Our final post for 2006

Sue & I would like to wish you all a very Happy, Healthy, Prosperous & Box-filled 2007. Be safe in whatever you do this holiday weekend and we'll catch up with you next year! May 2007 be a year of peace for you, the country and the world.

The Godfather of Soul

Legendary singer and architect of soul, James Brown, died this week and is now spreading his funky magic in a better place. The Godfather of Soul was 73 years old. Hopefully someone will immortalize The Godfather with a stamp and a letterbox in his honor. Who knows - it might even be us! Stay tuned!

The picture to the right shows pall bearers removing James Brown's casket from the white, horse-drawn hearse, just outside of the Apollo. His body will lie in state on the stage of the historic place located in Harlem, NY.

Fans will be allowed to pay their respects to the man who not only changed but uplifted generations of African Americans. His social activism, encouragement of pride and his efforts to convince youth to remain in school were some of his most important accomplishments apart from the music field.

Rest in peace, Godfather.

Merry Christmas From Iraq!

Regardless of your political affiliation or your opinions on the war in Iraq, please don't forget that there are America's children who are away from home this holiday season and empty seats at holiday tables around the United States. Sue & I hope that you'll keep a kind thought in your heart for them as you celebrate this holiday season.

Pictured on the right is the holiday card that Granny Butterfly received from her two grandchildren who are serving as medics with the Embassy Clinic in Iraq. They are Patrick and Christina Frank, who were married in June and shipped over to Iraq in September. Patrick is the grandson of Granny Butterfly (aka Sandra Imboden) and her husband, Chris.

We thank Granny Butterfly for sharing this holiday card with us and granting us permission to place it here on our blog.

Sue & I would like to wish Patrick and Christina a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. And thanks for the work you continue to do for all of us here in the US. May God bless and watch over you both until you are safely back home.

We noticed several new letterboxes being planted in Iraq this month - Falconry and Give Letterbox. Maybe Patrick and Christina can bring back the images for their grandparents Sandra & Chris!

Our Wish For You . . . .

A Happy & Healthy Holiday Season!

Finally - A Newboxer's Patch!

The above is the proof sent to us by the patch manufacturer.
Read more about it here.

Thanks, again, to all of the designers who submitted such great designs.
It was very difficult to decide one that we liked the best.

Patches should be available mid January.

The Winning Newboxers' Patch . . .

Above is the new patch design that will be associated with the Newboxers Talk List.

The winning designers were True Indigo and her husband. After the holidays, we'll inquire as to pricing and begin the production process. Following are the results of the final run-off vote:

209 total votes were cast

#1 earned 38 votes
#3 earned 63 votes
#4 earned 51 votes
#10 earned 37 votes
#14 earned 20 votes

Congratulations to all of the patch designers. Many boxers voiced their opinion that it was extremely difficult to choose just one design over the others since they were all so good.

Our Holiday Message ~

A Little Holiday Boxing Cheer . . .

This week we noticed two very clever posts on the Great Lakes talk list. These boxers adapted Clement Moore's Twas the Night Before Christmas with some very clever, letterboxing-related twists.

We emailed both of them - asking their permission to share their work with our readers. Hope you enjoy this holiday spark of letterboxing creativity!

Take a peek here and enjoy!

Sorry - but . . .

Boy - it's been nuts here in Pineconeville. Not at home but at work. Since September I've been managing our department at work while my boss is on a special project. It was supposed to last 12 weeks which looks like it might turn into 16.

With hectic days at work, managing staff and salespeople, the last thing I've felt like is posting here on the blog. But - the end is in sight and I can hardly wait. We'll be back to posting here on a regular basis before long. Thanks for your understanding. Just wanted you loyal readers to know why we've been lax in our posting as of late!

Don't Look Now But . . .

Yeah - that's right, Cooties!

Love 'em or hate em? Here's a story I thought I'd share . .

I heard through the boxing grapevine (you know my ear is always ready for some boxing gossip!) that there was a small gathering held recently in an area where many new members attended. This mini meet was held purposely to introduce the wave of new boxers to the local community; just like the wave of new boxers joining around the country since the latest Family Fun magazine articles.

At this event, a young child planted a cootie in the pocket of a backpack of a gentleman. Gentleman is the wrong word; since this guy went ballistic on the youth! Now our impression is that cooties originated for kids. They were the ones who derived the most pleasure from them since they could imprint their inked-up finger print and fashion a little print drawing in the cootie logbook. I've seen some adults as well who enjoy these little buggers.

The outrage of this man brought about a question - do you like cooties? Are they an annoyance to you? The boxer who sponsored this event had a bunch of suggestions as to how to better provide a cootie-friendly atmosphere. This host/hostess thought about a separate area that would be a "cootie free zone" where boxers could place their backpacks and belongings without fear or worry that they'd be infested.

Sue & I had a ball with cooties dropped on us at the gathering honoring us and Deanne & Dave in OR this past June. Those boxers out there are brazen! I had 2 cooties dropped into the pockets of my hiking shorts and would never have known it if they hadn't been metal and clinked against each other! When I turned, of course, no one was there! I suspect it was Der Mad Stamper or one of the others that attended but talk about stealthy cootie playing!

A cootie free zone sounds like a good idea to us - an area off limits to cooties for those who don't want to participate. We've heard some boxers say that they live in remote areas and don't see a lot of other boxers so getting a cootie would put it out of commission for a long while. Others have told us that they hate cooties.

Below - in our new Poll of the Week - please vote! Cooties - Love 'em or hate 'em? Regardless of what we vote; they're here to stay and so they should. Maybe ideas like a "cootie free zone" might make them more palatable for those that do not want to participate in this bugged out frenzy! In the meantime - be careful out there! We hear there's an infestation that's being worked on this winter that will hatch this spring - just in time for the beginning of the letterboxing gathering season!