A Postcard A Day - Friday 27 March 2026 - Friday Smiles

Hello lovely girls, Here am I on Friday! Have you all had a good week?

I got a nice postcard this week. It comes from the Netherlands as you might have guessed:

It just brings back memories from my childhood. It was sent to me by Chantal who lives in the province of Utrecht. (i.e. not in Holland).

The stamp is a normal Dutch stamp with a lighthouse.

 Let me tell you what I have been up to. On Monday morning I took my car to the body shop to have some scratches repaired and repainted. So on Tuesday, when I go to Pilates in town, I had to go by bus. This was the first time I had used a local bus and I enquired what time it went. It appeared there was only one bus into town at 8:30 and another one back at 11:45. That suited me fine. I even got a discount because I am a pensioner. 

I had purposely not had breakfast so I went to a well known coffee shop for my breakfast:

It is called Café Colombia and I had tomato and avocado on toast and a cappuccino and freshly squeezed orange juice.

I went to Pilates and then had some time to do some shopping. I bought a lovely Regatta rain jacket which I can use on my holiday in May.

When I was waiting for the bus back home, I saw this mural:

It certainly is Picasso inspired.

I've recently had a birthday and my friends gave me a jigsaw puzzle for my birthday. Well, I could not wait to start it and I did the outside border bit in one sitting and then this morning I sat out on the patio (in the sun) and got as far as this. Of course you don't know what it is supposed to be.... I'll tell you next time.

I will find you some funnies to smile about at the end.

Wishing you all a lovely weekend,

Lisca

 

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 24 March 2026 - T for Islamic art, and three birthdays

 Hello lovely peeps,

I'm writing this on Monday evening the 23rd. It's my birthday and I've spent a lovely day at my friends', but more about that later. 

My postcard today is one that I send out to other people, as it features the Alhambra in Granada:

The Alhambra is a large palace and fortress complex in Granada, Spain. It is the only preserved Islamic palatine city, one of the most famous monuments of Islamic architecture, and one of the best-preserved palaces in the historic Islamic world.

I have visited it several times, as it's local, and it never ceases to amaze me, The craftmanship:

The gardens are beautiful:

And the views from the palace:

The famous Court of lions has been restored recently:

The courtyard floor is entirely of marble (as is the fountain). It's beautiful.

So, what have I been up to? Well, as I said it is my birthday today but I had a whole birthday weekend! I celebrated with my English speaking friends, who came to my house for a bring-and-share lunch and a Bible study.

One of them had brought a birthday cake (excuse my strange position. It looks like I was wringing my hands).

Then in the evening I went out for a drink with another set of friends but I forgot to take any pictures.

On Sunday I went to church and after the service we had a bring and share lunch. I had made a cake:

There was lots of food:

Considering we are only a small group of people.

Eventually I cut the cake:

And people sung Happy Birthday in Spanish.

That was Sunday. Then on Monday my friends Kim and Andy had invited me to their house for a BBQ, and they picked me up from home so I didn't have to drive and could have a drink.

So this glass of bubbly can be my 'ticket' to Elizabeth and Bluebeard's T-Party. The banner reads: Feliz Cumpleaño and the hat is just for fun.

Lots of chicken thighs on a rotisserie thingy. It was very yummy and cooked to perfection. The weather was sunny but when dinner time came round, it got cloudy and cooler, so we ate inside.

I had a lovely day and felt very loved and very blessed.

That is all from me today,

Happy T-Day,

Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Friday 20 March 2026 - Friday Smiles

Hello my lovelies, It's Friday and I will show you what I've been doing in the past week and what has made me smile. Of course a postcard is always the first thing in my blog:

It comes from Russia (St Petersburg) from Natalia. I love this card as I love books and reading. This would be me, surrounded by books! The stamps are the standard Russian stamps, but they are quite pretty I think.

I'm reading Precipice (Robert Harris) on my Kindle and I'm nearing the end. My audiobook that I have recently finished is Take No Farewell by Robert Goddard. 

Then I listened to The Unquiet Bones by Mel Starr, about a surgeon in medieval times. He gets involved in a murder case and turns into a sleuth. I enjoyed it. 

