I Hate the Post Office.

[teufelhund]

I will never have anything sent by the post office ever again... What is the point of filling out a change of address form when you move into a new house if they'll forward you mail to a property they still list as vacant? Are people really that incompetent? The clerk tells me it's the carriers fault; the carrier tells me the vacancy wasn't pulled by the clerk... How hard is it; I have spoken to them both personally filled out forms in person and online and still I have yet to receive a single shred of mail. One piece of which is a package I have been expecting all week: My first meerschaum pipe. I also recently go a raise and decided that I would spend the difference of my first check on a new pipe myself. So after a week of looking around I finally found a nicely carved pipe with a lattice design and lion that I liked I ordered it. Little did I know it had already been delivered internationally I might add and apparently the SOP is to hand it off to the USPS. Well thank you ladies and gentleman of the USPS bravo :clap: Thanks to your incompitence my pipe is headed back to Europe; my only hope being that I may recieve a reply to my email and make other arrangements with the shipper. I would rather have my pipe than a refund minus shipping costs than have the pipe that I searched for and found and waited expectantly for just be re-sold to someone else. I guess I could just swear off buying online from businesses, but that would severely limit my options and let's face it; sometimes you can't just see a pipe and not end up buying it. So please clean up your act USPS; you're in the constitution for christ' sake.

 

[teufelhund]

That's vindictive; especially considering all the free revenue they get from letters to santa, god, etc. they never have to deliver. What a joke... I remember my mail man from when I was a kid, his name was Sam and I'd see him everyday after school. Nicest guy ever knew every person on his route. Now they just want to get done delivering because they get paid the same regardless of how long their route takes. It's a wonder they can complain about not getting tips come Xmas time. Guess what at my last home the garbage guys got tips; they at least had the decency to introduce themselves when our paths crossed. What is wrong with this country nowadays? Everybody thinks somebody owes them something and nothing is their fault; I'm not saying there is no injustice but I'm really getting sick of what people think is "fair" Sorry for the ranting I am really bother by this; I was just informed no mail again today. A virtual impossibility regarding bills, credit card apps and endless sale fliers that come whether you'd like them too or not. I definitely need to relax when I get off work.

 

[cortezattic]

I once had a tobacco order due, and I spent the whole day looking out the window, doin' the pee-pee dance.

Finally the Post Office Carrier arrives and there's no package; but she sticks a yellow "Attempt To Deliver" notice in the mail box.

Turns out she was too lazy to deliver the package, and tried to blow it off -- making me go to the P.O. to pick it up in person.

I called the local P.O. and they said the package was laying on a shelf, so a supervisor delivered it instead.
Man, if the government does health care like they do deliveries, we're all in trouble.

 

[teufelhund]

Just another thought darjones; but isn't the mail man supposed to sell you stamps if you request them. I mean there are a lot of people who can't make it to the post office for one reson or another. Nevermind I just google it; They totally can sell people stamps. How can anyone ever be that lazy?

 

[teufelhund]

There's a fix for that depending on ordinances. Around here though people can mount their mailboxes on steel and if they can't... So far there are no ordinances against fancy looking brick ones. There not driving away after hitting one of those; just follow the trail of oil, tranny, etc. fluid.

 

[wnghanglow]

This topic is a little close to home for me. We own a family Buisness and one of my father "and my" pet peeves is when an employee thinks its just a job, and only do what is in there job description. Whenever a customer complains it doesn't mater who's job it is it is YOUR responcibility to get it fixed, of that means opening a ticket fixing it yourself or just yelling down the hall to whoever can fix it then do it, don't try to shrug it off and don't pull the "it's not my job" crap. I have personally fired a receptionist on the spot I over heard tell a customer that. "wasn't very fun being a receptionist for 5 days after that either lol" as for
Cortezattic, the government does do healthcare like that now. I have to work with Medicare and Medicaide on a daily level and it is like pulling teeth forcing a government worker to do even the smallest part of there job. If health care fully goes government then you better start growing your own medicine. Or start lining up now at the hospital because you will probably be sick by the time they get to you.

 

[teufelhund]

I think my aunt grows her own medicine :wink: lol

 

[wnghanglow]

Darjones that does sound really unnerving it could have been a whole lot worse if he missed the mailbox. Glad everything turned out okay.

 

[wnghanglow]

Haha, count yourself lucky in my old neighborhood the mailman actually hit our mailbox, and my brother! Mailbox didn't make it, my brother walked away, the mailman was eventually assigned another route and was upset that she had to drive further for work.

