Why Is my mailman late???

     I have heard this question a million times over the years " why is our mail late??" I hate to break the bad news, the mail delivery is not  based on any certain time.  There no such thing as on time free delivery. We deliver the mail without cost to you, for free!! Thats it, "FREE!". There are certain days that the mail is heavier than others. My Monday is twice as heavy than any other day due to the weekend, some of my businesses are closed on Saturday. That leaves a lot more for me to deliver on Monday and yes, that means I will be later than usual. Sometimes, over an hour difference will happen and I am sorry." Our days are like snowflakes, every day is always different."
     On other occassions we have to do some extra work. Especially when we have sick calls, we have to cover that person for the day and carry parts of their route if there isn't coverage. I could end up with a part of a different route that caused me to deliver it first, which will cause me to be late on my route. I also here the question. "Why is it that on your days off the other guy or girl is real early?" Well , probably because they got some help themselves and the person carrying that part had the chance to do it early in the day.

Daryl from Heron Creek

     I had this one customer that would write down the times I would deliver the mail and she told me she did. I would here almost every day in a crabby voice " Late again I see! Why can't you be on time?"( I wish I knew what on time meant)  After a month or so she had brought that list to the office to show my supervisor.  He tried to explain the situation like I did above. But, she wanted to complain that it wasn't right and the delivery should be consistent. Christmas had come around and she had stopped me on the street and said" I just got back from my hair stylist and gave her a tip for Christmas! I also gave the paper boy a nice tip but, Im  not going to tip you. I feel you didn't deserve it this year!" Oh the things I want to say but couldn't!! I was going to give her some money to fix her orange hair, I just didn't feel up to insulting her.

The glass pieces are from Kitty's Steuben store.

      The only true way to get your mail the same time every day, is to get a P.O. Box at the Post Office. Then, you can recieve your mail by 10:30am. But, it will cost you to have that service and it depends on the size of the box. Also, do you really want to travel in the rain,sleet or snow to get it?? When we can bring it right to you at no charge.. LOL

Current resident

     There are always people moving in and out of the town. So, when a new person or family moves into a residence they get the last tenants 3rd Class Bulk Business Mail( Sounds important, doesn't it??) You on the other hand call it junk mail! We as carriers have to deliver the BBM as we call it as long as it says or current resident on it, due to the business paying extra to have it delivered to the next family. If we have the time we are to cross out the prior name before we deliver it. ( I said if we had time) Most of the time we don't. Anyway, I can speak for most if not all the carriers, we would find that letter on the box the next day with writing on it saying, not here, moved, return to sender Etc.... We then cross out the name and just leave current resident showing and put back into the box. In most cases they take it back. In other cases I have had customers come to the door and hand me the letter or magazine and say this person isn't here or we don't want this junk. I then have to show them that it says deliver to current resident on it. (I do have to say on magazines it is in fine print.) In some of the apartment complexes you would find these letters on the floor or on top of the cluster boxes( multiple mail boxes) If they are on the boxes I would put them back in the boxes for re-delivery.( I am not your garbage man!) If you don't want it, throw it away! We are just the delivery people, nothing more, we get paid to deliver your mail as long it is properly addressed and endorsed.( this is another story) Funny part down below!


One of the local patrons.



Bridge work

  Ok! So, on to the funny part of my story. I was delivering to an apartment complex that has people moving all the time. I delivered a "CURRENT RESIDENT" letter and other mail, when this customer opened the door, yells down to me and says this person doesn't live here. I was expecting a regular piece of mail. I look at it and all it said was current resident and the address. I tell the man that it is his and it is just a current occupent letter. I tell him everyone gets one and to throw it out if he didn't want it. The man kept trying to hand it to me  every time I walked away. He says to me "how about if I kick your ass?" All right then! I'm going to get in a fight over a piece of advertisement! Come to find out the man was a little drunk and his friend finally came out to get him. But, as he was going back in he kept telling his friend that I wasn't listening and that his name wasn't "Current Resident!"
  

Trying to be polite!

