Abandon Ship!

This button-down collared shirt features a rare design within the Archives that is strictly evocative with no direct promotional intent. Between the fish on stamps, naval signal flags, hibiscus flowers, an the alternating light blue and tan lines, the design is a celebration of American life at the intersection of land and sea or something.

Sadly, the evocative meaning of the shirt shirt practically implies that whoever had this shirt before me was expected to pay real money for it. That is not what keeps this shirt from being truly free. The reason that this shirt is less than free is because I found the shirt in a box along with some computer speakers. Abandonment disallows any potential claims of intended donation.

Snail Mail

The stamps on this shirt all have . Article I, Section 8, Clause 7 of the United States (“U.S.”) Constitution ⇒ empowers the U.S. Congress “to establish post offices and post roads”. The United States Postal Service ⇒ (“USPS”) is an independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States ⇒. USPS has a monopoly on all letters and mailboxes marked U.S. Mail within the United States with a universal service obligation to make deliveries and provide access to post offices to all Americans. It should also be noted that USPS is not UPS.

A single stamp covers the cost of first class delivery of a standard size envelope and contents per ounce. The most expensive stamp on this shirt is 33 cents which dates the shirt to January 10, 1999 through January 7, 2001 ⇒. The price of a First Class stamp per ounce had increased to 37 cents by the time that I found this shirt. At the time of the last edit of this page, the price has risen to 45 cents; though a postal customer is now able to purchase “Forever Stamps” whose value never expires.

I never got into philately or stamp collecting. My godmother gave me a stamp collecting book for one of my early birthdays, but I only had access to used U.S. stamps. I never obtained a stamp of any value beyond face. Later on, I ended up getting more interested in free shirts.

Receiving mail, though, is something that I enjoy though I do not always enjoy what I get. Anyone that spends enough time with me will also find out that I like to know whether or not the mail has been delivered. I am the same with email but email access is increasingly becoming easier and easier while that mailbox is not getting any closer to the door.

Pappy

There a three naval flags put into the shirt design for good measure. The first flag is a square flag with a blue square exterior surrounding a white square. The flag signals “P” when flown with other flags, that the ship is leaving soon when flown alone on land, and that the nets are caught on something at sea. The second flag is a pennant that has a square white half and a blue pennant half that signals “A” when flown with other flags, and that there are divers connected to boat meaning other boats should stay away unless they intend to hit that diver. The third flag is a pennon with a blue exterior and yellow interior with the meaning of repeating the first flag flown or when flown alone on an U.S. Navy ship on land that the flag changer is not on board.

Translating the three flags reveals “PAP”. Maybe to appeal to fathers? I doubt that there is any message that the shirt designer actually wanted to convey.

Go Fish

There are a variety of fishes shown on this shirt. All of the fish are shown to be colored as blue, yellow, and some have have light green accents. Some are shown to be worthy of being included on an American postage stamp while others are out in the middle of nowhere.

All fish are of the Animalia (animal) kingdom and the Chordata ⇒ phylum. Fish are animals by way of being multicellular organisms that have cells which contain complex structures enclosed within membranes. Fish also have a nerve cord and endostyle ⇒, as do humans. Fish can occupy other divisions, classes, genuses, and species. Thus, to go into further taxonomy a particular fish would have to be determined.

Hibiscus Throw

Hibiscus ⇒ flowers are the type of flower that are seen in the light blue and tan alternating horizontal lines in the background. Many hibiscus species, like the Rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) shown on the shirt, are considered pretty and are thus sold by florists based on looks. Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa) is a species of hibiscus used to make a tea that is crimson in color and served both hot and cold. Another species, kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus), can be used to make paper.

All hibiscus species belong to the Plantae (plant) Kingdom due to being multicellular, possessing cellulose ⇒, and engaging in photosynthesis ⇒. Hibiscus are of the Angiospermae or Magnoliophyta Division ⇒ because Hibiscus are able to flower. Hibiscus belong to the class Magnoliopsida ⇒, the order Malvales ⇒, and the family Malvaceae ⇒ for reasons that I do not understand because I am not a botanist. Hibiscus is the name of Genus which grows in warm, tropical area of the world that tend to have a distinctive looking flowers grow on the species of flowers, shrubs, and trees. I do not know the exact species of the hibiscus on this shirt because I am unsure what I can infer about color or make out much of the particularities of the design of the flower.