COVID Card #200

November 21, 2020 | 0 comments

200 cards. Is the USPS solvent yet?

I thought maybe the 200th card should be something special. Instead — it’s kind of creepy.

Alexander Brook created two post office murals for Washington DC. The first one appears to be a somewhat run-of-the-mill family scene. The second one is a puzzle. It seems like a rural scene, but I’d hardly call it bucolic. Where are these young men and what are they doing? Why is one pointing? Is he giving orders or directions? He’s dressed differently. Who is the man reading the letter?

The titles (Writing the Family Letter and Reading the Family Letter) offer a big clue. We now know that the boy in the second painting is reading a letter from his family. Is he the husband/father? A son? Is he at war? There are no indications of that.

The murals are a commentary on the Civilian Conservation Corps, as detailed on the US GSA website.

Brook, whose wife Gina Knee was also an artist, created several covers for the Saturday Evening Post. His work can be seen online at The Met’s website, The Whitney, and the Smithsonian.

Cards 1-100

To learn more about any of the first 100 cards, select a number from the list below.

COVID Cards

The United States Postal Service has been hit hard by the pandemic. Controlling elements of the Federal Government (the president and Republican Senate) do not want to provide aid to the service. So, it’s up to us. It may seem insignificant, but if we all sent just a few letters a week, we could help ensure that our daily, free mail delivery service continues. For the past (see the card number above) days, I have drawn a card each day and mailed it to someone the next day (none are sent on Sundays; two are sent on Mondays). Please consider mailing cards and letters while we still can for 55 cents (first class letter postage). If the USPS fails, you could find it costs $8 or more to send a letter. And that’s just one of the ways we will all lose if the USPS shuts down.

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