The Puppies Ate My Blog

 

It's been a long time since I've posted.  Our two puppies now own us. They are so very very time consuming, destructive in that puppy way and generally labor intensive. Some days I even resent the way they've changed my life. The husband says that I will think differently when they are a bit older and less trouble but right now all I see is undone sewing projects, rearranged furniture, house plants that are dying because they had to be moved out of their reach, early mornings and exhaustion.

So, that's where I've been...right here minding puppies, reading your blogs and missing my calm, relaxing life of a few months ago.

Wishing for Spring and grown doggies......

Postcrossing Update

A while back I posted about my new hobby - Postcrossing.  I joined this group and send and receive postcards all over the world to random people.  I truly enjoy the sending as much as the receiving.  It's been just over a year since I joined and last week I passed 200 cards.  That means that I have had brief contact with 400 strangers (200 that I sent cards to and 200 that sent me cards) all over the world.  The cards have been as varied as the people.  There has only been one repeat. It's nice to think that 200 people had smiles on their faces when they opened their mailbox and saw a postcard sent by me.  And 200 others made me smile when I opened my mailbox.

Here are three of my favorites:

 

The Silver Lining of Losing Your Email

When we got back from our travels I discovered that my primary email account was deactivated.  Our internet provider is Comcast and despite what their commercials say, they are the poster child for bad service.  We've had an ongoing battle with them for years over redundant charges.  This was their next strategic move - deactivating my account.  It's been a bit of a bother to switch to an alternate email account and I still haven't switched everything since I'm a tiny bit hopeful that we will be able to resolve this (I know....silly me) We still have internet because, well, because they have been charging us for two accounts for years. The funny thing is, though that in some ways it's been a great thing.  I used to want to check my email frequently even though most of the messages were just junk trying to get me to buy something or donate money.  Now I only get a handful of messages a day and have no urgency to keep checking since there is so little to see.  I feel like I've been given more time in the day!

Maybe losing your email suddenly isn't that bad a problem.

When Time Flies

The summer is drawing to a close and I've started to think about just what I've been doing with my time!

Much of my sewing has been occupied by a project of Son #1.  Ever since he was little he has had an entrepreneurial streak.  He would sit by the road and try to sell vegetables from our garden, jars of "hand made" sand (He would rub rocks together until they powdered into sand.), and anything else that he thought I wouldn't miss.  Now, although he has a real job, he wants to revisit the world of retail.  So, with me as his supplier he will be having a booth at a farmer's market in his area.  I've been producing a variety of small objects to compliment some quilts and larger pieces.  The shop will be set up as a fair trade store so that if there is more interest than I can supply he can draw in other crafters to work within the fair trade framework.

I also made a Dorothy costume (sorry, no picture yet) for our October trip to Autumn at Oz.   It has been a long time since I did any garment sewing and just like I remember...the hardest part is the fit.  At first I made this way too big and even now I think the skirt is too full, but I'm going with it as it is, because after all, I'm living in the "invisible years" so I don't think it will matter a whole lot.

Then....there have been many opportunities to hang with my best girl.  She is so much fun to have around and such a good, good baby.

In between all that there have been a few trips with the husband.  Recently we went to the beach to meet up with family.  It was my first trip back without Seamus and it felt a bit sad not to have him with me on the beach.  I was a little lost.  But with the passing of time we have been able to start to discuss filling our house again with furry little paws. 

Blogs, Life and Choices - and Quilting

It seems like, in general, you either make your life happen or your life happens to you.  And usually we have seasons of one - having some order or control over what is going on in our lives and seasons of the second - reacting to life happening around us.  Lately I've been in that second category of watching life swirl around me.  And consequently blogging hasn't been at the top of my list.  I have a paper by my computer of topics I want to blog about but haven't, for one reason or another.  But I have had so many thoughts and ponderings and getting older means that those thoughts will only stay with me for so long unless they get written down.

