A Postcard A Day - Friday 11 April 2025 - Friday Smiles

 Hello lovely peeps,

Get ready to smile as I have quite a few here for you (smiles, that is). I have a lovely postcard, some new clothes, a slice of 'cake' and loads of funnies!

Here's my postcard:

It's a 'fake' postcard. The picture side is made to look like the address side.  

You guessed it, it comes from India. The stamps figured are not real stamps, they are printed. But interesting nevertheless. In stead of name and address, there is info about India. On the map area I can see counties or states.

It was sent to me by Rajaram P. who tells me he lives with his mother in the state of Karnataka. 

The stamps on the real address side are interesting:

The middle stamp I immediately recognise as Ravi Shankar. Having been a bit of a hippy in the early 70s I remember his sitar playing. He was associated back in the day with Yehudi Menuhin (classical violinist) and George Harrison of the Beatles. 

Wikipedia writes: Ravi Shankar, Born: April 7, 1920, Varanasi, India, was an Indian sitarist and composer. A sitar virtuoso, he became the world's best-known expert of Indian classical music in the second half of the 20th century, and influenced many musicians in India and throughout the world. Shankar was awarded India's highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, in 1999. Died: December 11, 2012 (age 92 years), Scripps Health. Wikipedia

The stamp on the left is of Srinivasa Ramanujan Aiyangar (22 December 1887 – 26 April 1920) Wikipedia writes: He was an Indian mathematician. Often regarded as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, though he had almost no formal training in pure mathematics, he made substantial contributions to mathematical analysis, number theory, infinite series, and continued fractions, including solutions to mathematical problems then considered unsolvable.

Ramanujan initially developed his own mathematical research in isolation. According to Hans Eysenck, "he tried to interest the leading professional mathematicians in his work, but failed for the most part. What he had to show them was too novel, too unfamiliar, and additionally presented in unusual ways; they could not be bothered". Seeking mathematicians who could better understand his work, in 1913 he began a mail correspondence with the English mathematician G. H. Hardy at the University of Cambridge, England. Recognising Ramanujan's work as extraordinary, Hardy arranged for him to travel to Cambridge. In his notes, Hardy commented that Ramanujan had produced groundbreaking new theorems, including some that "defeated me completely; I had never seen anything in the least like them before", and some recently proven but highly advanced results.

The stamp on the right is about Indian fashion during the Mughal period - Nur Jahan. 

Through an AI app I got the following information:

During the Mughal period, Indian fashion was significantly influenced by Empress Nur Jahan, who is credited with introducing and refining high fashion in the region. She is known for her elegant design principles, drawing inspiration from Persian culture and incorporating it into the existing Mughal style. Nur Jahan's influence extended to various aspects of fashion, including fabrics, colors, and patterns, and she is also said to have been a creative designer of textiles and garments.

So, what has been happening here in Spain? I've been out shopping in town (Baza) 

A shop called Menta which I just chanced upon. Inside they had the sort of clothes I like. I thought: This is going to cost me money... 

(Photos from the internet)

I really haven't bought anything decent for years, so I went in and bought some clothes. 

I got a Chanel type jacket:

And a little white top. Also a blue pair of trousers:

And matching shoes:

I'm ready for spring!

I'll be going to Italy for my grandson's first communion so I bought a trouser suit:

You see only the jacket as the trousers are being shortened.

What else have I been doing? I had lunch with my lovely lodger. We do this once a month:

I made paella again:

The weather was lovely so we sat outside on the terrace.

I have been busy in the kitchen and the latest thing is this:

It's Mary Berry's Nordic seed and nut loaf. I saw her do it on tv the other night and then found the recipe online. It's very easy to make. It contains 4 eggs, some oil and lots of seeds and nuts. Mix it all together, stick it in the oven and that's it. Sliced with a sweet spread it's delicious. 

Oh gosh, this post has turned out really long. Well done if you're still with me. Well, in compensation, there are some funnies at the end.

Enjoy your weekend,

Lisca

A Postcard A Day - Tuesday 8 April 2025 - T for windows, fish and baby chicks

 Hello lovely girls,

Tuesdays come round very quickly and this time I'm going to show you a postcard, a stamp, places I've been this week and some drink related items for the T-Party and our lovely blog host Elizabeth.

