Usps

[Phil Mueller]

I have to give the USPS some credit for dealing with this Covid chaos. I think they’ve done a pretty decent job given the increase in online deliveries, holding mail for thousands of closed businesses, all with reduced staff.

Occasionally, though, things do go a bit awry. I have one package I ordered from a company in Maine that has done a bit of traveling. I ordered it May 8. Tracking said it would arrive May 11. No show so far, but it has accumulated some good mileage. It went from Maine, to Mass, then to Pontiac, MI (which is the distribution center for my area). Then, oops, it went to Chicago, then to Pennsylvania, and has now been in Detroit for the past 5 days. Today, tracking says it is in transit to the next facility. Wonder where that will be?

I also had an order back in early March that I assumed got lost. The company refunded me at the end of April. Lo and behold, it arrived last week, a bit travel worn (I did contact the company and offer to repay).

Part of the new order, maybe.

[Wade Lippman]

I just had one go from NJ to Rochester (the nearest city to me) to Pittsburgh and then back to Rochester before getting to me.

Of course that is nothing compared to a couple years ago when the cheapest air fare from Rochester to Phoenix had 8 stops over 3 days, one of which was Seattle. We chose a more expensive one stop.

[Kevin Jenness]

Well, if things go as planned the Post Office will be out of business before the election, and we can concentrate on the foibles of Big Brown and FedEx.

[Mike Henderson]

I can't imagine anyone making the decision to shut down the USPS.

Mike

[Jim Becker]

Much of the time, when a package bounces around like that, there's an issue with the coding on the label; either something is incorrect or something is messed up so that the sorting systems can't properly read it. And yes, I'm also very happy with USPS...as well as Big Brown and those FedEX folks. They, along with various incarnations of Amazon delivery contractors are pretty much here every day it seems. LOL

[Jim Koepke]

Well, if things go as planned the Post Office will be out of business before the election, and we can concentrate on the foibles of Big Brown and FedEx.

Like the song says, "you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone."

Sometimes it seems like maybe all of those requests for more information to be sent via mail should be filled out to help support the USPS.

jtk

[John K Jordan]

...
Occasionally, though, things do go a bit awry. ...

An Amazon order for 3 dozen small plastic bottles I needed for filling with hand sanitizer was late. After a few weeks Amazon suggested I request a refund since the package was probably lost. Tracking showed it had made it through several transfers, then nothing.

I called the post office with the tracking number and after some sleuthing the guy said my package was one of 150 packages on an entire PALLET that went missing in Nashville TN. No clue to why, stolen, accidentally routed to Pittsburgh, abducted by space aliens, fell into a time warp...

I did get a prompt refund but I would have preferred to get the bottles. Currently listed on Amazon as unavailable.

JKJ

[Lee Schierer]

I had the same thing happen back in march (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?281106-Well-traveled-package&highlight=). A package started in Kansas, went to Pittsburgh then back to Kansas and finally all the way to me. Total travel time was 9 days.

[Ron Citerone]

I had the same thing happen back in march (https://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?281106-Well-traveled-package&highlight=). A package started in Kansas, went to Pittsburgh then back to Kansas and finally all the way to me. Total travel time was 9 days.

I guess that’s what they mean by taking the scenic route!

[Darcy Warner]

I can't imagine anyone making the decision to shut down the USPS.

Mike

Pretty sure they just got a significant bail out, it's too bad it will never make up for the poorly managed pension fund they have squandered away.

[Brian Elfert]

Some wanted to force the USPS to quadruple the price for parcels as part of any loan/bailout. That would pretty much mean the USPS would be out of the package business as the rates would be far higher than anyone else.

The USPS has all kinds of rules it has to deal with that private carriers are not subject to. Just about anything they want to do to cut expenses or raise revenue needs special approval. Many small post offices are expensive to run and the USPS would like to consolidate a lot of them. I believe that requires Congressional approval and most small towns don't want to lose their post office.

[Darcy Warner]

Some wanted to force the USPS to quadruple the price for parcels as part of any loan/bailout. That would pretty much mean the USPS would be out of the package business as the rates would be far higher than anyone else.

