2015 February. Encircling.

2015 March 07. ENS Chinese New Year Parade Event.

2015 March 09. A letter from EPS members RE the ENS Chinese New Year Parade Event.

This is valuable intel. The EPS cabinet expressed their concern about this Breen-food connection you mention. All food is now looked at askance. Askance. Your adhesion to the tenets of Philatelicism is admirable. But remember, the main goal of EPS members when performing double-agent duties is to gain intel. To unlock their secrets, you must pretend to really be over the moon vis-a-vis coins [FX: involuntary shudder]. Any sort of deviance from this position may raise an alarm. And hackles. Hackles are raised, right? Whatever hackles do.

2015 April 4.

2015 May 3. EPS Fifth Anniversary event photos including rousing speeches by Mailman Miek and Mailman Ted.

2015 May 13.

=======================================================
Elsewhere Philatelic Society Bulletin #1.2.3 2015may13.
=======================================================

Thank you to everyone who was able to make it out to 
celebrate our 5th anniversary. A special thank you to
the people who brought extra desserts to share with 
everyone, and the Special Ghosts who kindly played
and sang melodies during cake-eating time. It was a good
event. Also thank you to the people who were able to fill
out a survey. If you have not filled out a survey, please
get it from the nook. If you don't know what the nook is,
you need to become a member of the Elsewhere Philatelic
Society first at https://stampsfromelsewhere.com. After
you have filled out the survey, you can send it to the 
post office box printed on the survey even though it
indicates to wait until June. There are prompts for 
questions on the survey; some questions that members
have asked are answered here below the dotted line.

---

"What is the deal with StarTELEWEB?" A long time ago
EPS President Emeritus Timothy Q. Pepperscratcher
signed up with StarTELEGRAPH to manage the 
communication and cake needs of the EPS. It has been
easier just to use them going forward through the
decades than it is to initiate a relationship 
with some unfeeling multi-national conglomerate. 
Also a friend of Jimmy is employed there, so we 
occasionally receive on-the-sly discounts.
Officially we know nothing about this.

"What are these pre-marked boxes [on the survey]?" 
There was a problem with the form and the pre-marked
boxes were actually invalid characters in the shown
typeface. It has been corrected.

"Do you need many tiny paper or fabric things for any
reason?" I do not think so, but thank you.

"How does one go about opening a geode?" Diamond saw,
cast-iron plumbing pipe cutter, or hammer and chisel.
Please continue researching this before beginning to 
break the geode into the type of pieces you want.

"How do I find out more?!" There is a lot of information
available on the nook, which is an EPS repository
that requires a special password to access. To get
access to the nook, you need to complete your application
walkabout to the EPS, which is available at the website
https://stampsfromelsewhere.com.

"What's it all about, I mean when you get right down 
to it?" That is up to you. 

"Why did we break up with the ENS? I know Breen is a 
jerk but perhaps we don't need him." It seems like a
long-standing feud that really makes no sense. Breen
has a firm hand on the ENS rudder so that is the way
the boat goes, though as we have seen not everyone
in the ENS feels the same way. Also, for those of 
you who are not familiar with the history of the 
EPS/ENS falling-out, please see the "history" section
of the nook.

"Where did the ghost particle come from?" This is a
difficult question that no one in the EPS can answer.
It may be the 21st century version of the Piltdown
Man.

"If we have a chop designed can we have it made or 
does that have to be done by the EPS?" No, your 
design is yours so you can do whatever you want 
with it. 

"Do fish cry?" I have not seen any. I hope they
are okay.

"Why won't my cat sit on my lap?" [Jimmy] every
cat is up to something ... not to be trusted

"Typewriter sample?" Yes please. This is how you
earn one of the stamps in the back of the 
passport. You can read more about this and how
to get other stamps in the "passport" section 
of the nook.

"How can I help?" Continue exploring the path
of Philatelicism as detailed in the "path" section
of the nook. Also we may require help at events,
you can always ask whomever is setting up etc.

"Have you lost something?" I looked around. No.

"What do the hazard boxes mean?" [Jimmy] heyyyy when
i first started making boxes i was worried that 
people would accidentally bump into them so i started
putting hazard stripes on the sides and this worked well
to sort of camouflage the endeavour ... people dont
pay much attention to hazard signs in general, they 
just know that it means to stay away ... and i thought
it worked well as a theme, in that street art is looked
at as being a hazard by cities unless of course you
get all the required signatures/permissions/permits
etc and by then you might as well throw up four walls
and call it a gallery ... the box colors are 
sometimes little codes, sometimes referents to the
environments in which they are placed ... there is
no overarching single code scheme for all boxes ...
i would like to make more but it has been hard to 
find the spare time ...