First off the postcard. It comes from Germany:

It shows some traditional windows. There is no information on the card about where those windows would be, but you all know I like windows and doors. It was sent to me by Silke, who lives in Lower Saxony. She sent it for my birthday (last month) and put a lovely sticker on it of a bunch of flowers! So sweet. 

She writes that she had just put together two small dressers for her hobby room. (Ikea?) Clever girl!

The stamp is one I have not seen before:

It's from the series Welt der Briefe (World of letters) designed by Bettina Walter and is entitled: Briefburg.

So, what have I been doing? 

Well, I was at the fishmonger this week.

I was surprised to find the shop empty and I asked if I could take a picture.

I bought some clams (not in the picture) and made myself some pasta alle vongole:

Just for myself. (And there is a glass of rosé for the T-Party).

On another day I went to my friend Antonia's house so we could pray together. It was a cool morning and she has a heater under the table. This is very common in this part of Spain. Can you see I have the table cloth over my knees?

There is a small gas burner under the table:

Here is Antonia:

And there is another drink for the T-Party (tea).

My friend Patricia was there too.

Antonia showed us the little baby chickens that had hatched out of the egg:

It's difficult to see but there are three. They are under the red lamp to keep warm. And she has a small incubator with another four eggs. Isn't it lovely: new life.

The domino stones are there in the drinking dish to prevent the chicks from drowning or getting too wet.

This is the impromptu contraption:

When the first egg hatched, they quickly had to rig up something. What you see is an upside-down lamp stand with an infrared bulb on it, strapped to a piece of iron.

Finally, I went to Huescar to visit a friend from church (an hour's drive from here). She gave me a belated birthday present:

A lovely big mug with a hummingbird and a Bible verse on it. I love it!

That's it for today.

Happy T-Day all,

Lisca

 

A Postcard A Day - Friday4 April 2025 - Friday Smiles

 

Hello lovely ladies,

Spring is coming, the sun is shining and life is good! Have you got much to smile about? Join me at Annie's A Stitch In Time.

I have a postcard from Finland to share with you. I get many cards from Finland as Postcrossing is very popular there but rarely do I get a view of a town or landscape. Here is a view from the old town of Raua:

Part of the centre ( Old Rauma) is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, due to its well-preserve old wooden architecture.

Wikipedia writes: In the 14th century, before it was declared a town, Rauma had a Franciscan monastery and a Catholic church. In 1550, the townsmen of Rauma were ordered to relocate to Helsinki, but this was unsuccessful and Rauma continued to grow.

The stamp is beautiful.

The Europa stamp depicting flora features the Zostera marina seagrass, the only fully submerged seed plant in the Baltic Sea. The distribution of the salt-dependent plant extends to the central Gulf of Finland and the northern Bothnian Sea. The plant also provides a habitat for many other species.

“The Europa stamps feature a beetle and a plant. The gleaming water at the top of each stamp emphasizes the fact that the species live underwater. The shape of the upper part of the stamps depicts a wave, and the uneven stamp separation creates an image of air bubbles rising to the surface,” say Susanna Rumpu and Ari Lakaniemi, the stamp’s designers.

The animal for the Finnish Europa stamps is the Macroplea pubipennis leaf beetle, which thrives in shallow and sheltered sea bays. The beetle, which is less than a centimeter long, can seldom be found in Finland in the area from Hamina to Oulu and on the Åland Islands.

I've had a quiet week. The clocks have gone forward and I always need a week or so to feel cofortable with it.

On Monday my neighbor Dian knocked on my window and told me to look outside. There I saw a lunar eclipse! 

Bad photo but I didn't have time to get my camera out and just used my phone. I looked it up and I found stuff about eclipses in March until the 29th but nothing about the 31st. The blacked out bit is the shadow of the earth as far as I understand it. 

On Tuesday Kim and Andy came to lunch, after I had gone to the health centre to have my stitches out. All is well, no infection.

The private gym that I go to has added another room to their venue and I have had lessons there. The other ladies seem reluctant (or not able) to change their schedules to go to the new room. On Tuesday I was the only one, I had a private lesson. Fantastic. And yesterday there were two of us. The teacher can easily monitor and correct any mistakes. I have been doing Pilates for years but the teacher pointed out something I had obviously done incorrectly all these years.

I'll leave you with My cat's fangs:

And with some funnies of course at the end.

Wishing you all a very pleasant weekend,

Blessings,

Lisca