Long ago, at the start of my blog I wondered why blogs stop.  I was new to following blogs and would often find one that I enjoyed but taking a closer look at the dates I realized that the writer had been gone for months or sometimes years.  There was no conclusion like a book, no season finale like a TV series, no final thoughts.  The blog just seemed abandoned like someone had walked out of their house one day and left everything behind.  Now, having blogged for several years, I think I understand a little better.  Sometimes life happens.  Other interests take over.  Writing down thoughts and activities no longer adds to our day, it just becomes another thing to do.  Sometimes the whole process of picture taking and editing and posting is more than we want to deal with.  But we still sort of like the idea.  Maybe life will slow down or inspiration will strike so we just sort of put our bookmark in place and set the blog aside.  Then time moves on and suddenly it's been months or years and blogging becomes something we did "back then"- sort of like diaries of old or paper and pencil journaling (both of which I've done in the past).  I guess the main difference is that no one knew when those writings were started or when they ended.  No, I'm not getting out of the blogosphere.....just acknowledging a little insight into some old questions I've had.

That sort of leads me to my second pondering (which actually has a quilting connection).   We often think of choices in life in terms of what we choose, but in reality choices are more about what we DON'T choose.....what we say "no" to can be as important as what we say "yes" to.  Son #1 had a very broad assortment of interests in high school - from drama to art to engineering to logic and debate to science.  But to be good at one he would have to spend less time with the others.  His dilemma was not finding what he liked or should pursue in life but acknowledging the need to say  "no" to other likes.  So maybe my missing bloggers have decided to say "yes" to other interests for awhile and need to harness some of the time and energy spent on blogging in their other areas.  Just like (wait for it.....here comes the quilting transition) choosing fabrics for a quilt.  We may have 20 fabrics that seem to go together and that are all pleasing to us.  But saying "yes" to all of them would create a chaotic design.  So we need to figure out what to say "no" to so that we can accomplish our final goal of a coordinated pattern that we like.  Did we like ALL of the fabrics?  Yes.  But we couldn't make our quilt with all of them.  Did Son #1 like all of those varied interests? Yes.  But pursuing his eventual profession required a total concentration of his time and energy for several years.  Saying "no" to good things is sometimes needed so that we can say "yes" to other good things.

So, life is still happening to me and probably won't slow down for awhile yet, but I'm not ready to say "no" to blogging.....just a bit slow at it. 

Seamus: 2001-2014

Seamus, sweet beloved Golden Retriever, family member of Nina and her husband, died August 7, 2014 at the age of 13 from complications of a prostate mass, most likely, cancer.

He was born in the summer of 2001 to a family in rural Virginia, one of a very large litter.  He came to live with his busy household in the fall of that year and enjoyed the active, somewhat chaotic household of five.  He enjoyed lots of love from the entire household.  As a puppy he loved to chew T.V. remotes, eyeglasses and gloves; loved treats, roughhousing, climbing in the shower and being outside.  He tolerated the cats.  He hated crates, constraints and being alone.

As he grew older he became an avid hiker doing surrounding trails on a regular basis with Nina.  He especially was fond of hikes that ended at a waterfall and rewarded him with a swim in the cool water.  At the end of the hike he also enjoyed the traditional picnic before heading home.  They usually shared an apple and peanuts on a blanket before the drive back.

He loved all types of water from swimming pools and mountain lakes to the ocean and sound. He always stayed in control of the game of "retrieve" in the water by just not returning the stick or ball when he had enough of the game.

He loved to travel in the car.  He could tell when an adventure was forthcoming and would dance with excitement hoping that he was to be included in the ride.  He spent most of the trip with his head on the front console between his two people.

He loved Beggin' Strips and looked forward each morning to a ritual of being fed them in small pieces.  But he was always willing to share this special time with his doggie cousin, Jackie, taking turns being fed the special treat.

In his older age he became the ambassador of the neighborhood.  Daily walks were opportunities to greet two and four footed members of the area with a sniff and tail wag.  He brought a smile to the face of many people - most of whom were never known by name, but all of whom remembered him fondly.

He was a loyal and faithful companion to the very end.  While his passing has left his family with much sadness and tears, they are comforted in knowing that he lived a long and full life with them, even making them better humans along the way for having shared their lives and home.  He trusts that in time the sadness will fade and the wonderful warm memories of fun times they all shared will comfort them.