The USPS has all kinds of rules it has to deal with that private carriers are not subject to. Just about anything they want to do to cut expenses or raise revenue needs special approval. Many small post offices are expensive to run and the USPS would like to consolidate a lot of them. I believe that requires Congressional approval and most small towns don't want to lose their post office.

Obviously FedEx and ups can manage to operate and make a profit, it stands to say that the government can't actually run anything and at least cover its expenses. I bet the private sector would figure something out.

[Jim Koepke]

Obviously FedEx and ups can manage to operate and make a profit, it stands to say that the government can't actually run anything and at least cover its expenses. I bet the private sector would figure something out.

The government doesn't run the Post Office. Congress does have legislative power over the Post Office. FedEx and UPS can raise their rates without Congressional approval.

The USPS must go by every mailbox on every route every day. Other carriers do not. In other words, the Post Office has much more "last mile" expenses than any other carrier. The USPS is required to fully cover all of its routes. Somedays UPS doesn't even drive on our road. The only reason FedEx does is the driver lives two doors down from me.

The Post Office has restrictions on advertising to which other carriers do not.

The USPS has one price for a one ounce letter anywhere in the U.S. You will not get that from UPS or FedEx.

Ask UPS or FedEx about flat rate packages. They will likely laugh you right out of their place of business.

To my knowledge none of the other carriers have people with an agenda to put them out of business.


Pretty sure they just got a significant bail out, it's too bad it will never make up for the poorly managed pension fund they have squandered away.

A bill passed in the House. It has been stalled by inaction in the Senate.

A search on > USPS pension fund squandered < turned up almost nothing. The USPS has to prefund retirement medical. Private businesses do not.

The biggest problem for the Post Office is more communication they used to handle is now being done online. My household used to mail out 10-15 checks a month. Now it is one or two. We used to mail cards and letters. Now we send email. On the other side of that is we used to go to a pharmacy for prescriptions. Now we order online and have them sent to our mailbox.

You won't see many UPS delivery drivers in their 40s or older. Before he retired my former mail carrier was turning 70.

jtk

[mike stenson]

Right now, UPS is a week.. maybe 2 of sitting locally, as they have a covid outbreak going on. Fedex is consistently 1-3 days behind. The USPS, on the other hand, can get a record to me (media rate.. ie 4th class) from Brooklyn to Tucson at the height of the epidemic there.. in 2 days.

[Mark Bolton]

We are seeing shipments from Fedex that were 2 business days taking 5-7 days easy. Just got 20 gallons of finish in that would normally be ordered on a Monday and land to us on Wednesday and they split the 4 pails (all shipped at the same time) and dropped one the following Friday and the other three all dribbled in the following week on separate trucks. We had an outgoing shipment on UPS with printed labels from their system that have always been flawless and left the shop with a to be delivered date of 2 days later, which was a Friday. UPS bumped the to be delivered to Saturday, then to Monday, then to Tuesday. Tuesday two of the three cartons landed to the customer, the third was MIA. The third showed up late that day. All three had gone on such a hayride they were damaged. They had clearly gone round the horn several times and been abused.

My local UPS driver says this has been far worse than their holiday push ever is and that UPS is putting warm bodies in trucks that are usually never out driving. Local truck rentals have told us there will be no cargo vans available well out into the summer because UPS and Fedex have them all locked up.

I think the USPS does a phenomenal job though with online bill pay and so on I can imagine they are hurting. One place I think they are losing their shirt is by giving away flat rate boxes. I see shipments coming in all the time where people are going and getting free corrugated and envelopes from the post office and using them for packing inside other carriers shipments. USPS should be charging for those boxes the instant they leave the P.O.. Take them back, fill them, label, and drop them off or stick them in your box for pickup.

The loss in all those boxes that never are returned to be shipped has got to be astronomical.

[William Chain]

About 3 seconds after the November election, the USPS will once more become essential and sacrosanct. They survive because of amazon, not despite them (claims to the contrary are unequivocally wrong). And overall, it is one of most robust and efficient operations on the planet to guarantee access to every location in this country. UPS and FedEx don’t do that. It is part of the USPS’s charge to do so.

[Chris Damm]

Order from NJ to SC shipped May 12 received May 27. I think it came by bicycle. It was an padded envelope.

