Disney Adds Signs Warning of Alligators and Snakes

A private swap to Pennsylvania shows a card produced by SFWMD. It reads on the back: "The broad-snouted American alligator navigates freely through rivers and lakes in southern Florida. Remnants of a prehistoric ear, alligators are a protected species that continues to flourish." The number of alligators living in Florida is estimated at 1.3 million. Central to state's identity, it was featured on  a 32-cent commemorative stamp, issued in Tallahassee, Florida on March 3, 1995, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Florida Statehood.

Although alligator attacks are rare, properties at Walt Disney World are adding signs warning "Alligators and snakes in area" at their beaches after an alligator dragged a 2-year-old boy from Nebraska to his death in a lagoon near the Grand Floridian Resort & Spa on June 14, 2016. At the time of incident, only "No Swimming" signs were posted without any specific reference to alligators.

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157th Anniversary of Minnesota Statehood

157 years ago, Minnesota became the 32nd state of the United States on May 11, 1858. It first became a territory of the United States in 1849. Then it submitted an application for statehood to President James Buchanan in January, 1858. However, distracted from a controversy about statehood of Kansas, Congress did not act on the application for several months before finally approved it. The state was created from the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and part of the Wisconsin Territory. The name "Minnesota" was originated from a Dakota word meaning "clear blue water." The state is known as the "Land of Ten Thousand Lakes" due to its large number of lakes.

Postcard US-2269166 from Minneapolis, MN shows Minnehaha Falls, one of the most photographed sites in Minnesota with 850,000 visitors every year, at Minnehaha Park in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The park was designed by landscape architect Horace W.S. Cleveland in 1883, and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969 as the Minnehaha Historic District.

Happy 150th Birthday, Nevada!

Postcard US-3017742 was sent to Germany with warm greetings from Nevada. On October 31, 1864, Nevada became the 36th state of the United State during the Civil War. Today marks the 150th birthday of the "Silver State" Nevada.

Las Vegas hosted a special Nevada Day Parade for the first time started at 10 a.m. to celebrate the State’s Sesquicentennial, highlighting the legacy of Southern Nevada. 150 groups marched up 4th Street in Downtown Las Vegas, consisting of floats, antique cars, horses, motorcycles, and marching bands. Hard to miss were larger-than-life Birthday Cake, Elvis, and American Eagle balloons.

Celebrations continue tomorrow including the 76th annual Nevada Day Parade in Carson City on November 1, 2014.

You can purchase a copy of the Greetings from Nevada postcards from Zazzle.

Home Means Nevada

Postcard US-3038783 to Latvia shows a maxi card that has a big-letter "NEVADA" rubber stamp imprint and a Nevada Statehood Forever stamp with a first-day-of-issue cancellation.

As part of the Nevada’s Sesquicentennial celebration, more than 500 groups around the state participated #NevadaSings to sing the Nevada State Song "Home Means Nevada" at 10 a.m. today, attempting to set a record for people singing one state song at the same time, with one group singing from as high as 25,000 feet or 7,620 meters in the sky. For those who had participated, video or photo proof are still accepted on www.Nevada150.org web site.

Written & Music by Bertha Raffetto, the lyrics of the official song of the State of Nevada are:

Way out in the land of the setting sun,
Where the wind blows wild and free,
There’s a lovely spot, just the only one
That means home sweet home to me.
If you follow the old Kit Carson trail,
Until desert meets the hills,
Oh you certainly will agree with me,
It’s the place of a thousand thrills.Home means Nevada
Home means the hills,
Home means the sage and the pine.
Out by the Truckee, silvery rills,
Out where the sun always shines,
Here is the land which I love the best,
Fairer than all I can see.
Right in the heart of the golden west
Home means Nevada to me.

Whenever the sun at the close of day,
Colors all the western sky,
Oh my heart returns to the desert grey
And the mountains tow’ring high.
Where the moon beams play in shadowed glen,
With the spotted fawn and doe,
All the live long night until morning light,
Is the loveliest place I know.