 

Life's Buttons

Several years ago I wrote a post about buttons.  I have both my mother's and my mother-in-law's button collection along with my own.  Both reflect the woman who owned them - as I'm sure mine does.  And I have a deep inability to use some of the buttons in any project that will leave me and never come back again.  They are so much more than buttons to me.  Some of the ones in my mother's box have been there since I was a little girl.  I remember looking through them during the long lazy summer days.  I just can't seem to part with them.

Yesterday our quilt guild speaker, Deborah Schupp of Gumbo Design Studios shared several of her quilt designs.  This one caught my eye and a bit of my heart:

She made this wall hanging out of buttons from her mother and grandmothers...and maybe great grandmothers.

There is definitely one of these in my future!

Vacation and Technology Ponderings

We recently spent two weeks at the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  Neither the husband nor I have ever spent two straight weeks in one place.  But this year everything seemed to fall into place to make that happen.  We are both now retired; we liked the rental house; it was available the following week; the weather was great; we had minimal commitments at home to cancel; we were able to get the mail delivery/paper delivery, medication, flower watering, etc. managed; and the owners gave us a last minute rental discount to stay another week.  So, we went for it.  And the experience of staying two straight weeks away from home brought some interesting thoughts to mind and some longing for the "old days".  For instance:

• Two weeks was long enough.  We were both ready to come home by the end.
• We noticed when we got home how very soft our carpet is.  I know that sounds funny.  And it wasn't like the carpet in the rental home was bad, but apparently ours is much softer and something we had never appreciated fully before.
• A reversed floor plan (bedrooms downstairs) might be nice at the beach, but it makes for a lot of stair climbing throughout the day.
• Dogs who swim in the sound daily begin to stink.

But, perhaps my biggest revelation was how very complicated technology has made our lives.  Disclaimer:  I'm about to rant.  In the old days, we got up, ate, showered, did some housework or went to work and that was it....our daily duties were done.  Our free time was free.  But now we add to the list:  check the email (maybe several accounts), the voice mail - on the home phone AND the cell phone, Facebook, blog updates and whatever other internet distractions we participate in.  And here's the thing....they follow you whenever you leave home.  Sure, you can unplug, and to some extent we do, but now if you have a cell phone or an email there is an expectation that you will respond no matter where you are just because the message can get to you.

It wasn't always this way.  Let's take a look back in time. It used to be that when you went away you told a few trusted neighbors where you were going and gave a general number (like the number at the resort or hotel where you were staying) to reach you.  In the small town where I grew up my father even told the police that we were going away so that they would "keep an eye" on the house.  And you were really away.  In fact one time we were staying in a cabin in a remote part of the state and my oldest sister needed to tell my father about a death in the family.  She called the State Police who drove up to the cabin, knocked on the door and told us to call home because there was an emergency.  We drove into town, found a pay phone and called her landline and she answered.  And when you did get home there was no answering machine to check, no emails to delete, no Facebook, blog or websites to catch up on.  And there was no backlog of TV shows to watch....you just missed them and waited for reruns. There were no pictures to download from your camera or rename and file on the computer so that someday you could find them again. 

My conclusion: technology is a two edged sword.  I love that it lets me keep up with extended family, pay bills fast, and I really do enjoy the blogosphere.  I like that I can Facetime with my granddaughter when we are apart for awhile.  And our spontaneous extra week of vacation would have been much more difficult to pull off without the wonders of the Internet.  But keeping technology in it's place takes a real conscious effort.  I guess that's why I played blog hooky last month.

 I just needed to remember a simpler time.

 

Lessons from the Thrift Store

Several months ago I began volunteering at a local non-profit thrift store named Tried and True.  

My primary "job" there is to price and display the housewares.  I absolutely love it.  I've always had a bit of a soft spot for retail and I love old and unusual items; so this really was a good fit in so many ways.  I've sort of expanded this activity by attending a local auction and buying the boxes that go for one or two dollars for the store.  So, all of this has taught me many lessons - some purely retail related and some with a bit of life application:

• Just about anything will sell for 50 cents.
• People are attracted to color.  The prettiest dish or bowl or cup in white will sit on the shelf while the hot pink one will sell in a flash.
• People buy the sizzle not the steak....the way you display something matters a whole lot in how well it sells.  If it doesn't sell in one place, move it to another location in the store.
• You may not like something, but someone will.
• People like to collect cats and cardinals and bears and ducks and geese and roosters.....and tons of other categories.
• Many things can be repurposed successfully with a bit of imagination.
• Donations and auction boxes give you a peek into the person.  It can tell you what they found important, how they cared for their items and where they spent their money.
• Bidding at an auction is better when you're not emotionally invested in obtaining the box or item.
• Never bid against the guy with the clipboard.  He's serious and will get what he's after.....unless of course you just want to bid him up so that he spends more :-)
• Condition always matters.

