Year of the Snake
Begins today. Get your Snake stamps at the Elberta Post Office tomorrow.
I called over to Frankfort to see about Snake stamps. I’ve been collecting the USPS Chinese Lunar New Year series, and the Year of the Snake edition just dropped. Since Jerome Forde, our postmaster, is unable to order his own stamps for our post office, the Frankfort staff (including a nice lady born in 1965) agreed to bring some over. I asked for 10 sheets, which surprised them. They’ll be at our PO tomorrow, January 30; a day late, and $14.60 for a sheet of 20. I’ll buy one sheet (for now) and leave the rest to you all.
First-class stamps are now 73 cents each. I’ve found Forever stamps to be a good investment! So far, in proper lunar new year order, the Post Office has issued Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, and Dragon. If you were smart and bought Rat five years ago, you paid a mere 55 cents per stamp, good to be affixed to some mail till the next Rat year rolls around (in 2032) and beyond. I was not smart, so I will have to pay $15 or more per sheet on eBay.
This isn’t the first time the postal service has issued lunar new year stamps. But this series, designed by Camille Chew and based on her paper sculptures, is especially becoming. Go on in and buy some and show ’em all how much we like (and need) classy stamps here in Elberta.
In other great post office news, Mary Welcome has created a truly magical photo essay for Barn Raiser that showcases several post offices in our area, including Elberta’s and Frankfort’s. She talked to Jerome, and to our Village historian, Andy Bolander, and to our dear former postmaster Tim Flynn. Follow that link—it’s worth the trip.
