Screw the Braden River Post Office
by Scott Hardie on November 3, 2008
I haven't written in this blog lately, and I hate to resume with a negative topic, but I need to vent and this makes a good outlet.
I hate junk mail, as longtime TC users may recall from my many rants on the subject. Honestly, I've considered opening a storefront business that offers PO boxes to the public, and pre-filters your junk mail for you. (This business couldn't legally open your mail or throw away the junk for you, but it could look at the envelope and separate the junk into a separate bag that you conveniently threw away yourself in the trash can right there.) I get a flood of junk mail at this apartment, including big items like coupon packs and free newspapers and local business directories. Unless I'm expecting something, I don't bother to open the mailbox, but Kelly is better about it and usually checks once a week. I wish there was a public trash can next to the mailbox like at my last apartment complex, but it was always overflowing with junk mail and I know why this complex doesn't want that eye-sore around.
About two weeks ago, we stopped getting mail. The box was just empty. We were too distracted by GooCon to think about it, but afterwards, we asked the front office of our complex if they were holding it for us. They said the post office had decided that anyone who didn't remove their mail within a week, as indicated by the presence of last week's coupon pack in the mailbox upon delivery of this week's coupon pack, would stop receiving mail delivery and would have to take it up with the postmaster. I was the tenth resident to bring this up, and the apartment complex had already given the post office an angry piece of their mind, but there was nothing to do.
I've gone to the local (Braden River) post office in person, only to be told that the individual mail carrier has my mail and it's not there. I'm supposed to call the post office in the early morning before this person resumes his or her route and ask them to resume delivery. I instead asked if the post office could lift the hold on my address, and they said they would, but today I received only a form inviting me to provide my details as a new postal customer.
Meanwhile, I'm not getting the things I've paid for, including a pack of stamps purchased from usps.com. I ordered an item online that Steve is still waiting for as his GooCon prize, and went to the trouble of getting a partial refund from the seller because of a billing mixup – I checked the tracking number daily for this prize and it always said it was "in processing," but today it says "returned to sender because it was not claimed by addressee." Was there a postcard in my mail asking me to come to the post office to claim it? How am I supposed to do that when the mail carrier won't give it to me? I specifically asked at the post office on Friday evening if they had any mail for me, and they said no (it's still with the carrier), so it wasn't there waiting to be claimed. Is this carrier just sending everything back to sender now? How many other items were intended for me but are now lost?
The best explanation I can figure for this ridiculous situation is that there's some kind of feud going on in the local postal districts. There's a new post office for Lakewood Ranch (my neighborhood) scheduled to begin operations on November 11 after several months of delays. Perhaps Braden River is fed up with having to cover their delays and is taking out their frustration on their customers. Or perhaps this carrier holding my mail is just a jerk. If I didn't have midday meetings this week, I'd be tempted to wait at the mailbox at 1:15 tomorrow to ask him in person. I don't expect to get anywhere with a call early tomorrow morning, but I guess that's my only route to resolving this, that or waiting until November 11.
Eight Replies to Screw the Braden River Post Office
Steve West | November 3, 2008
I've taken to burning Benjamin Franklin in effigy on the anniversary of the birth of the US postal service. Screw them and the pony express horse they rode in on. Any shock it's actually an establishment of the Executive Branch. Let's blame Bush.
Aaron Shurtleff | November 6, 2008
a) My uncle is a postal carrier, so :P
b) C'mon, Steve! This might be one of the only things we can't actually blame on Bush (that I know of...).
c) I so rarely check the mail... I hope this isn't happening to me. I had a credit card bill get returned to sender accidentally once. You don't want that to happen...EVER!!! I think I cancelled the card not long after...the bank was a total dick about it. Boo post office! :(
Scott Hardie | November 6, 2008
The mail is partially restored. I lost some Netflix rentals, Steve's remaining prize from GooCon, and those stamps I bought from the USPS themselves. Everything else seems to be coming through.
Steve West | November 7, 2008
Wha Wha What!!! Just kidding. Hope it all works out. Bastards.
Amy Austin | November 7, 2008
I'd make a heapin' stink over those stamps, at the very least.
Scott Hardie | November 7, 2008
Apparently not. We just walked to the mailbox and it was empty. I know certain junk mail always comes on Thursdays. The blockade still seems to be in effect.
I am so tempted to sit in my car near the mailbox at 1pm tomorrow and talk to the mail carrier in person. It's probably going too far, but complaining twice to the post office hasn't solved it, so what other choice do I have?
Kelly's friend just mailed her a CD autographed by two of her favorite performers when they met backstage at a show last week. Not getting mail isn't ok.
Amy Austin | November 7, 2008
Oooooh. Mail yourself some anthrax. ;-)
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Amy Austin | November 3, 2008
I never cease to be amazed by the power that the postal service has over us as customers *or* by the number and degree of assholes working for them. In my experience, a nice/cool mail carrier is a treasure indeed.
Sorry for your postal woes... I know exactly how frustrating it can be.