I don't come home with a lot of extra stuff.  In fact, being around it and seeing others  find things they like seems to fill that spot in me that wanted to bring everything home!  Sometimes I feel like I'm a rescuer...saving treasures from the landfill.

I'm having great fun with this new activity.  And that, my friends, is the beauty of retirement.
 

Back from My Blogging Sabbatical

I've been on a bit of a blogging sabbatical this last month.  Things got a bit busy around here and it seemed like a time to just be quite and to myself instead of sharing.

I've been keeping up with most of my bloggy friends even though I haven't commented much at all.  I can't say the same for my sewing.  Some has gotten done, but I don't have a full and complete finish to share and still might not for awhile.  I have actually been NOT reading the posts that make me want to start yet one more new project.  I'm determined to finish up a few things.

So....one good news item to share:  I'm now officially a Nana!  Our granddaughter arrived late January 22, one week before her due date.  Her mother got to experience everything the hospital offered from natural labor to pain control measures to induced labor and finally to C-section.  But they are both doing well now and I am truly smitten by this little one as is the husband.  He bought the most girlish lavender dress with ruffles that he could find and he can't wait to fill the backyard with a sandbox, playhouse and all manner of play equipment.  I've tried to point out that it will be quite awhile before she can use such things, but he just wants to "be prepared". We were supposed to have our babysitting debut tomorrow but that might now be in question due to:

We are buried in snow along with much of the East coast.  Fortunately our power is still on.  I've cleared the bird feeder for our feathered friends and we've broadcast seed on top of the snow for them.  The colors of the birds are so brilliant against the white snow.  So far we have at least 12" and it is still coming down.  Not much is moving outside in our neighborhood.  I've called to be put on the list for a driveway "plow out" so all that is left is to sit and wait.  I may make a snowy excursion to the mailbox soon although I don't think my boots are quite high enough to keep the snow at bay!

 

Spring will be SO welcomed this year!

 

Postcrossings: Progress Report

A few months ago I posted about one of my new hobbies: Postcrossings.  This is a website for sending and receiving postcards around the world.  I love to get and send mail, so this seemed like it was made for me and I enthusiastically dove in.

I just wanted to report that it has turned out to be all the fun that it promised.  So far I have sent 20 postcards, received 17 and presently have 7 "traveling"...that means that I've mailed them but they haven't been received yet.  Some countries, particularly in Eastern Europe, seem to take forever to arrive.  It has made me realize how the internet has really changed the world!  Before email sending communication to some countries took quite awhile.  Now an email travels in a fraction of the time that snail mail does.  It has truly made the world smaller in that respect.

But....as with any progress, there is a price.  Just as you absorb more culture when traveling to another city than you do by looking at pictures of the place; you learn more about a country's culture through a written postcard than you do from an email correspondence.  Everything from the stamps to the handwriting to the embellishments (stickers, etc) to the card chosen communicate something about both the sender and his location.

Here are a few of the ones that I've received:

It's been great fun and I hope to keep this up for awhile.  The only disappointment is that occasionally a postcard seems to not arrive.  They "time out" after 60 days.  I have one that I sent to Belarus that will time out at the end of the week and mysteriously, one to Texas that has been "traveling" for 34 days!  But, maybe now that the Christmas rush is over it will be found in some forgotten mail bag and make it's way to Texas. 

 

So, for snail mail fans.....Postcrossings is definitely worth a try!

 

Old Business and New

This holiday season has really flown by.  Unlike past years it seemed like there was little time to reflect on last year or think about goals for the new year.  So, I'm going to keep it easy.  This year my quilting goal is, "Just say no."  I get seduced by the many, many wonderful ideas and opportunities online and the beautiful fabrics in the stores and I want to do them all and use them all.  So, consequently I have several projects mostly finished and that sort of frustrates me.  So this year my motto is to just say, "No."  I may "Pin" or download a pattern or idea but, at least for the next six months I should be able to keep busy with finishing up my "mostly finished" projects.  I'm allowing myself one exception (I know, that's a slippery slope!)  The gals at Fandom in Stitches will be having a monthly block around the theme of the movie The Princess Bride.

