Sorry for no issue being published last week, I decided to take a last minute trip to Canada.

The first stamp of the 2003 US Postal Service Stamp program was announced, and as predicted here, the Black Heritage series will honor Thurgood Marshall, former Supreme Court justice.

Linn's Stamp News recently ran a news piece that interviewed several people involved with stamp production, and one thing that I found really interesting was that someone stated that we will have a new prestige booklet in 2003. The USPS created their first prestige booklet in 2000, with US Submarines. It was an issue that was well done, but did not see much postal use. Part of the problem was that it was not really found at the post office, but instead you had to order it online or via the catalog. They promise that the new issue will have a bigger audience (as far as the topic goes, which they did not state) and will be better promoted. The USPS usually announces the next year's stamp program at the end of August, so we will find out soon. I am interested, I like multi value stamp panes, and we did not have any in 2002.

It's been almost two months since the Heroes of 2001 stamps were released, and yesterday I finally received my first stamp on cover. It might have been more interesting to state I had not received any, but I am thankful I can add at least one to my collection. Where are these stamps? Are they being purchased and put away? Are people just tired of this topic? I thought these stamps would be really popular. Of course, they have a couple of things working against them. One is the cost, people seem to be aware of rising stamp prices, and it does cost 45¢ as opposed to 37¢. Also, the format is probably limiting use. The United We Stand was issued in booklet form, the Heroes stamps are larger, and on a pane. Most people are not used to using stamps like this. As a side note, I did purchase, and use these stamps for my commercial mail. They are a pain to remove from the sheet, I actually tore a couple of the stamps. I have no idea how they soak though, since I will not be removing the one stamp I have received in the mail, I think I will leave that one on cover.

Keith Regan, www.EcommerceTimes.com

Expanding its service offerings as it awaits eBay's ( Nasdaq: EBAY - news) buyout, PayPal ( Nasdaq: PYPL - news) said it will begin offering users direct access to U.S. postage through an alliance with Stamps.com ( Nasdaq: STMP - news).

The two companies said the new service, which will let users buy and print U.S. Postal Service stamps through their PayPal accounts, will be in place in time for the holiday season.

That is about the same time that eBay expects to close its planned US$1.5 billion acquisition of PayPal, which has sparked its share of controversy.

Since I just returned from a visit, I just wanted to comment on how convenient it was to use Canada Post. They have locations everywhere, in shopping plazas and drug stores. They have extended hours as well. It is quite a change of pace from the USPS, with very few retail locations, and having long lines to handle transactions. They actually promote stamp collecting, and have plenty of commemorative stamps available for sale. My local post office has a nice staff, but only seem to have a couple of commemorative sheets available for sale. Once they are sold out, they are sold out.

Bruce Springsteen Deserves His Own Postage Stamp Say Americans in National Poll

NEW YORK, July 31 /PRNewswire/ -- Bruce Springsteen is still the boss with most Americans and Britney Spears is no flash in the pan, according to the TRIO/Harris "Hot Summer Nights" music poll released today.

Springsteen beats Madonna, Cher, The Who, Ozzy Osbourne and Britney Spears as America's top choice on a postage stamp. One in five (22%) Americans says that Bruce Springsteen deserves his own postage stamp.

WASHINGTON, July 30 /PRNewswire/ -- The Thomas Jefferson Memorial and the U.S. Capitol, two enduring symbols of American democracy, are depicted on the new Priority Mail and Express Mail postage stamps issued today by the U. S. Postal Service.

Both stamps are available at post offices nationwide. The first day of issue ceremony was held at the Upper Senate Park, Washington, D.C.

The Thomas Jefferson Memorial was dedicated April 13, 1943 -- the 200th anniversary of Jefferson's birth. This landmark is located on the south side of the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C.

In 1934, Congress established the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Commission to plan, design and construct a memorial to the nation's third president. The memorial's design, by architect John Russell Pope, is a circular domed structure based on the Pantheon in Rome. Jefferson himself had used the Pantheon as inspiration for his design of the rotunda at the University of Virginia, which he founded in 1819.

After Pope's death in 1937, architects Daniel P. Higgins and Otto R. Eggers took over the project. The 19-foot bronze stature of Jefferson located in the memorial's interior was sculpted by Rudolph Evans. Panels featuring excerpts from Jefferson's writings also adorn the interior.

The photograph highlighted on the Jefferson Memorial stamp was taken by Maryland photographer Carol Highsmith.

The U.S. Capitol, a stunning example of neoclassical architecture, is treasured by the American people. President George Washington laid the building's cornerstone in 1793, and several notable architects -- including Benjamin Henry Latrobe and Charles Bulfinch -- contributed their skills during its construction.

In 1855 a new and larger cast-iron dome was authorized to replace the Capitol's original dome of wood and copper. It was topped with the bronze Stature of Freedom in 1863, though the dome itself was not completed until three years later. The Rotunda underneath the dome is decorated with a variety of paintings and sculptures that depict scenes and people from American history.

Located at the east end of the National Mall, the U.S. Capitol houses the meeting chambers of the Senate and the House of Representatives and draws an estimated three to five million visitors each year.

The U.S. Capitol stamp features a photograph by Robert C. Schafer, depicting the east facade of the U.S. Capitol at twilight, before the annual fireworks display on the National Mall.

Derry Noyes of Washington, D.C., was the designer and art director for both stamps. For more than a decade, Noyes has designed and provided art direction for dozens of United States postage stamps and stamp products. To see an online image of the Jefferson Memorial and U.S. Capitol stamps, visit the Postal Service Web site at http://www.usps.com and locate the online version of the press release by clicking on "News and Events" then "Philatelic News."

MOUNTAIN VIEW and SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 22, 2002--PayPal, Inc. (Nasdaq:PYPL - News) a leading Internet payment service, and Stamps.com Inc. (Nasdaq:STMP - News), a leading provider of online postage, today announced a partnership to fully integrate Stamps.com's new Web-based postage printing solution into PayPal's website. The Stamps.com shipping functionality is expected to be available later this year, in time for the busy holiday season.

The Stamps.com integration will enable PayPal users to buy and print U.S. Postal Service postage online from their PayPal account. PayPal sellers will be able to calculate the exact amount of postage required and print a shipping label pre-populated with the recipient's information using the Web-based application. In addition, the electronic Delivery Confirmation feature will allow sellers to conveniently verify delivery of their shipments online. This agreement represents the first deployment of Stamps.com's shipping application programming interface into a third party's product.

PayPal launched its shipping in June to provide a convenient and timesaving method for sellers to complete their fulfillment of online transactions without leaving the PayPal site. "PayPal Shipping" enables sellers to automatically pay for shipments from their PayPal account and has proved to be very popular. This new feature has received fast adoption, with more than 15,000 PayPal users having already taken advantage of it in the first month.

"Sellers' strong response to PayPal's shipping products shows the value PayPal provides in simplifying the transaction process," said Peter Ashley, director of Business Development for PayPal. "Many of PayPal's sellers have a strong preference to ship via the U.S. Postal Service, our integration with Stamps.com should further increase the popularity of PayPal shipping products."

"By developing a completely integrated Web-based shipping solution, Stamps.com is enabling PayPal to provide a comprehensive suite of shipping tools to its users," said James Bortnak, vice president of Business Development for Stamps.com. "We are focused on providing technology-enabling solutions to our partners such as PayPal so that they can seamlessly integrate the simplicity of our mailing and shipping solutions into their products and services."

Thanks for reading, see you next week.

Alan Cohen