Pool Parties Return

While the summer will not officially start until June 20, 2016, it certainly feels like one already when the high temperature hit 95ºF / 35ºC in Las Vegas yesterday. Fortunately, pool parties have returned to cool us off as the blistering heat is coming soon. More concerts, festivals and out-door activities are being announced. It looks like an exciting summer in 2016. Postcard US-3975290 to the United Kingdom shows a photo taken by the pool at Luxor on July 12, 2015.

Men's Gymnastics

This original artwork by Robert Peak was used for the design of the men's gymnastics stamp from the 40¢ international airmail block of four honoring the 1984 Summer Olympics. This stamp was issued at Los Angeles, California 33 years ago on April 8, 1983.

Update: the card was later sent to Belarus as US-3975285.

1984 Summer Olympics Torch Station

Outgoing postcard US-3373220 to China was a stamped postal postcard for the 1984 Summer Olympics with an Olympic Torch Station postmark in Los Angeles, California on July 28, 1984.

The torch was lighted at 9:30 a.m. on May 8, 1984 on the lawn in front of the United Nations building, with the energy from the Olympic flame in Athens, Greece via a "heat reading" device and underwater cables. It then traveled 33 states in a 9,000-mile or 15,000-kilometer marathon relay from New York to Los Angeles in 82 days, passing through the hands of thousands of runners from all walks of life.

Since I had a layover at LAX airport in Los Angeles earlier today en route to San Francisco, I thought it would be neat if I could mail it from LAX. To my disappointment, I found out that there was no US Mail drop box in the airport. The closest U.S. post office was at 9029 Airport Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90009.

So the postcard will have to be mailed from San Francisco.

1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles

Postcard US-2776584 to Belarus was a 13-cent stamped postal postcard issued by USPS, featuring a runner with an Olympics torch, for the 23rd Summer Olympic Games which opened in Los Angeles, CA 30 years ago on July 28, 1984.

In retaliation to the U.S.-led boycott of the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, 14 countries including the Soviet Union, Cuba and East Germany boycotted the 1984 Summer Games. Iran and Libya also boycotted for different reasons.

The Olympic Committee led by Peter Ueberroth imposed financial constraints on the games budget by using existing facilities as much as possible. As a result, the 1984 Summer Olympics became the first financially successful modern Olympic Games. Some of the profits were used to endow a foundation to promote youth sports in Southern California, educate coaches, and maintain a sports library.

Los Angeles hosted the Olympic Games previously in 1932.

A Street Cat in Dallas

Postcard US-2882828 to the Netherlands shows a street cat that I met in Dallas, Texas in 2010. She had just given birth to several kittens and shown up at the balcony of my friend's house where I was staying. Being a street cat, she looked healthy and clean, alert and guarded yet full of energy and curiosity.

The summer 2010 in Dallas was hot and the high temperature in early July was between 90°F or 32°C and 95°F or 35°C. I put out some food and water and a litter box but otherwise kept distance. However, she was friendly and let me to take her picture up close. For the next couple of weeks, we kept each other company and I enjoyed to watch her kitten grow by day. I named her Misty because of her misty eyes. She brought breeze to me in a brutal summer and showed me how to survive on the tough street and yet not to lose hope and trust in people.

When the time came for me to leave town, I wish I could have taken her and her kittens with me. I bought some more can food and asked my friend to keep feeding them. However, my friend reported that they no longer showed up once I left.

I have been wondering how she has been ever since. With her positive impact on me, she can be proud of herself as a street cat. The photo was taken on July 8, 2010.

You can purchase the postcard and personalized postage stamps featuring Misty from Zazzle.

Kesäterveiset

It was a delight to receive postcard FI-2129218 from Finland in the last day of June. Kesäterveiset, in Finnish, means "summer greetings." In a previous post, I found the winters in Chicago, IL and Helsinki, Finland similar. However, for the summer, it seems much more pleasurable in Finland in comparison with Las Vegas. The high temperature is 16.7°C or 62°F with a low at 9,4°C or 49°F in Helsinki on July 1, 2014. In Las Vegas, an excessive heat warning has been issued for Tuesday and Wednesday, with a forecast of high temperature at 45°C or 113°F and low at 27.8°C or 82°F for tomorrow on July 1, 2014. One year ago on June 30, 2013, the temperature at McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas tied the all-time high record of 117°F or 47.2°C, first set on July 24, 1942 and next on July 19, 2005. It also broke the previous record high in June, which was 46.7°C or 116°F on June 15, 1940.

The photo on the top right of the postcard shows cloudberry (Rubus chamaemorus), native to alpine and arctic tundra and boreal forest. It produces red edible fruits similar to those of raspberry or blackberry we have here. According to Wikipedia, "unlike most Rubus species, the cloudberry is dioecious, and fruit production by a female plant requires pollination from a male plant."

What else can beat the summer heat better than a glass of tropical triple fruit smoothie? The bottom layer was blended with strawberry and banana using coconut water; a mix of avocado and blueberry was in the middle; while the top layer consists of mango and banana. I would try to substitute blueberry with cloudberry once I could find the supply.

Bright Summer Night on Braslav

Postcard BY-1162713 from Belarus shows "Bright Summer Night on Braslav", by Minsk photographer and astronomer Viktor Malyschits known for his many beautiful night views of Belarus on the background of sparkling stars. You can learn more about Viktor and his photos from an interview Love the Stars and their Country in Russian at Onliner.

Lighthouse in the Summer

Lighthouse in the Summer

The lighthouse shown on this postcard is currently on their summer 2013 display at the Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens in Las Vegas. The 26-foot (8- meter) tall lighthouse with red-and-white stripes has a rotating light. It is surrounded by colorful dancing kites and thousands of fresh flowers.

New England Coastal Lighthouses Forever Stamps

Also today on July 13, 2013, the U.S. Postal Service has issued five new forever stamps celebrating New England Coastal Lighthouses. It features Portland Head, Cape Elizabeth, Maine; Portsmouth Harbor, New Castle, New Hampshire; Point Judith, Narragansett, Rhode Island; New London Harbor, New London, Connecticut; and Boston Harbor, Boston, Massachusetts.

Electric Daisy Carnival

Summer Display at Bellagio Conservatory and Botanical Gardens

Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) Las Vegas 2013 starts a few hours ago in the evening on June 21, 2013 and will last for three days until June 23, 2013. It is an international annual electronic dance music festival that drew more than 300,000 people last year in 2012. It is held at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway where the organizer Insomniac has transformed this 1,000-acre race field into six areas of music, carnival rides, vendor village, interactive art installations and other festival attractions. Sirius XM channel 52 has EDC radio throughout this weekend.

International Surfing Day

According to Wikipedia: "International Surfing Day, held annually on or near the date of the summer solstice — usually June 21 (June 20  on leap years) — is an unofficial, environmentally conscious sports-centered holiday that celebrates the sport of surfing and the surfing lifestyle and the sustainability of ocean resources".

However, the summer solstice was on June 20 in 2013 although it is not a leap year. Therefore, the International Surfing Day in 2013 actually falls on June 20. Nonetheless,  The events celebrating the International Surfing Day spreads from June 17 to June 23, and onto June 30, 2013. Chances are you can probably find a location near you (except in Las Vegas, where the closest ocean is more than 270 miles / 435 km away).

Fortunately, there is a huge man-made beach at the Mandalay Bay. I bought this postcard US-2255631 at Ron Jon Surf Shop in the Shoppes at Mandalay Place.