 This is an old romantic fantasy comedy from 1987.  It sort of has a cult following and the boys and I are part of that cult!  We've been known to quote lines from this movie in everyday conversation.  Last year I bought them each a DVD of the movie.  So, I'm going to take notice of the blocks (this is a paper pieced project) and may play along.

And that was actually my "new business".  So, in old news I want to share some of my Christmas presents from this year that I couldn't share before the holiday without ruining some surprises.  I made several pants bag ala Jennifer at Glinda Quilts.  I was gifted one of these by Jen and absolutely love it.  She shared a tutorial at the link above.  Here are my versions:

The one in the upper left was made with the circle attachment on my sewing machine.  Turns out that it is easy to work and really awesome!  I don't know why I waited so long to try it out.  The three on the bottom left were made for the sock monkey recipients from earlier last year. 

I also made a few potholders and two aprons (which I forgot to take pictures of).

So, I'm off to work on some blocks for my Country Threads BOM project.  I actually have the December blocks done but haven't had a chance to take pictures.  AND.....if anyone is keeping score, I've finished my step one of Bonnie Hunter's mystery quilt.  She had a surprise reveal on New Year's day and I'm slowly putting the blocks together....more about that later.
 

Views From My Sewing Room Window

We live where the plow comes late.....

 

Catching Up and Still Time to Vote!

This has been a week of catch up after a full Thanksgiving holiday.  We had lots of family time and food and meals and talk and food and dishes and food and....well, you get the idea. 

One little tradition we have is to put out a jigsaw puzzle when there is a family gathering.  This year we finished two puzzles.  Gathering around an activity like that seems to encourage conversation across the generations and limits the awkwardness that sometimes comes when people gather only a few times a year.

So...I have more to share but the husband is ready to go shopping so it will have to wait.  But....just one thing.....there is still time to "like" or "+1" my entry into the Iron Quilt challenge.  The voting is open until Sunday.  All votes appreciated.  I would love to get to 100 (my combined votes are at 73 now)  I know that won't be enough to win but somehow that number seems like an accomplishment.  The links to the voting pages are on the previous post here.  My local quilt store put a post on their Facebook page about the quilt...that was exciting! 

I'm off to help the economy......wish me luck in finding just the right presents for everyone.

Postcrossing: Postcards from the World!

 I've posted before about how very much I enjoy getting mail.  I've always enjoyed mail.  I was the kid who every summer would write to someone listed in the back of comic books looking for pen pals.  I know...it was probably some guy in prison somewhere, but it was mail!  I still keep in touch with several family members including son #1 by written letter and one of my dearest possessions is a pile of letters written to me by my parents many years ago when I was at summer camp and then during my first year of college.

So, when I heard recently about a site called Postcrossing that would result in people sending me mail, my immediate thoughts were:  "This was made for ME!" and "How is it that I haven't heard about this before?!?!?"

 

I've only just joined and have yet to start getting mail, but it works something like this.  You sign up for free and start sending postcards.  Once you've sent five and they are received, you get on the list to have postcards sent to you.  Your address isn't listed on the site, it is just emailed to the person who sends you a card.  For added security I rented a box at my local Post Office but that isn't a requirement.  Each postcard gets a number assigned to it by the site.  The receiver then registers the card by that number which makes it clear that it reached it's intended destination.  It also helps them keep track of statistics like how many cards are sent across how many miles and to how many different countries. The person who told me about this had shoe boxes filled with cards from all over the world!  He has been doing this for several years and some of the cards are very interesting.  You can even put a preference for a particular type of card.  For example, he likes to get pictures of bridges whenever possible.

 

The total cost for this new hobby of mine includes my box rental ($20 for 6 months in my area); postcards (50 cents to one dollar each) and postage (33 cents domestic; $1.10 for a global forever stamp which sends a postcard anywhere in the world).

