Horoscope, Bosnia and Herzegovina

After a lovey half-day trip out in the nature, back home to spend a cozy evening and do my contribution for today's Sunday stamps... and before I get down to the stamps, just wanted to show you these pictures from today's trip, in case you need an idea for your next travel destination ;)

(you can read a bit more here: Kozjak Lake)

and now to why you are actually here, and that is stamps.
Now even though I am one of those people who do not believe in horoscopes, I find it that sometimes stamps related to astrology are quite nice actually, just like this fantastic issue from BiH, which I decided to share with you today, issued on 26th January 2004, in a set of, well of course, 12 stamps.

Regarding my relationship to astrology... it has not always been that way. In fact, when I was little I was actually hooked on it, to an extent probably not considered healthy for a 12 year old, but I guess I got that from my aunt, since I spent a lot of time back then with her and my grandparents and she was all into these chakras and third eyes and all those astral and paranormal stuff, while I was regularly buying and reading astrology related magazines. Looking back at it, not a wise way to spend money, but I can find something of this kind about each period of my life... cos of course at the time being, it doesn't look unwise at all :))

So according to these stamps, my element is FIRE and my planet is The SUN (well I do enjoy sitting outside in the sunshine, when it is not too hot, preferably in silence).
Body area: spine, back, heart (ok, if this means that I would be suffering from back pains, then I give you credit for this one).
Colors: gold, orchard (if there is something I absolutely dislike, are things made of gold)
And it says I am: assertive, confident, social, expressive, leader, courageous, competitive, creative, emotional, adventurous, determined, dedicated, energetic, preserving and adaptable (that is 5 out of 15 right :D)
And the negative stuff: arrogant, egotistical, bossy, temperamental, very jealous and possessive, extravagant and insensitive (I don't dare be judgmental on this one, I'll let others do their assessment :P)

Anyways, reading a horoscope can always be fun at least and have a good joke coming out of it. Do you believe in horoscopes? Do you find it true what is said about you?

For more H entries, visit today's edition of Sunday Stamps.

Marine Life, Norway

Hello Sunday stampers...and everyone else!! Today was another one of those days when I thought I'd have to miss the Sunday Stamps' post due to lack of relevant material..but then as it often goes...I accidentally stumble across something that would fit in properly...so here we go! And I am sort of shocked to realize that these are the first EVER Norwegian stamps on this blog...

So here are three stamps of the Marine Life set issued in 2004.

The first stamp here shows the a Little Cuttlefish (or as its Latin name goes, Sepiola Atlantica), which is a species of bobtail squid found in the North East Atlantic Ocean from Iceland, the Faröes and western Norway to the Moroccan coast. (I copied this explanation from one of Bob's earlier posts, since he had this stamp featured too)

The stamp in the middle shows a Coronate Medusa (Periphylla periphylla), also known as helmet/crown jellyfish, represents an exception, very rarely found in the phylum Cnidaria: the medusae go through no polyp stage, thus presenting a "holopelagic" life cycle. The medusae strew fertilized eggs in open water and these develop directly into medusae, whose development rests entirely upon the egg's high yolk supply. The ephyra stage common among other jellyfish is not to be observed in P. periphylla.

The last stamp shows a Catfish (Anarichas lupus), which is a marine fish, the largest of the Anarhichadidae family. Apart from their unique appearance these are distinguished by the natural antifreeze they produce to keep their blood moving fluidly in their very cold habitat, involvement by both the male and female in brood bearing, and the large size of their eggs.

Well, Im far from an expert on the topic, so I just rely on what google has provided...I hope it hasn't let me down :)

for more underwater beauties, click on the button below...and enjoy your Sunday :)

Cats

Gosh, I can not believe how silly I am sometimes...all day long ive been just doing stuff around and with this notion in my head that I dont really have some nice pet stamps to show for today...what an idiot! At quarter to midnight, while browsing thru some stuff in my stamps' folders, I was proven so wrong! Cos I have actually a BUNCH of stamps related to pets! aaarghh! And you know that feeling when you hurriedly are trying to find where they are, then trying to scan them...and you feel like you arms and hands are shivering cos you have no idea if you're gonna be in time (i really do not know at what time does that linky tool expire, and beyond which point i am no longer able to post a link?! Anyways, I hope im gonna make it, cos I really wanted to show you these adorable kitties...and from what Ive checked, no one else has posted them today, so a reason more to be all anxious to make it!

here, I have this booklet with four cats issued by the Finnish post on May 4, 2006. What I do not like about them is that they are self-adhesive (im a bit old-fashioned when it comes to stamps), but they certainly look nice in this booklet..I love the paw prints! :)


the other ones come from Germany... i have both the mint stamps and the FDC...these were issued on 3 June 2004, and portray both cats and kittens...and if im not mistaken, these stamps are issued for those young people interested in philately...well, if i was a kid, these would surely grab my attention :)

I am both a cat and a dog person...just adore them...esp  I have fondness for stray dogs and often wish i could adopt them all...anyways, for today I decided to stick with cats...cos with the lack of time im having for this post, i really couldnt afford to spend more time on thinking what to post :)

for some more adorable creatures, click below

Kim II Sung, North Korea

As I read somewhere recently, collecting North Korean stamps is a real challenge.
Not as much is known about North Korean stamps. The major overseas catalogs do not agree in their listings, and few dealers enjoy a comprehensive inventory. Although the 1946-52 stamp issues endured the Korean War, many stamps were destroyed and data is incomplete. Quantities issued are listed in the German-language Michel Middle and East Asia catalog (Mittel und Ostasien, Vol. 9 in the multivolume world catalog).

Well, due to that, I dont know how I should feel for owning this s/s, issued in 2004, commemorating the birthday of the Great Leader or the Eternal President of North Korea, where his birthday is celebrated as a national holiday. He led North Korea from its founding in 1948 until his death and was succeeded by his son Kim Jong-il.
So I really cant find much detailed information about the North Korean stamps but from the listings i saw, they are FASCINATING!! I just dont get it, why they issue so many and such beautiful stamps, when the entire country is sort of closed for external communication. Not that there is NO mail coming out from North Korea, but really, where would they use all those stamps? And I wonder how are the North Korean philatelists managing their collections, whether they are able to freely communicate or no, knowing that the NK government has it ALL under control. Really, the more I get to read about NK, the more it fascinates me, coz instead of getting to learn more about the country, by reading more about it, it actually turns to be more and more mysterious!
Im often curios about the perception of the reality of the North Koreans, not about their own country, but the entire world and universe in general...
Well, Im also wondering if the NK government is following the entire internet network and if they are being alerted each time a post about NK appears somewhere in the world....and if they are gonna track mine as well :)