Might as well end the week with more about postcards. The following, from Ed, have been pinned to the wall of my office since I received them in the late 2000s. The text is his message on each card.

“Have circumnavigated the island in a tevaka, outrigger canoe. It is way prettier than I expected. Fed sting rays yesterday, watched a turtle swim toward the open ocean. Story itself is being difficult, but trip is great fun.”

“I suppose it’s the cliche postcard from Yap, but then, for an extremely beautiful island, the postcards kind of suck. So far, I love it here. Topless women greet you at the airport, flowers are blooming everywhere, and outside the town, it is very, very quiet. Unlike the Tahiti story, which is like pulling teeth, this one is going to be extremely easy. And I haven’t even seen the manta rays or giant fruit bats yet. Marvelous.”

“Technically, haven’t been here yet, but going tomorrow. Today, saw ~50 elephants and dozen giraffe, countless zebras, antelopes and buffalo, 4 lions, 2 leopards. It really is like being inside a national geo special.”

“I’ve been here & you haven’t. Ha.”

To that last one, I think I answered by sending him a postcard of the Gerald Ford Museum in Grand Rapids and saying exactly the same thing. He admitted it was true.