[Tim Nguyen]

I want to say go USPS! If you live in a rural area, USPS is your life line. Imaging getting mail service once per week or driving to a larger town to get your mail.
Imagine the wave of outgoing workers (drivers, mail sorting, facilities management, government contractors) looking for job.
USPS pays a decent wage with good benefits. Their pension plan is fully funded by law?!?!
Pension plan? What pension plan from other companies? Even if those plans are here today, it only takes a vote of the current union to remove them. Ask the old Bell workers about their retirement plans, it changed drastically during the Baby Bell mergers.

[Curt Harms]

An Amazon order for 3 dozen small plastic bottles I needed for filling with hand sanitizer was late. After a few weeks Amazon suggested I request a refund since the package was probably lost. Tracking showed it had made it through several transfers, then nothing.

I called the post office with the tracking number and after some sleuthing the guy said my package was one of 150 packages on an entire PALLET that went missing in Nashville TN. No clue to why, stolen, accidentally routed to Pittsburgh, abducted by space aliens, fell into a time warp...

I did get a prompt refund but I would have preferred to get the bottles. Currently listed on Amazon as unavailable.

JKJ

Check Ebay, they might be there.

[Jim Koepke]

Pension plan? What pension plan from other companies? Even if those plans are here today, it only takes a vote of the current union to remove them. Ask the old Bell workers about their retirement plans, it changed drastically during the Baby Bell mergers.

Speaking of retirement benefits:


In 2006, Congress passed a law to require the USPS to prefund 75 years worth of retiree health benefits in the span of ten years—a cost of approximately $110 billion. Although the money is intended to be set aside for future Post Office retirees, the funds are instead being diverted to help pay down the national debt.

No other private enterprise or federal agency is required to prefund retiree health benefits on a comparable timetable. The mandate is responsible for all of USPS’s financial losses since 2013.

My last job was in a public agency. It was a contributor to the California Public Employee's Retirement System (aka PERS or CalPERS). Though some politicians tried to get their hands on the money, thankfully they only had limited success. The money is invested by professionals, instead of being used for gain by politicians.

During my life some of my wages were paid into Social Security. My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security. Every quarter we have to write a couple of checks to pay for my Medicare benefits.

This does not move me to wail and moan about how our government is ruining my life and how it would be so much better if we dissolved all of our federal government institutions. No, it makes me glad for someone else who is able to collect a benefit helping to keep them from being destitute.

It sure keeps me happier than those who feel the government is only here to ruin our lives.

Be careful what you wish for, you just may get it.

jtk

[Tim Nguyen]

Speaking of retirement benefits:



My last job was in a public agency. It was a contributor to the California Public Employee's Retirement System (aka PERS or CalPERS). Though some politicians tried to get their hands on the money, thankfully they only had limited success. The money is invested by professionals, instead of being used for gain by politicians.

During my life some of my wages were paid into Social Security. My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security. Every quarter we have to write a couple of checks to pay for my Medicare benefits.

This does not move me to wail and moan about how our government is ruining my life and how it would be so much better if we dissolved all of our federal government institutions. No, it makes me glad for someone else who is able to collect a benefit helping to keep them from being destitute.

It sure keeps me happier than those who feel the government is only here to ruin our lives.

Be careful what you wish for, you just may get it.

jtk


Cheers Jim!! That is a wonderful attitude and maybe one day I will have the maturity for the same. I do agree, public institutes have a tough time leaving money alone. Seems the USPS is getting shafted with the pension requirement and the government taking the money.

[Chris Schoenthal]

A frustration that I have had recently in tracking is that I've placed an order, the company gives me a USPS tracking number and it shows still waiting for pickup for the last 6 days.
I had this happen a couple of weeks ago and it was delivered while still showing as "pre-shipment".

[Michael Weber]

“My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security.”
Really? Can someone explain?

[Brian Tymchak]

A frustration that I have had recently in tracking is that I've placed an order, the company gives me a USPS tracking number and it shows still waiting for pickup for the last 6 days.
I had this happen a couple of weeks ago and it was delivered while still showing as "pre-shipment".

I currently have an order from Rockler that is shipping via UPS Innovations, which is some partnership with the USPS. UPS initiates the ship, then hands to USPS to finish the delivery. I got a UPS tracking number which tells me that the shipment is "In Transit" and handed to USPS for delivery. That was 4 days ago. No further tracking info available. Just a target delivery date that has come and gone. So, this "Innovation" service has definitely been done at the expense of the customer experience.