I have also finished A Study in Scarlet, by sir Conan Doyle. It is the first Sherlock Holmes story where Watson joins him and they solve a mystery together. This one is partly set in the USA and the Mormons feature in it. It is narrated by Stephen Fry. I love his voice. It is such an 'English' voice, perfect for this book. 

 What have I been doing since last Friday? We had a fellowship lunch at a house near me.

I walked over with my contribution. It was a 'bring-and-share' meal. I had made meatballs.

As you can see below the table was full of nice things to eat.

The man who built this cave house is a Scottish carpenter and don't you just love that window! It's like a Hobbit house:

That's me rummaging in my bag. 

 The rest of the week has been uneventful. On Tuesday's blog you will have seen that I've had a haircut. Yesterday I've had a massage (I treat myself every now and then). I also had another dentist appointment, so I felt I deserved that massage. 

 Of course I will try to find some funnies to put at the end. 

 In the meantime I wish you all a lovely weekend, 

 Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 17 March 2026 - T for turtle, telescope and a haircut

 Hello lovely girls,

Another week has passed and I have another postcard for you. This one has been displayed (as I love it) on my dresser since last year but I don't think I've ever shown it you.

It is a Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle. The info on the card reads: The most commonly seen turtle in Hawaii is green sea turtle. The turtles of Hawaii are an endangered species so they must not be touched or harmed in any way. (Photo Mike Severns)

It was sent to me by Richard who lives in Oklahoma City, but writes in Dutch. (Google Translate?)

The stamps are amazing:

On the left is a small 'Additional Ounce' stamp with penguins. In the middle a stamp with a 'Droid' from Starwars called IG-11. 

On the USPS site I found this:

Droids have been a staple in the “Star Wars” galaxy from the very beginning. They are engaged as loyal companions, etiquette and protocol aides, and sidekicks. The U.S. Postal Service has embraced these engaging personalities and brought the droids’ unique appeal to a pane of 20 Forever stamps.

The stamps are a nod to the commitment of Lucasfilm and its parent company, The Walt Disney Company, to science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) learning and the continued collaboration between the “Star Wars: Force for Change” philanthropic initiative and global pre-K-12 nonprofit organization FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology). Together, “Star Wars: Force for Change” and FIRST are on a mission to expand access to STEM learning and robotics to more young people around the world.

On the right is a beautiful stamp with the image of the James Webb Space Telescope:

The USPS writes: The U.S. Postal Service celebrates NASA’s remarkable James Webb Space Telescope, the largest and most complex telescope ever deployed in space — capable of peering directly into the early cosmos and studying every phase of cosmic history.

Its gold-coated mirror segments form a 21-foot-wide lens that captures faint infrared rays from billions of light-years away that represent the universe’s first accessible starlight. Revealed is the universe in its infancy, including galaxy formation. The Webb Telescope can also analyze exoplanets for potentially life-supporting conditions and provide unprecedentedly high-resolution views of our own solar system.

The heat-sensitive telescope must operate in extreme cold. From its orbit of the sun about a million miles from Earth, it is constantly positioned above the planet’s night side, orienting its optics and instruments in perpetual shade from the sun and Earth behind its tennis-court-size solar shield.

Launched on Christmas Day 2021, the telescope represents multinational cooperation of NASA and the European and Canadian space agencies.

During the telescope’s expected five- to 10-year mission, scientists anticipate answers to age-old questions — plus introductions to new cosmic mysteries.

It's such a shame that the stamp were canceled by hand (one of my pet hates).

What have I been up to? I had my friends Kim and Andy for lunch (they come every week).

I had bought a slow cooked pork shank, and I cooked roast potatoes with veggies. A lovely meal.

As it's T for Tuesday, I call your attention to my drink (white wine) and Andy's alcohol free beer.

Ronnie loves to sit on Andy's lap:

What else have I been up to? I have had my nails done:

Again, there is a drink visible in the background. It's my coffee.

And yesterday I had my hair cut (very necessary as my hairdresser had been on holiday):

I will leave you with a photo of Ronnie this evening as he was playing with a large box. As soon as he saw me get my phone out to take a picture, he scarpered!

I just caught him escaping.

That is it for today. Wishing you all a happy T-Day,

Lisca