"The golden queen bee doth find herself trapped 
between. Can she ever leave?" I am concerned about
this bee.

"Is there a way to check if I have submitted everything 
I need for a passport, etc.?" You can look at the
"path" section of the nook, it has all the information
about obtaining a passport.

"Fifty?" I believe this is in reference to the 
mis-numbered/titled cake at the fifth anniversary event. 
The cake was iced by a StarTELEWEB division (StarTELECAKE)
and I understand that there are issues with quality control
but again, the discounts we receive allow us to look past
problematic customer service issues.

"Where is the pizza?" [Jimmy] pizza yeah

"Who am I?" I guess it depends on the day. You can be
many things.

"T-shirts? Buttons? Swag?" There were t-shirts at the
5th anniversary event, and there may be shirts 
available in the future. Buttons & various swag is a 
good idea. The EPS patches are available now for five
dollars from the new "shop" in the nook.

"What is it that makes a donut taste so good? Seriously,
it's maddening." I think it has a lot to do with the
chew profile bookended by sugar. [Jimmy] donuts

"Where is the best place I can get ramen in Oakland?"
[Jimmy] theres ramen shop which is a california take
on japanese ramen ... its not authentic per-se but it 
is very good ... mitama down the road has the more
authentic japanese ramen style ... manpuku sells
horrible ramen ... avoid ... in sf theres tanpopo 
which 100 percent = ramen in japan ... theres also
another new ramen place in 101california which is
good ... the other new one on kearny and postish is
overpriced and mostly garlic ... thats my ramen take

"What will come of StarTELEWEB?" I have been hearing
good things about the StarTELEspace division seen here:
https://clipnong.vn/v/2254

"How many times?" Seven. [Jimmy] thirteen at least

"Where does one acquire Jimmy's 2014 stamp that was at 
the Naming Gallery?" This is the red/black stamp that
was included with the EPS #99 publication. There are
a very small number of copies available; information
is available in the new aforementioned nook "shop."

"Chicken or the egg?" It could be both.

"Once we have a circled hexagon, what do we do with it?"
Please take a photo and send that along with your 
mailing address to the EPS at
mail@starteleweb.com. Thank you.

"Who created the first stamp?" William Dockwra and Robert 
Murray who started the London Penny Post in 1680.

"Is there a best candy?" [Ethel] The best candy is the one
you like best. just kidding, it's candied orange peel.

"Are there any schools in the U.S. that still teach Latin?"
Yes. A New York Times article from 2008 indicates that
Latin classes within k-12 schools is "on the rise" and
that more than 134,000 students had taken the National
Latin Exam that year.

"How do I get more involved?" Following the path of 
Philatelicism is a good start. See the path section in the 
nook. 

"Where did the pineapple go?" By this you mean the
large hexagon pineapple sculpture that was, at one time,
sitting outside the plaza you visited during your
application walkabout. It was finally mailed to 
Elsewhere. Stamps are powerful.

"What happened to the li'l white guy from Find Jimmy?"
Rabbithole Jr. (who appears at the top of the EPS
Facebook page) is very close to us and helps with 
wayfinding. But recent events have not required the
assistance of Rabbithole Jr. Unless you're talking 
about Arfarf, but Arfarf is not that small so 
probably not.

---

Thank you for your questions. If you have any other
questions, please send them to the 
a href="../contact.html">EPS email address.

In old news, the Berkeley mail carrier training 
session remains available. All EPS members should
go to the Escapist at 3090 Claremont in Berkeley, 
and look for the long yellow pamphlet in a plastic
bag. It will cost $2.00.

- k.

2015 May 14.

2015 May 18.

=======================================================
Elsewhere Philatelic Society Bulletin #1.2.4 2015may18.
=======================================================

Hello this is Kaidan Tansu Jr. Photos from the EPS fifth
anniversary event are available at the nook.

Atlas Obscura is holding another Obscura Day this year on
May 30 and the EPS is participating by hosting Stamp Act I,
which you most likely took part in. This is the walkabout
in San Francisco that is the application for membership
into the EPS. Please see the following URL for information:
https://www.atlasobscura.com/events/obscura-day-2015-philatelicism-in-sf

There is also a stamp window the following day, May 31, open
at the event Aeolian Day at Jack London Square.
Please see the following URL for information:
https://www.thingamajigs.org/aeolianday/

2015 May 30. Atlas Obscura Obscura Day 2015: EPS Membership Application.

Photo by D.