    

Guess the building

It's not rocket science to guess this one

Panorama of part of Market

As a letter carrier I try to be as polite as possible. Saying the normal like excuse me, sorry, have a nice day etc...  But, there are times you have to be a little forward to certain people because, of their rudeness. Most of the time it has to do with people blocking the doors to your delivery.
     For instance: I was entering a somewhat crowded restaraunt. I said " Excuse me" as I worked my way in. When I approached the last person I said the same "excuse me". No movement or acknowledgement. I said it again and nothing. Finally, loud enough for everyone to hear I said it again and the man finally moved. The problem was he shifted just slightly and it wasn't enough for me and my full satchel to get through. I went ahead and got by but, as I did  my loaded satchel bumped the man. He turns and says "excuse me!" I returned and said "maybe next time you will move when I say it three times! I have a job to do!" And on the way back from the counter when I said it the man moved right away.
     Another time I was delivering to Wegmans and I have to go behind the service desk to get the mail. A woman was blocking the door to the counter. I said "excuse me" several times. I finally  reached for the door handle, as I did the woman stepped back and I brushed her behind with my hand. She turns and in a obnoxious voice says" HOW DARE YOU!"  I looked at her and said " I wouldn't have dared if you would have moved out of the way when I had asked you!" She was still sputtering as I left. The next day the cashiers behind the counter said she wanted my name to report me and they told her that I tried to get her attention and she ignored me. After she had left they all started laughing. It's nice to know I have my customers for backup!

             I get this kind of thing every day. I have tourists bumping into me on the street as I am as close to the building as I can get. I get passed by cars in my truck because, they think I am parked, when in fact I was stopping at a cross walk for a pedestrian. Even when I am crossing in the cross walks,I get cars that don't stop when I am in the middle of the street. If I see their window down as they pass I yell" THANKS FOR STOPPING". It gets their attention every time!!

     

I'm a real mailman.

 

     I had been on the job for only a few weeks and I finally got to carry on my own. I only covered the carriers' day off so, to remember things from one week to the next was hard. At the cases the carriers use colored plugs to tell whether a customer was on vacation, had a forward or to let you now they have a P.O. box. I had pulled the route down on my own but, forgot to take out a letter for a P.O. box customer. When I approached this customers house I didn't realize that this house didn't get delivered, I got on to the porch and didn't see a mailbox. So, I knocked on the door to see if they were home so I could ask them if they had a mailbox, so I knew where to deliver next time. A woman opens the door and she gives me a funny look. Here I am in regular clothes a postal cap and satchel(since we don't get a uniform until after ninety days). I asked her if she had a mailbox that wasn't visible and I had a letter for her. She looked a little worried, took the letter and said"Your not a real mailman are you??" I just looked at her and smiled, a part of me wanted to tell her in my Pinocchio voice real loud. " I'M A REAL MAILMAN!!!"
      A few weeks had passed and I was carrying the same route but, I haven't got to the same ladies neighborhood yet and I was way across town. A car pulls up and this same customer, hands me a letter and says" you put this in my mailbox today and I told you I have a P.O. box! Please do not make this mistake again!" I took the letter,said "sorry" and went on my way. I get back to the office to take my lunch and explained the two situations to the postmaster. She said that the woman isn't all there and she will sometimes take other peoples letters and return them saying they were in her box. I said " she doesn't have a mail box." and she looks at me and smiles to kind of say without words "I know."








    
    
 I was able to get some shots of the Jazz and Harvest Festival. It was just gearing up so, not too many people yet.

This explains the fist few pictures.

    

A new business in town!



A few ladies from ES&L

Some don't last long!

A  walk past CMoG

YMCA

    

A small walk today from YMCA to home.

Construction on expansion of  CMoG.
This is where Steuben Glass used to be.

Fall is coming!!

