Wild Postcards

This is a postcard from Great Grandpa Phil’s collection; it was sent to him and Great Grandma Lottie by the Hodinka family, John, Helen, and daughter Charlene, from a vacation in Minnesota. It’s postmarked Rochester, MN, August 27, 1966. John Hodinka — “Sonny” — was my grandmother’s cousin; he passed away last Wednesday, September 22 at the age of 81.

Charlene tells me that her grandfather on Helen’s side had a cousin there. Her mother’s aunt corresponded regularly with the folks in Rochester, but they had never met, so this trip was part vacation, part family reunion.

At one point during the vacation, Sonny somehow wound up on a horse, with explicit instructions not to let up on the reins. Of course, he did, and the horse wound up riding in circles, with Sonny unable to get the horse to stop. Another rider had to sidle up to them to bring Sonny and his mount to a stop. Bear in mind that we’re talking about a man who made sixteen jumps into Italy with the 82nd Airborne Division.

For young Charlene, the highlight of the trip was a tour of the Hormel plant, where she was able to observe how ham is made. “Poor little piggies,” she says. “They hung them upside down (on hooks) and a knife stabbed each one in the stomach. The things you remember…. I got pig blood on my white sneaker.” She didn’t remember if Sonny had anything to say about it, but I think he would have found the humor in the situation.

So long, Sonny. I miss you already.

This is a postcard from Great Grandpa Phil’s collection; it was sent to him and Great Grandma Lottie by the Hodinka family, John, Helen, and daughter Charlene, from a vacation in Minnesota. It’s postmarked Rochester, MN, August 27, 1966. John Hodinka — “Sonny” — was my grandmother’s cousin; he passed away last Wednesday, September 22 [...]

Since there’s no worded suggestion, one must assume that it’s the illustration that is meant to impart some guidance. What I’m getting out of it is that you should take your lover to a quiet spot in the moonlight, stick out your tongue, and see what happens.

This card didn’t go through the postal system and appears to have been hand-delivered to Great-Grandpa Phil, presumably by some young lass who was making her intentions clear. Looks like Phil had a happy Valentine’s Day; I hope you do the same.

Since there’s no worded suggestion, one must assume that it’s the illustration that is meant to impart some guidance. What I’m getting out of it is that you should take your lover to a quiet spot in the moonlight, stick out your tongue, and see what happens. This card didn’t go through the postal system [...]

This is a postcard sent to my Great-Grandpa Phil by his cousin, James, on February 25 of either 1908 or 1909; the postmark isn’t clear. (Also, somebody did a poor job of filching the stamp.) What’s odd is that it’s postmarked at Helen, Pennsylvania. James lived in Dawson, Pennsylvania, about 10 miles from Phil, but he mailed it from Helen, which was only about two miles away. James and Phil were both pre-teens at the time; James and family might have been visiting friends. I don’t recall any that any relatives lived in the very tiny hamlet of Helen.

James writes: “Dear Philip: I rec’d your card. Glad to hear from you. Mamma (Phil’s Aunt Kate) will answer your card you sent her soon. Good-by, James.”

Over at Girls Go Postal! today, I posted another of Phil’s cards, a postcard sent to him by my great-great-great-grandmother. Check it out, then take a look at the other folks celebrating Postcard Friendship Friday today!

This is a postcard sent to my Great-Grandpa Phil by his cousin, James, on February 25 of either 1908 or 1909; the postmark isn’t clear. (Also, somebody did a poor job of filching the stamp.) What’s odd is that it’s postmarked at Helen, Pennsylvania. James lived in Dawson, Pennsylvania, about 10 miles from Phil, but [...]

Some vintage humor for Postcard Friendship Friday: a deacon goes to town and discovers that they make postcards of pretty girls! (You can click on the extreme closeup at right and see for yourself what makes this deacon smile.)

Moreover, he seems pleased as punch at the discovery. And why shouldn’t he be? I know that I was pretty excited when I found out about it.

Looks like my Great-Grandpa Phil received this postcard, oh, a little over a hundred years ago; the postmark is a little obscured, but it looks like January 9, 1909.

Some vintage humor for Postcard Friendship Friday: a deacon goes to town and discovers that they make postcards of pretty girls! (You can click on the extreme closeup at right and see for yourself what makes this deacon smile.) Moreover, he seems pleased as punch at the discovery. And why shouldn’t he be? I know [...]