2015 May 31. Aeolian Day featured a surprise visit by a postal inspector.

2015 June 2.

=======================================================
Elsewhere Philatelic Society Bulletin #1.2.5 2015jun02.
=======================================================

Hello this is Kaidan Tansu Jr. 

The nook now has photos from the EPS fifth anniversary
and rousing speeches given at that time by Mailman Miek
and Mailman Ted.

The Atlas Obscura Obscura Day 2015 EPS Membership 
Application took place this weekend and was an oasis
of calm compared to the event held the next day,
Aeolian Day. In short, we were visited by a postal 
inspector. To read the entire story and view dynamic
photos, please go to the nook.

In old news, the Berkeley mail carrier training 
session remains available. All EPS members should
go to the Escapist at 3090 Claremont in Berkeley, 
and look for the long yellow pamphlet in a plastic
bag. It will cost $2.00.

- k.

2015 June 20.

In a surprising reversal of the usual, The Elsewhere Philatelic Society was sub-contracted by StarTELEWEB to provide lite philatelic entertainment at a private event at Oakland's Fairyland USA. The EPS provided mail routing services and issued a commemorative stamp and a "first day" rubber stamp cancellation thing/happening at the Fairyland Post Office. Here it is in the 1950s, when all children were legally required to wear berets:

And here it is this year:


Photo of Headmistress Cloud & 11 by Carolee / Photo of Mailman Miek by Tybeck


Carolee & Frequency / Duckstabd & Mailm@n 9

The EPS brought out all of the usual heavy-hitters for the occasion, including Billy, the long-time official EPS envelope. Billy is from El Segundo. Critical video footage of Billy entertaining the masses appears below.

Movieclip created by Rusty Blazenhoff

Billy also received a very special ribbon!



Very special thanks to Headmistress Cloud (for bringing Billy into our lives) & Frequency (for helping hosting)!

2015 July 12.

Let's all visit the US Department of Forms. For more information about the US Department of Forms, please visit the Sidehatches page.

2015 July 13.

=======================================================
Elsewhere Philatelic Society Bulletin #1.2.6 2015jul13.
=======================================================

Hello this is Kaidan Tansu Jr. It seems like forever
ago since the last bulletin. There are many things to
talk about. First, an important change of changing.
The bulletin and members mailing list addresses have
changed. This is something that was thrust upon us 
without warning. Technology people work that way, they
just steamroll right through the middle of your house
because that way more cars can get to the ice cream
shop faster. The new addresses are at the end of this
mail message.

On Sunday July 26th there will be a stamp window in
operation in the East Bay, from 1pm on. Until 2pm? 
Sure. 3pm? Perhaps. 4pm? It is uncertain. Please RSVP
at this address by sending an email message with the
subject line: RSVP JULY 26 2015.

You may recall that at the last stamp window, for 
Aeolian Day, we had a visit from the postal inspector
and things did not go swimmingly at all (more
information is available at the nook). This event
triggered a trip down a bureaucratic rabbithole and
we all ended up at very important meeting held by 
the US Department of Forms. More information on 
exactly what happened and what it means for the future
of the EPS is forthcoming.

As you probably already know, a one-page survey 
is available for EPS members to fill out and
one of the questions on the survey was a question about
questions you had for the EPS and here are some more
that you asked.

"Who keeps stealing my mail? WHAT keeps stealing my
mail? Does it bite?" Probably a neighbor. Neighbors
bite, watch out.

"Do people put teeth and eyeballs in their mailboxes
to scare off raccoons?" The only enemy raccoons 
have are humans, so put evidence of human habitation
there: letters, postcards, or small packages.

"Why are there so many raccoons outside my house?"
Regional raccoon distributor nearby. Your 
neighborhood is probably zoned light-raccoon-
industrial.

"No really, what IS up with the water hazards?" Jimmy
avoids talking that much about his art but I think
the premise behind this action was an extension of 
his land-based pieces wherein if you make removable
street art there is a conscious choice involved with
actually leaving the art at the site. With water
hazards, you seemingly always have the opportunity
to jump in the water after your art and retrieve it,
until the art has floated away completely and then you 
realize it is impossible. It is turning black-white 
into gray. Also there is a message on the plaques, 
and if anyone finds a water hazard and writes in, 
something happens. I am not sure what. I do not 
think Jimmy knows either. No one has written in yet,
so the two water hazards are either snuggled up on
some shore, or floating in the middle of the Pacific
Ocean. Jimmy has indicated that more will be 
released, but we all seem to be backlogged with EPS
things that need doing these days. Things are 
breaking down, things need documenting, things need
filing.

"I have been wearing your sweet EPS backpatch on
my black jeans jacket & everyone in Boston/
Camberville knows I know what's up. You know?"
We know. 

"Do you still have the cheese from the gallery show?"
The tray the half-melted cheese sat on (Trayee) was 
mysteriously screwed to the plywood wall across the 
street from the gallery after the closing event. 
You can see this happening in an action photo on
the nook page for the gallery show. The tray just 
sat there for many days, and the cheese on the tray 
baked pleasantly in the sun during this time. You
would think the cheese would immediately slide off, 
but it hung on for quite some time. Eventually (two
weeks later?) the baked cheese slid off the tray, 
giving local sticker artists a chance to apply their
wares to Trayee. There is an image in the nook under 
"2014" of this very tray mounted to the plywood wall
with these very stickers applied to it.

"What is your favorite Kevin Costner movie, and why
is it Waterworld?" It is Waterworld, because of
all the water.

"Where is Jimmy?" He lives in the East Bay. He 
flits around.

"How do I further my mail career?" There is the 
Berkeley Training Session, which is detailed 
in the nook. 

"Why do birds suddenly appear?" Food, usually. 

"How is Jimmy?" He is taking a breather. Though he
starting to eyeball the increasing number of 
available advertising-based Colorplast sources for 
creating his Fall '15 nest. He occasionally 
documents his harvesting and other things at the
Twitter account @jmmy2020.

"Where is the best place to stick my EPS patch, in
your opinion?" I am not sure what patch avenues 
you have available to you. 

---

Thank you for your questions. If you have any other
questions, please send them to the 
EPS email address.

- k.

2015 July 15.

2015 July 26.

2015 August 13.

2015 September 2. Phuket Thailand!

2015 September 3.

2015 September 9. Angkor Cambodia!

2015 October 14.

=======================================================
Elsewhere Philatelic Society Bulletin #1.2.9 2015oct14.
=======================================================

Hello this is Kaidan Tansu Jr. Occasionally a bulletin
will feature graphical imagery and this will be available
on the nook, as in this case of this bulletin. 
Additionally correspondence continues to be sporadically
documented on the yearly pages of the nook. 

All EPS members should be made aware of an upcoming stamp
window. Details follow.

---
It is the time of the season for haunting. Join Parcel Ghost for a stamp window in Boston's own Post Office Square. You will
find the EPS stamp window located under the pergola along the center of the park. We will be stamping passports and
processing visas from 3-5pm on Sunday, November 1. 

How to get there: Post Office Square located on Congress Street between Milk and Franklin Streets. It is a short walk from
the MBTA Orange Line (Downtown Crossing/State Street), and a slightly longer walk from the MBTA Red Line (Park Street, 
South Station).

If you can't be there in person, send your spectral form. If your spectral form is otherwise indisposed (it IS a big
weekend, after all), you may send an agent to retrieve a visa in your stead. Alternatively, you may send a SASE (stamps
picturing our dearly departed are preferred but not required) to the following address: Falco, ATTN: Parcel Ghost, P.O. 
Box 380582, Cambridge MA 02238.
---

In other news, the introductory EPS trail walkabout
map guide that you filled out to apply to the EPS is
available in color in a nice envelope for one dollar
at The Grand Newsstand, which is on the North-West
corner of Market Street and Steuart Street in San
Francisco. It is very similar to the kiosk 
commandeered by the EPS to present the Universal
Philatelic Center in 2010. Definitely look at the
site if you plan to go or send a friend on a mission
there ... they have varying hours for the next month
or so.

https://www.thegrandnewsstand.com/

Jimmy has been very fidgety lately, he thinks the
ENS is up to something. "Time will tell," said
Timothy between two of his determinedly-long snoozes.

Old news:

As you probably already know, a one-page survey 
is available for EPS members to fill out. You should
do that, if you have not. Thank you. It is on the
home page of the nook, a website you should have 
received the password to in your introductory packet.
If you are a member of the EPS and cannot access the
nook, please send mail to mail@starteleweb.com.

The EPS has reached a significant milestone in our 
membership drive and because of this our various
prerequisites to acquire a passport have changed.
You can see the new path at the nook path page.

The Berkeley mail carrier training session remains 
available. All EPS members should go to the Escapist
at 3090 Claremont in Berkeley, and look for the long 
yellow pamphlet in a plastic bag. It will cost $2.00.

Thank you for your time. If you have any questions, 
please send them to the EPS email address at 
mail@starteleweb.com.
- k.

2015 November 21.