When you first get hired as a carrier, you have ninety days to prove your worthy to keep. Some new hires don't last that long, not because of them getting let go but because they couldn't handle the job. Whether it be stress, prior injuries or can't get the gist of the job, so they quit. I used to train the new carriers on my route. I pretty much showed them the ropes and what the bosses expected. My biggest tip was to deliver the mail by address first and worry about the names later. Most customers would write on the mail "not here" if it was wrong. It was frustrating at first, I even wanted to quit myself, everything hurt on me at the end of the day. My feet swelled due to my surgeries a year prior but, I hung in there until I was warned on the last week of my ninety days, saying I wasn't going fast enough. I had to improve over the next week to keep my job and after ninety days I was a career employee.
     I was supposed to train the new carrier on my route, it was the day after Labor Day.( which, after most holidays there is lots of mail) I was casing and sorting my mail, when she came in, I finished casing  and loaded up my carts, showed her a few things at the case, the paper work I had to do Etc....We went out to load the back of the truck up. Now, normally I would have some room to put all the mail in a good order but, there is a seat put in the back for the trainee. By the time I got the truck loaded it was full, due to the several tubs of businesses I had and it was close to the ceiling all around her seat.
     Now, most of you that know me, knows I like to make jokes and smart remarks, to break the ice with people I meet. I want to see their reactions and to get an idea of their nature.So.... I made the JOKING comment that the mail was pretty light for being after a holiday. She gives me a funny look and asks"What do you mean??" I said JOKING "There is usually a lot more mail than this." What she said next wasn't what I expected, she says "I can't do this!!" , I said "what do you mean you can't? It will be all right." She then says "Tell the boss I quit, I think this is too much for me I'm just going to go to my car and go!" I am standing behind my truck dumb founded and laughing, one of my co-workers came out to load their truck and asks how she is doing and I said "she quit!". I go back into the office to the supervisors desk, I walk up to the desk and they ask how she is doing. I told them she quit. They thought I was joking, until my supervisor said "he's not joking or he would be laughing by now!" The postmaster asked where she was and I pointed to the car leaving the gate.
     I ended up having to carry all that mail for the day.(11 hours total) The bosses  didn't let me train for a while, in fear of losing others. All she had to do was ride along that day and carry very little. She could have quit after she got back and got paid a full day. But, I do have a new record in the office, where most people would last a few weeks, she lasted 1hr 20min.
      I got lucky to get this job. I had been laid off from Dresser-Rand for a few months, when I got a certified letter to show up for an interview in Elkland,PA. The letter stated that it was an informal interview and that the top five people get interviewed, no matter what. But, the top three would be one of the new employees. The catch was if the employee that they chose didn't work out, the postmaster could choose from the other four left. Lucky me got a phone call a week later and was asked if I wanted the job still and if I was willing to take a drug test(which is why the first choice failed, she refused to take the test)I said "yes" and the rest is history.

Trying to get some shut eye!

    






         My children were very young  when I started in the Post Office. When I got home from work it wasn't plop your feet up and rest after 10+ hours of work, it was daddy time with the kids. At night if they weren't feeling good Ann and I took turns staying up with them and sometimes into the next morning. Ann and I still had to go to work the next morning, even though we were dead tired. So, I took advantage of my 30 minute lunch and I would take a nap, I would shut my door to the truck, turn my seat sideways and lean on the steering wheel. My watch alarm was set and I was good to go, at least I thought so. I just had dozed off when I heard this banging on my door which woke my nice nap up, it was a couple of ladies thinking I had passed out and wanted to see if I was ok. I assured them I was ok and I was taking a nap to catch up on sleep from my children being up all night. The one lady said, " I do that during my lunch time too sometimes."  I hope she got to finish her nap! All I got was 10 minutes!
         On another route I was on I would take my break at the same spot on the route. I did the same thing, I took a nap, I hear this tapping on my door, I open it and the guy asks if I could see if his "check" was in, I checked and it and it hadn't come in. This went on for a couple of days. They would wait till I fell asleep and do the same thing. I finally told them that they were disturbing me during my lunch break and that I shouldn't have to look for their mail. Well, they decided to call the office to turn me in for sleeping in the truck while on the job. I get back that day and one of the bosses asked me why I was sleeping in the truck. All I had to say was that it was my lunch break and I slept during my break. So, the next day rolls around and I take my nap. But, this time I had made a sign for my window that said " OUT TO LUNCH PLEASE DON'T DISTURB UNTIL MY BREAK IS OVER!"
They call the office again and the boss told them I don't have to do any work while on my lunch break.

I took a walk through the Farmer's market and Connors
http://connorsmercantile.com/
 

 

 

 

      

No Public Bathrooms?? Really??

Pick up every 15 minutes

Running late??

Local restaraunt

You can find him here every day!!

Stage canopy

Showing off!

Last shot before end of lunch

 

HOW RUDE!!!!!!!!!

 

         I had been carrying my route for a couple hours now and being the winter I had to go to the bathroom.(REALLY BAD) I hurried back to the truck and decided to go to the closest business. I decided to be nice and get their mail and deliver it, since I was going there.( No sense in making two trips) I walked in hurriedly and placed their mail on the counter. I politely asked the woman if I could use the bathroom. She looked at me and said "we don't have a public bathroom for you to use." I told her it was an emergency and I had to go! She said "Sorry!" Luckily the urge had decreased a little, being in a warm area. I reached down, grabbed their mail and said "well I guess you can wait for your mail also!" She tried to appologize as I was walking out. I proceeded down the road to find a bathroom! Well, If you haven't guessed already, when I got back to the office my boss said the business called and said I walked out with their mail, not explaining that they refused to let me use their bathroom! When I told him why I took the mail back(which I delivered when it was supposed to be delivered) , he didn't have a problem with it. He said he would have done the same!