 

[simnettpratt]

Well, I'm the lucky one; my mailman rocks. He never sends packages too big for the mailbox back to the station, but gets out of his car, rings my doorbell and waits for me to answer; not even UPS does that - they ring the doorbell, put the package on the porch and leave (which is actually fine).
Here's a bit of mailman trivia for you: a mail truck, a fire engine with his siren on, an ambulance with his lights on and a cop car with his lights on all come to an intersection at the same time. Who has the right of way? It's the mail truck, because he's federal. This is how my bosses sister was innocent of hitting the fire engine - she was driving the mail truck.
Sorry about your meerschaum, teufel

 

[ssjones]

We're lucky, living in a small town, we know everyone at the PO and they know me. But, when we first moved in, our rural route carrier was an old man, who was a bit confused, mixing up mail for our neighborhood continually. We complained and the PM said he was ready to retire. Sure enough, we get a new guy, who lived in our neighborhood and both of his daughters worked for me in the past. I told him how happy I was to see him and how bad the old guy had been, very enthusiastically describing just how awful this old man was. A few months later, at another neighbors house, who also works for the PO, I talked about the new mailman. This guy said, "yep, that was a dirty deal that guy got this route". He said it was only because his father had the route previously........(he's never mentioned it and neither have I! But, he puts pipe boxes not in my mail box, but around back on my patio in a safe place!

 

[thesmokindragon]

+1/They SUCK!
Mine always screws up things and makes me do all the work to track and pick up packages...I no longer use them for anything :evil:
and to "ice the cake" one day our postal worker was on the phone, took the turn by our house, slammed into our wooden gate, me being nice I said, just pay for repairs and I would be cool with it...so what does he do, screws me outta like $30 bucks on repairs saying he didn't think it was worth the total cost, and I did all the work to get like 5 quotes and that was the lowest one..talk about real )(*&^%$#@!@ .... so as far as I'm concerned/shut'em all down and go pure digital for their BS, everything else go to UPS, etc...

 

[ssjones]

Don't even get me started on UPS, particularly for triple the cost of USPS.... For the money, I just don't think USPS can be beat ($6 for a pipe to Italy for goodness sake).

 

[thesmokindragon]

Well, should say "other" couriers :wink:

 

[lordofthepiperings]

My mother in law's mail box has had an interesting life. About fifteen years ago some guy was letting his 14 year old nephew/son or whatever drive and the kid plowed over the mail box, took out an oleander bush, and knocked down the fence. Then last year a neighbor was walking his horse, I mean dog (it's a full grown bullmastiff that looks closer to a clydesdale than an actual canine), and he broke the aluminum posts in half. The guy was a welder though so he put a stake in the posts and tack welded it together.
As for change of addresses go I've only ever done it once and I didn't have too many troubles. Most of my mail from my old address got forwarded right away to the new one. Sorry to hear about the troubles you've been having. I hope the pipe eventually arrives and all is sorted out. Sounds like a day to just vege on the couch or front porch with your favorite blend and drink and lose yourself in the moment.

 

[yadan]

If it's any consolation (and it probably isn't), it seems that poor mail service is a global plague and not strictly confined to the U.S. It's as if these services are managed and provided by folks who had to fail at least 5 IQ tests in order to be employed.

I learned long ago (over 30 years ago) that renting a POB somewhat reduces the effects of postal idiocy and incompetance - but certainly not completely.

About 25 years ago I took a one year break from my profession (teaching) and worked as an independent contractor in our central post office. This was done to clear my head a bit, but it turned out to be a horrendous error - for what I saw and experienced there was nearly enough to eradicate any faith I had in the human race. And I know for sure that in the 25 years that have passed since then the human aspect of mail handling has not improved much, if at all.

I believe that the only other profession that comes close to matching the level of postal service is airport baggage handling.

 

[jbbaldwin]

I think the USPS experience is largely dependent upon location, and local carriers.

Amen. I never understood hatred of the USPS until I moved to northern VA - seemed like a completely different operation from the USPS I grew up with in the country.

 

[teufelhund]

Well, It's official I finally got notification via email today my meer was returned and I contacted the maker; it was snatched up in less than a day from when I checked my email. I now have to select something comparable and wait the 2 weeks or so until my new selections arrival. I may just get a refund minus shipping; alas it just doesn't feel the same. Hopefully I can get excited about something else they have available. Happy smoking everyone.

 

[jharvard]

Hank Bukowski "loved" the Post Office about as much as you do. Personally, I am indifferent. :puffpipe:

 

[teufelhund]

From what I've heard based on my dealings is that 99% of the time it's returned to sender but that process takes twice as long as the original shipment. Just makes you wonder why it never got to your door. Hopefully you don't have an unscrupulous postal carrier.