I’m joined by Dr. Justin Kreuter, who’s known around Mayo Clinic as the Bow Tie Bandit of Blood. His day job includes:

• Program director for the transfusion medicine fellowship
• Medical director of the blood donor center
• Associate medical director of the histocompatibility laboratory
• Laboratory director at Federal Medical Center — Rochester
• Alumnus of the Harvard Macy Institute’s program for educators in health professions

He’s also and avid postcard and letter writer. Artist. Musician. And podcaster. In this wide-ranging chat, we cover a lot of ground, all with a focus on how postcards connect people.

You can find Justin at these places:

Instagram: @kreutermd

YouTube

Bow Tie Bandit of Blood Podcast

Twitter

And here’s a link to an article about the need for blood donations and how your donations save lives. 

In which I talk about postcards (and many other things) for 36 minutes, 26 seconds, and 121 milliseconds. Plus there’s some music as an intro and outro. This is the last in the series for National Postcard Week 2021.

In which I talk about Johnny Astro, growing up on the same street where Ray Bradbury grew up, and why I collect space postcards.

In which I talk about polymer physics, design of experiments, rheology, digital calipers, coefficient of friction, bending deflection, stiffness…and why in the hell so many postcards get marred in the mail. 

How many stamps do you put on a postcard? 

I’ve tested scores of pens and pencils to write postcards. Here’s where I tell you about it. 

Links to pens and pencils I use to write postcards:

Blue Sharpie

Tombow

Staedtler

Sarasa Zebra

Retro 51

Baronfig

Sakura

Blackwing

Camel

It’s National Postcard Week this week. I talk about it. 

I chatted with postcard collector extraordinaire Mark Routh of Mark’s Postcard Chat about what defines a postcard — and how we make a distinction between a postcard and a piece of art. I think you’ll be surprised at the answer. 

I went on a trip across nine states and 20 hours of driving. I stopped along the way. I was Desperately Seeking Postcards. This is a show I recorded along the way. 

Artist Nicole Carnes joins me on this episode where we discuss a wide range of topics: from her art, her inspirations (Vincent Van Gogh and Toulouse Lautrec), her ambidexterity, and what pictures she visualizes when she gets art inspiration.

You can find Nic on Instagram @rockabillynic.

Nic’s Etsy store: Fiber and Wooly Arts

Midnight in Paris

Loving Vincent

Van Gogh: The Immersive Experience