[Brian Elfert]

What Congress required the USPS to pre-fund for 75 years is employee retirement health benefits. The USPS has to set money aside to pay workers who haven't even been born yet! Their pension fund is $120 billion underfunded at this point according to what I found online.

First Class service from the USPS seems to be really fast right now. My stimulus check shows it was printed on May 22nd and arrived on May 26th. Pretty good with a holiday in there.

[Brian Elfert]

“My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security.”
Really? Can someone explain?


Some government pensions replace Social Security. The employer and the employee don't pay into Social Security and instead there is a pension that replaces Social Security. I would think that if someone held another job and paid into Social Security for at least ten years that one would get Social Security based on the other employment.

[Brian Elfert]

I currently have an order from Rockler that is shipping via UPS Innovations, which is some partnership with the USPS. UPS initiates the ship, then hands to USPS to finish the delivery. I got a UPS tracking number which tells me that the shipment is "In Transit" and handed to USPS for delivery. That was 4 days ago. No further tracking info available. Just a target delivery date that has come and gone. So, this "Innovation" service has definitely been done at the expense of the customer experience.

Rockler used UPS Surepost instead of UPS Mail Innovations for my last order about a month ago. I live maybe 40 miles from the Rockler warehouse. Rockler shipped it on Friday and the Post Office delivered it on Sunday. I was shocked it was delivered on Sunday, but i checked and UPS signed a contract with USPS for Sunday delivery of Surepost.

I got a free part from Moen a few weeks ago that used UPS Mail Innovations and the part arrived reasonably quickly. The hand off from Smartpost or Surepost used to take several days, but over the past year or two the hand off seems to take a day at most. Fedex has gotten smart with Smartpost and now has Fedex Ground deliver the package if a Fedex Ground driver is going down that street already. It probably saves a day if Fedex delivers it instead of USPS.

[Frederick Skelly]

I can't imagine anyone making the decision to shut down the USPS.

Mike

+1. That's not going to happen.

[Thomas McCurnin]

The USPS has all kinds of rules it has to deal with that private carriers are not subject to. Just about anything they want to do to cut expenses or raise revenue needs special approval. Many small post offices are expensive to run and the USPS would like to consolidate a lot of them. I believe that requires Congressional approval and most small towns don't want to lose their post office.

Brian is absolutely correct here, so comparing the financial operating costs of the USPS to Federal Express is apples and oranges. By way of example, the USPS has to have, in cash, somewhere in the neighborhood of 10-15 years of pension benefits sitting in a bank account. Federal Express is not required to do this. Nor is any other Federal agency. The USPS may not set its own prices--it has to seek Congressional approval to raise the cost of postage, something Congress is unwilling to do. So to expect the USPS to operate like a normal business is ridiculous--we tie their hands with pension requirements and price controls, then complain about the service.

If Federal Express took over the first class mail, the price would jump to $8 an envelope. That's the minimum charge now. Also look to have small town post offices closed.

[Bruce Volden]

What Congress required the USPS to pre-fund for 75 years is employee retirement health benefits. The USPS has to set money aside to pay workers who haven't even been born yet! Their pension fund is $120 billion underfunded at this point according to what I found online.

First Class service from the USPS seems to be really fast right now. My stimulus check shows it was printed on May 22nd and arrived on May 26th. Pretty good with a holiday in there.

AND congress then used a good portion of the funds to "pay down" the national debt!!??

I'm a USPS retiree, I worked at a processing center where all mail enters and exits.
The PO is extremely top heavy!! They have bean counters counting the bean counters.
Supervisors under managers under Dept. Heads......ad nauseum.
If the weather is a factor (here mainly winter blizzards) the powers to be shut down the interstates, state and local hwys. airports and all travel is suspended!
But, "we" still had to come to work (mandatory) or face disciplinary action---so, go to work and do nothing get paid. Again the roads/airports are closed
so there is NO mail to process--makes sense??
The USPS seriously needs to thin it herd.

Bruce

[Jim Koepke]

A lot of post deserving of reply. Please note some of the
text may have been edited for brevity:

[QUOTE=Tim Nguyen;3024542]Cheers Jim!! That is a wonderful attitude and maybe one day I will have the maturity for the same. I do agree, public institutes have a tough time leaving money alone. Seems the USPS is getting shafted with the pension requirement and the government taking the money.

