Look Back (Boston Tribute), Generation Idol (Billy Idol Tribute) Jumping Jack Flash (Rolling Stones Tribute), Led Zepagain (Led Zeppelin Tribute), No Duh (No Doubt Tribute), Queen Nation (Queen Tribute), Fan Halen (Van Halen Tribute), Aeromyth (Aerosmith Tribute), Bonfire (AC/DC Tribute) and Red Not Chili Peppers (Red Hot Chili Peppers Tribute), as part of the “TributePalooza.” The giant Viva Vision screen will feature a spectacular light show and virtual fireworks at the count down.
Postcard US-2545733 to Czech Republic shows the light of the neon reflects off the cars parked along the Fremont Street, adding to the feeling that it was never dark in downtown Las Vegas, even in its early years. From neon circles under the Fremont Hotel to the Indian head atop the Hotel Apache sign, Fremont Street is a destination 24 hours a day. At the end of the street, the neon sign for the train depot can be seen.
Outgoing postcard US-3091393 to China features Meb Keflezighi, the 2014 Boston Marathon Winner, on the address side; and a image of Rock 'n' Roll Marathon runners under stencils of big-letter "MEB" in the front. Meb, 39, was the first American to win the Boston Marathon in 31 years. He runs the 2014 Rock ’n’ Roll Las Vegas Half Marathon as a pacer.
Ben Bruce from Flagstaff, Arizona won the 2014 Rock ’n’ Roll Las Vegas Men's Marathon with a finish time of 2:27:22. Cathy Cullen from Winnipeg ruled the women's side as she was leading the next runner more than nine minutes; she completed the race in 2:56:57.
Run thru wedding ceremony during the races at Monte Carlo on November 16, 2014.
I got my personal longest walking record today, equivalent to a half marathon.
Also, I reached the three thousand mile marker yesterday since I got a Fitbit Ultra tracker two years ago. That's the distance of walking across the entire United States from coast to coast.
Outgoing postcard US-3000615 to New Zealand was a variation of the Las Vegas Springs Preserve postcard, sent in to obtain a first-day-of-issue postmark on the Nevada Statehood Forever stamp by mail on July 26, 2014. The turn around time is usually around 30 days. However, it took longer than usual this time as I just received the order on September 20, 2014.
Outgoing postcard US-2529931 to Belarus was another postcard from Zumanity, the Sensual Side of Cirque du Soleil at New York-New York Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The scene on the postcard, with a tag line "Innocence, so fleeting, so fragile", reveals elegance and passion of women. The show is scheduled to undergo an overhaul early next year. The postcard was purchased at the show's gift shop. It was sent on November 28, 2013 and had since expired.
Tonight, the giant Viva Vision LED display canopy at the Fremont Street Experience lit up again for the 16th annual Las Vegas Pride Parade in downtown Las Vegas. A blog from Las Vegas Weekly explains why Las Vegas Pride matters for a largely dis-unified LGBT community. The pride festival will be held at the Clark County Government Center Amphitheater tomorrow from noon to 10:00 p.m. on September 6, 2014. As concluded in that blog, we will be there "not because we want to see more people impersonating Britney Spears, but because we want to see us."
Postcard FR-420722 from France shows Moulin Rouge, meaning Red Mill in French, a cabaret co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller in Paris, France in 1889.
Marked by the red windmill on its roof, Moulin Rouge is best known as the spiritual birthplace of the modern form of the can-can dance. According to Wikepedia, "originally introduced as a seductive dance by the courtesans who operated from the site, the can-can dance revue evolved into a form of entertainment of its own and led to the introduction of cabarets across Europe. Today, the Moulin Rouge is a tourist attraction, offering musical dance entertainment for visitors from around the world. The club's decor still contains much of the romance of fin de siècle France."
It inspired Moulin Rouge!, a 2001 musical film, that was nominated for eight and eventually won two Oscars at the 74th Academy Awards on March 24, 2002. A music video featuring 1974 "Lady Marmalade" that was used as part of a medley in the movie, was produced in March 2001 with Christina Aguilera, Lil' Kim, Mýa, and Pink performing. The video won the 2001 MTV Video Music Award for "Best Video of the Year" and "Best Video from a Film" and a 2002 Grammy Award in the category of "Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals". The video reached 100,977,923 views on Vevo/Youtube by the end of today.
In Las Vegas, there was the Moulin Rouge Hotel and Casino located in the West Las Vegas neighborhood where the African Americans were forced to live. It first opened on May 24, 1955, with multiple references to Paris: Eiffel Tower appeared on the sign at the entrance, and on the casino chips; a French Chef was the head of the largest restaurant in the casino; security guards were dressed in the uniform of the French Foreign Legion.
The hotel and casino was the first integrated hotel casino in the United States while other casinos on the Las Vegas Strip were still segregated and off ff limits to blacks unless they were the entertainers or labors. The Moulin Rouge Hotel and Casino closed in November, 1955. Its short but vibrant life fueled the civil-rights movement in Las Vegas. It was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places in 1992. The shuttered hotel suffered a series of fires between May 29, 2003 and May 6, 2009. The Las Vegas Historic Preservation Commission approved demolition of the remains of the buildings in June, 2010,
Fifty years ago today, the Beatles played two concerts at the Las Vegas Convention Center on August 20, 1964. It was their first and only visit to Las Vegas.