 

So, if you like little surprises in your mailbox from places far and wide....check it out. 

October Wrap Up

The year is drawing to a quick close. It will soon be time for reflection on what was accomplished over the year and for plans for the next year.  The thing is, in this season of my life I really want to just enjoy what I'm doing - not strive to accomplish a list. Neither do I want to sit around all day watching TV.  But, just to put my new collage making skills to good use, here is a recap of the past month:

From the top left:  I worked on my Country Threads Block of the month; finished my knitted dishcloths; started a teeny tiny paper pieced project; finished a baby quilt and entered it and the blue wave quilt in the Blogger's Quilt Festival (you can view the festival at the previous link, vote for your favorite in each category and enter to win a sewing machine and other prizes.  There are some awesome quilts there to inspire you.); started a quilt with that large print fabric in the lover left; finished a quilt for another contest that I'll tell about in a few weeks and visited the Land of Oz.

I guess that's not too bad considering all the fall yard work that comes with this time of year.  I'm going to link up with Lily's Fresh Sewing Day. 

Train Art

The other day I was stopped at a train crossing, and as I watched the freight train go by I saw this through the drops on my rain soaked windshield:

 



I kind of like the impromptu artwork.  Train cars are a bit drab and ugly.  We don't have any passenger trains that run through my town so I don't know how common a practice this is on passenger trains or how I would feel about artwork on them.  And I don't get around all that much.  The first time I traveled somewhere that required a passport was two years ago.  So I'm asking my readers to help broaden my horizons.  I have two silly questions:
1.  Do passenger trains get tagged also?
2.  Is this a worldwide practice or more of an American culture thing?

My inquiring mind wants to know. 


 

A Labor Day Celebration

Labor Day, like many of our holidays gets a bit lost in the fun of a long weekend and the extra time off.  But last evening I was given an unexpected reason to celebrate.

It was just about starting to get dark and the husband I were watching TV when the doorbell rang and the dog barked (I guess just in case we didn't hear the doorbell?)  Now, my husband will tell you that if a kid comes to the door selling dirt I will buy it.  And, that's just about true.  I remember selling door to door as a child for various school activities and I remember my boys trying to do the same thing.  If you are under 18 and manage to come to my door trying to sell something, just about every time I will buy. 

Anyway, last night two sisters about 8 and 10 came to my door selling homemade bread!  They had dressed in nice summer skirts and tops, they had a paper to hand to me with their information, a beautifully packaged product and were prepared to make change.  They had just baked the bread that morning.  They let me know that I could reorder by phone or email and that I might want to consider them for holiday baking. Of course I bought a loaf.  And it was delicious and perfectly baked.  I've done a bit of bread baking in my time and I know how difficult it can be to get an even textured loaf that is well baked, but not too dry; light but not too crumbly.  This bread hit every mark.

I could make an entire list of all the good character qualities represented in their activity from learning how to bake to caring about there dress and initial impression to attention to details such as change, written information on how to contact them for reorders and well, just plain getting out there. They weren't discourage by being too young or inexperienced to work.  They weren't looking for a donation  They offered a good product at a fair price.  I'm excited to be their customer.  They may continue for a short or a long time, but their will be many lessons learned.  Perhaps they will go on to own a bakery.  Or perhaps they will decide that they don't want to work that way and will go on to find another career.  I know this....they will work at something because they know the value of work and realize the importance of doing a good job even at the small details.

Brava, girls!  I'm already planning on buying more and I think everyone on my list needs a loaf of homemade bread with their Christmas presents!



 

Some Good Customer Service

My previous post was a bit of a rant.  And while that incident was indeed frustrating, I know that in the larger scheme of things, what I encountered was an inconvenience and not a major life problem.  There are so many more serious things in life than that.  And so, as a balance my last post, I would like to tell you about two accounts of excellent customer service.  These happened on the same day as my ugly Post Office experience. 

During that same day I went to the drug store to pick up prescriptions.  The drug store is a frequent stop for me of late. Prescription management can get complicated. I expected to find one for my husband and one for me awaiting pick up,  but only mine was there.  When I inquired about his, the clerk checked his record, determined that it indeed was time to fill it and immediately filled the script so that I wouldn't have to make a second trip.  How very nice. 

And next....