Home means Nevada
Home means the hills,
Home means the sage and the pines.
Out by the Truckee’s silvery rills,
Out where the sun always shines,
There is the land that I love the best,
Fairer than all I can see.
Right in the heart of the golden west
Home means Nevada to me.

Better Late than Never

Postcard US-2849028 to China was a Welcome to Las Vegas card from the tropical themed Margaritaville casino inside the Flamingo in Las Vegas. It was mailed directly from USPS' Philatelic Center in Kansas City after it was sent in to obtain a first-day-of-issue postmark on the Nevada Statehood Forever stamp by mail on July 26, 2014, along with other cards. Due to the initial delay in selecting a card on my part and a longer-than-usual-processing time at the Philatelic Center in Kansas City, it took exactly 100 days for the card to arrive. Yet it is an encouraging sign, and I hope the rest of those postcards in that order will soon reach their intended recipients.

All Star Concert at the Smith Center Celebrates Nevada's Sesquicentennial

Nevada’s 150-year history was condensed into a two-hour 250-cast 27-act concert at Reynolds Hall in the Smith Center for the Performing Arts in Las Vegas tonight on September 22, 2014.  It was one of the 450 statewide events that celebrate the 150th anniversary of Nevada Statehood.

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.

Battle Born

In this Independence Day on the 4th of July, CNN Interactive is showcasing a natural wonder in each of the 50 states. CNN's choice of amazing natural wonder in Nevada is the Valley of Fire State Park, USPS also issued a Nevada Statehood Forever Commemorative stamp on May 29, 2014, featuring a view in the Valley of Fire State Park, to celebrates the 150th anniversary of Nevada Statehood.

When President Abraham Lincoln needed another Republican state to help support his anti-slavery policies in Congress, people in Nevada answered the call and voted to join the Union, even the population in Nevada back then was not big enough to form a state. Nevada was admitted to the Union in 1864, during the Civil War. Hence the words “Battle Born” have appeared on the Nevada state flag since.

The postcard was made by VistaPrint with one of my photos taken on November 27, 2011.

#CNN50spots

Valley of Fire

Postcard US-1804465 to Germany shows a flaming sunset view at the Valley of Fire, the oldest and largest state park in Nevada located 55 miles from Las Vegas, dedicated in 1935. The Valley of Fire got its name from red sandstone formations, formed from great shifting sand dunes some 150 million years ago when dinosaurs were around. You can find areas of petrified wood and early Indian petroglyphs throughout the park. There is a diverse desert bio-community that features creosote bush, burro bush, and brittlebush; beaver tail and cholla cactus; springtime blooming plants such as desert marigold, indigo bush, and desert mallow; birds such as raven, house finch, sage sparrow, and roadrunner; lizard and snake; coyote, kit fox, spotted skunk, jackrabbit; and the desert tortoise.

The Valley of Fire was designated as a National Natural Landmark in 1968. The park is also marked as Nevada Historical Marker #150. A close-up view of an area in Fire Canyon, part of Valley of Fire, has made on to the Nevada Statehood Forever Commemorative stamp, to be issued by USPS in Las Vegas, NV on May 29, 2014, to celebrates the 150th anniversary of Nevada statehood. The oil-on-Masonite panel was painted by Nevada artist Ron Spears.

Greetings from Montana

It is the 124th anniversary of Montana's admission to the Union today. President Benjamin Harrison, 23rd President of the United States, proclaimed Montana the 41st State on November 8, 1889. Montana is ranked 4th in size, but 44th in population and 48th in population density among the all 50 states. It is the home to Glacier National Park and Yellowstone National Park.

Postcard US-1758497 arrived in 2 days with greetings from Montana on July 8, 2012.

54th Anniversay of Alaska Statehood

Glacier in Alaska

President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Alaska Statehood Act on July 7, 1958. It led to Alaska's admission into the Union on January 3, 1959, becoming the 49th State. Juneau, the territorial capital, was formally recognized as the state capital, and William A. Egan was sworn in as the first governor.

These shaped cards were purchased in 2003 when I attended the ASPRS annual conference in Anchorage. The glacier shaped card has been sent to Taiwan.

The Polar Bears are the Cutest