Interestingly, in spite of the Beatles' surging fame oversea, the establishments on the Las Vegas Strip back then could care less about a band that was perceived to be popular with teenagers. So the city did not extend the red carpet welcome. However, the kids knew better than the casino bosses and their parents, recognizing something new and exciting; the shows were sold out. The rest was history. Some audience to the shows would later become prominent figures themselves. For example, Shelley Berkley was elected as a U.S. congresswoman, representing Nevada's 1st congressional district from 1999 to 2013.
Now, we even have a Cirque du Soleil show Love, a theatrical production since 2006, which combines the music of the Beatles with a circus-based stage performance played at The Mirage Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Postcard US-2293200 to Japan shows the cover of With The Beatles, the second studio album by the Beatles released on November 22, 1963. The cover photograph was taken by the fashion photographer Robert Freeman. It held the top music chart spot for 21 weeks and served as a prelude of the British invasion that led to the Beatles' first live US television performance on The Ed Sullivan Show, watched by 73 million viewers or 34% of the U.S. population in February, 1964, and a 30-concert tour of 23 cities, including the stop in Las Vegas, in August, 1964.
As an official Nevada 150 event of the Silver State’s Sesquicentennial celebration, and in conjunction with National Get Outdoors Day, “Discover Nevada State Parks Day” offers visitors free day use admission and free fishing (no license required) at all of Nevada’s 23 State Parks on June 14, 2014.
I went to see the Old Mormon Fort in Las Vegas, a state historic park located next to the Las Vegas Natural History Museum. It was the first European settlement in Las Vegas, Nevada. One hundred fifty nine years ago, thirty missionaries arrived and started to build a 46-meter or 150-foot square adobe fort on June 14, 1855. Therefore, June 14th is remembered as Settlement Day, the day the first non-native permanent residents set foot in the Las Vegas valley. The Mormon outpost served as a way station for travelers. The first post office in Las Vegas was established on site in 1893.
The postcard, featuring art work by local artist Ali Tenney Boyer, was a gift from completing a survey after the visit.
If you get a chance to visit the Everything Coca-Cola store in Las Vegas, make sure to have your picture taken with the polar bear. You may even find the bear dancing!
During the Nevada 150th Year Sesquicentennial celebration, people around the world are getting to know many other places in Nevada in addition to the well-known Las Vegas, Reno and Carson City. Searchlight is one of such small unincorporated towns in Nevada. Located 90 kilometers or 57 miles from Las Vegas at the topographic saddle between two mountain ranges in Clark County, it had a population of 539 as a census-designated place (CDP) in 2010.
Senator Reid Spoke at the Commemorative Nevada Statehood Stamp First-Day-of-Issue Event on May 29, 2014
Searchlight is the hometown of the U.S. Senator Majority Leader Harry Reid. Edith Head (October 28, 1897 – October 24, 1981) also lived there. She was a Hollywood costume designer who won eight Oscars, still a record in its category and more than any other woman.
The postcard was purchased from Zazzle.com. You can personalized the postcard with any place name in Nevada.
I found this 1950s vintage postcard from the Israel I. Bick Coin, Currency, Jewelry and Stamp Shows at Circus Circus today. It shows the Mobile Home Inn, then located at 1804 E Fremont Street, downtown Las Vegas. The highlights listed on the card include a 25 ft x 50 ft swimming pool, "Downtown", "Modern Only", "Adults", and "No Pets."
Postcard US-2242693 to Seattle shows a fruit sculpture presentation made out of a melon during the Chinese New Year Celebration at the Fremont Street Experience in downtown Las Vegas. The art of fruit carving can be traced to Japan, Thailand and China in ancient times.
If you would like to learn how to carve vegetables and fruits, I found a Youtube video from Mutita offering very simple and easy step by step lessons for making a cantaloupe flower.
May is National Historic Preservation Month. Postcard US-2545672 to Russia shows a historic photo of Fremont Street looking west around 1930. The train depot is at the end of the street. There was an Elks lodge, an ice cream and sweets store, a Western Union, and a hardware store. Doctors, dentists, and lawyers had their offices on the second floor of many of the buildings.
The Union Plaza Hotel was built at the location of the train depot in the early seventies. It continued to have the Union Pacific Railway Station attached until Amtrak discontinued passenger train services into Las Vegas in the late nineties. The area where the train station was has since been converted into additional casino space as part of the Plaza Hotel and Casino.
Postcard US-2738789 to Germany shows Tyler James performing as an Elvis impersonator on the 1st Street Stage at the Fremont Street Experience. Tyler James, once working at Walmart in Arkansas, is the official Elvis for the Downtown Las Vegas.
You can join his fan club on Facebook. His incoming performances in April, 2014 are scheduled as:
