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asakiyumeDid you know the United Nations issues its own stamps? It does. Initially they were only in US currency and sold only at UN headquarters in New York. The first was sold on United Nations day (24 October) in 1951. Now they're also issued in euros and Swiss currency in the UN's Vienna and Geneva offices.
Human rights, the environment, endangered species and peace are all subjects of universal concern to the peoples of the world. They are also subjects which the United Nations Postal Administration (UNPA) has promoted on its stamps.
Because United Nations stamps reflect the work of the world Organization, the stamps extend beyond the boundaries of philately to draw attention to significant world problems and to serve as a reminder of the UN’s commitment to its goals.
The United Nations is the only organization in the world which is neither a country nor a territory that is permitted to issue postage stamps. It is also the only postal authority to issue stamps in three different currencies, namely U.S. dollars, Swiss francs and Euro.
(It's not on a subject of universal concern, but world treasures are good subjects for stamps, too.)
I also have two stories about messages in bottles. One is about a fisherman from Iceland: as a boy, collecting eggs, he put a message in a bottle into the bay. Nineteen years later, as a man collecting eiderdown (from eggs to eiderdown), he found the same bottle, some seven miles from its original location. (Story here.)
The other is about a really cool-seeming guy, Chad Pregracke,, founder of Living Lands and Waters, who has a mission to clean up the great rivers of the United States. He's got a collection of about 70 bottles, which he says have contained all sorts of things--messages to departed loved ones, musical scores, dollar bills, even suicide notes. (Story here.)