I was trying to get a nice picture of my husband and his grandson from his recent visit to frame.  We all know that photography is a challenge for me.  I took several photos of the two and one (only one, I'll add)looked great on my computer. But when I printed it out it was dark and lacked contrast.  I put the file on a USB drive and went to a local independent photo lab and explained my problem.  The clerk could have told me to use the computers in the store, alter the photo, and submit it to be printed. Instead she went the extra mile and altered and submitted my photo herself on the self serve computers available in the store, all while also serving two other customers.  I paid $1.14 for three photos that were ready in an hour and received three more for free!?!  And she smiled.  

 

An Open Letter to the U.S. Postal Service

Dear Post Office,
I like you.  I like having mail delivered to my house and look forward to it each day.  I am one who will be sad to see Saturday delivery stop, even though I know you are just trying to make things work. I use your service to mail packages and even defend you to my husband who is a UPS fan.  But I have to say, you really let me down yesterday.  Let me explain my complete frustration.

I had a package to mail from Virginia to Florida.  It weighed 3 pounds.  I like to use the online service because I can compare prices without a line of people behind me impatient for me to make my choice and I like the small discount I receive for conducting my business online.  When I did this with my package, comparing a flat rate box and my box, I discovered that the least expensive way to mail this was with a box called Regional A.  Now, I didn't have such a box at home, but you very nicely list the box dimensions and I could tell that it would fit my items perfectly.  So, I paid for and printed my label, gathered my items and went to the post office expecting to box it up there.

I was the only one in the Post Office when I arrived. After studying the display and having trouble deciding which of the practically identical boxes (honestly, these are the SAME box except that some say "Priority", some "Express" and some "APO") I needed, I asked the clerk for a Regional A box.  Imagine my surprise when I was told, "We don't carry those boxes. You have to order them online."  Huh?  Really?  You offered me a postage rate, charged my credit card, allowed me to print postage without whispering a word about the difficulty in finding a Regional A box.  I asked if any of the nearby post offices might have one and was provided with phone numbers to call and ask.  I called the numbers from my car, but none of them had the elusive box. When I inquired about using the label I had paid for, or perhaps getting a refund the desk clerk really didn't know how the internet postage worked, but she thought that was possible if I went back online.

Now, I can buy a tangible item like a pair of pants from a retail store online and decide to return it to their store in the mall without any trouble.  They are able to manage to restock this tangible item without trouble, issue me a refund and keep the store financially solvent, and make me feel like a valued customer.  I didn't really buy an item online from the post office, but rather a service that had yet to be delivered, but I can't receive my refund from the store...only online.  Something is wrong here.

So, to make this already long story a bit shorter, I did a bit of calming, deep breathing, drove home, requested a refund online (I will give you credit here....that was an easy process), printed out a new label using my box which oddly costs me more even though you are not actually providing me with a box, packed my items, got back in my car, drove back to the post office (We will skip the part about how much bigger this is making my carbon footprint), parked, stood in a long line and, finally, submitted my package for delivery.  Phew.....Honestly now, it shouldn't be this difficult.  Let me point out a few things:

• It's silly that you charge me more to use my own box.
• You don't carry that many boxes.  Why on earth offer postage on a box that you don't stock in the post office?  If Regional rates are being phased out, at least give me a hint on the website. After all, your new ads claim that I am your priority.
• It would seem that you are trying to encourage people to use the online services.  It would be very helpful for the desk clerk to know something about these services.
• It would be helpful to integrate online and in person services.
• The whole system is still confusing.  All three boxes: priority, regional A and my box are about the same size and would be handled the same way probably by the same people and/or machines.  Why even have three options anyway?
• A box is a box is a box.

In a customer service oriented post office the encounter would have gone like this:
Me:  "I need a Regional A box."
Clerk: "We don't carry those."
Me: "I've already printed out my postage.  Do I have any options?"
Clerk: "Let me call around and see if I can find you a box."
                                  or, even better:
           "I'm so sorry for the confusion.  Let's take a regular Priority Mail box and write Regional A    on it for you and use your already paid for label.  After all, a box is a box is a box."

I still like you Post Office, but, seriously, you can do better. And for both of our sakes, you NEED to do better.

Sincerely,
Nina