He shook his head as he handed me this package. I detected a mock woeful look upon the face of my local postmaster.
“Now, iss is whah ah tell people never ta use at parcel post. Probly whut happined wuz a fitty poun box fell smack dab inna middle a this. Mmm. Mmm. Parcel Post. There you go.”
[TRANSLATION FOR THOSE WHO DON'T SPEAK TEXAN: "Now this is why I tell people never use that parcel post. Probably, a fifty pound box fell on it. That's what happens with parcel post."]
So that’s what happens with parcel post packages, is it? The workers throw them at the bottom of the heap. The cost to send this via parcel post was not cheap: $10.64. Fortunately, this was an afghan for Share A Square, and it was undamaged (thanks, Ann, it’s beautiful!). To be fair, through the Share A Square project, I’ve received hundreds of packages in the last few months. Only about ten packages have been damaged, but the contents were intact. Still, I think that was ten too many.
All the damaged packages were sent parcel post.
I had asked at the USPS counter once if I should send a package by parcel post. The answer? “You don’t want to do that. It could sit around for weeks before being shipped. It will be sent when we have room for it.”
Parcel post doesn’t get much respect, does it? So, why the heck does the Post Office even offer it?
An independent business would never get away with such shoddy service. If the independent business damaged your packages, sent them slowly, and made you wait in interminable lines to get that awful service, then they wouldn’t be in business very long, now would they? However, USPS doesn’t have to worry about that. They have job security because they are a government agency!
What is the motto for the United States Postal Service, anyway? I have one for them:
“USPS, because we just don’t care.”
Shelly,
Hi! I love you but I have to disagree with you on this one…. I send lots of my HAP packages by Parcel Post and they get there when promised (2-6 days) and no one has mentioned damage. Of the packages I’ve gotten over the years, hundreds, only one or two have ever been damaged.
I visit my local Post Office once to twice a week and I’ve found them very helpful and friendly. Maybe it’s being in Maryland
Must be Maryland, baby, cause here in Texas…Denton, anyway….the lines are long (and though they have six registers) even at Christmas there are only two clerks. The woman who deals with package delivery is surly at here best. I had a package coming from Canada via parcel post that was not only damaged, but took more than a month to arrive! I’m glad you have good experiences with it, though.
I dont send many packages and other than Christmas cards, I dont really mail anything either any more, which is fine because the postal workers at our post office…..omg! I dread when I have to pick up a package or something. The lines are unbelievable and the workers are just rude and ornery.
Our mailman at the office, though, is really nice! I often wonder if they just put the crabbies inside or if the inside work makes them cranky…kind of hard to tell!
I think it could be just being stuck inside. MOST of the people at our post office are friendly, just overworked. The “honchos” seem to have an attitude, though. I LOVE the postal carrier who brings mail to my house. He’s a sweetheart if ever there was one.
Just watched the “Poodle Story”. Well I watched it awhile ago, but I had to stop laughing before I could type. Just for the record, there is one canine even more dense than the poodle and that is the afghan. Unless you need a rug than breathes and only moves if you step on it … forget the afghan.
Anyway, thanks for the great tale of woe and teenaged angst over a misspent summer.
Thank YOU for looking at it! I figured no one would. I’ve never been around an afghan…at least not a hound (I’m smothered by afghans). I’ll stick with cats, thank you very much
my rant
Here was a rant about one of the last times I went to the Post Office. Two years ago…
Yep…the post office can be something to rant about. Nice rant that you had! I don’t really know that “the brown” is better, because I don’t use them all that much. Yet, I really think the post office needs to remember that there are other options for us. A little customer satisfaction should be guaranteed!
Shelly - I did insure it for $100 (even though I told the clerk it was priceless). Maybe we should sock it to em! ann
Nah! We got it intact, so I don’t want to be pushy
I just want them to take better care of our priceless stuff!