Thanks Tim. All too often if politicians can wiggle their fingers into funds gathered for future payments they will.

Sadly to get into this discussion deeper would require delving into subjects prohibited by SMC Terms Of Service.

THREE GROUPED TOGETHER


A frustration that I have had recently in tracking is that I've placed an order, the company gives me a USPS tracking number and it shows still waiting for pickup for the last 6 days.
I had this happen a couple of weeks ago and it was delivered while still showing as "pre-shipment".

I currently have an order from Rockler that is shipping via UPS Innovations, which is some partnership with the USPS. UPS initiates the ship, then hands to USPS to finish the delivery. I got a UPS tracking number which tells me that the shipment is "In Transit" and handed to USPS for delivery. That was 4 days ago. No further tracking info available. Just a target delivery date that has come and gone. So, this "Innovation" service has definitely been done at the expense of the customer experience.

Rockler used UPS Surepost instead of UPS Mail Innovations for my last order about a month ago. I live maybe 40 miles from the Rockler warehouse. Rockler shipped it on Friday and the Post Office delivered it on Sunday. I was shocked it was delivered on Sunday, but i checked and UPS signed a contract with USPS for Sunday delivery of Surepost.

I got a free part from Moen a few weeks ago that used UPS Mail Innovations and the part arrived reasonably quickly. The hand off from Smartpost or Surepost used to take several days, but over the past year or two the hand off seems to take a day at most. Fedex has gotten smart with Smartpost and now has Fedex Ground deliver the package if a Fedex Ground driver is going down that street already. It probably saves a day if Fedex delivers it instead of USPS.

Every system will have its failings. Some of this gets cleared up with USPS "Informed Delivery." Their system often tells me on Monday, something should be delivered on Saturday. Usually on Tuesday there is an update telling me it will be delivered on Wednesday.

Informed delivery often sends me a notification when one of the other carriers has a package coming my way:

433988

For some reason the handoff seems to be the glitch in the system. One of my Amazon shipments 'disappeared' in transit. There was no indication that it ever got to the USPS.


My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security.


“
Really? Can someone explain?


Some government pensions replace Social Security. The employer and the employee don't pay into Social Security and instead there is a pension that replaces Social Security. I would think that if someone held another job and paid into Social Security for at least ten years that one would get Social Security based on the other employment.

Earnings from some pre-defined sources are subtracted from SSI payments. Example, if my outside income was $600 a month and my SSI payment would be $1500, the $600 would be subtracted from my benefit and my monthly SSI payment would be $900. In my case outside income from an estate and my pension are greater than my accrued SSI benefit. Thankfully they do not require me to pay them the negative generated when doing the math.

Please note this is just a generalization. There is a certain amount of earned income that would be excluded before the income is subtracted from the benefit.


What Congress required the USPS to pre-fund for 75 years is employee retirement health benefits. The USPS has to set money aside to pay workers who haven't even been born yet! Their pension fund is $120 billion underfunded at this point according to what I found online.


Remember, the $120 billion underfunding is generated by the math forecasting out to the year 2095. If someone wanted to be cynical about this they could say this requirement was designed by someone who wanted to bankrupt the USPS.



Rockler used UPS Surepost instead of UPS Mail Innovations for my last order about a month ago. I live maybe 40 miles from the Rockler warehouse. Rockler shipped it on Friday and the Post Office delivered it on Sunday. I was shocked it was delivered on Sunday, but i checked and UPS signed a contract with USPS for Sunday delivery of Surepost.

I got a free part from Moen a few weeks ago that used UPS Mail Innovations and the part arrived reasonably quickly. The hand off from Smartpost or Surepost used to take several days, but over the past year or two the hand off seems to take a day at most. Fedex has gotten smart with Smartpost and now has Fedex Ground deliver the package if a Fedex Ground driver is going down that street already. It probably saves a day if Fedex delivers it instead of USPS.

UPS and FedEx have worked with the USPS to deliver in areas where "the last mile" is unprofitable for them. During my years as a shipping clerk there were times when FedEx didn't offer overnight delivery to some parts of the country because of local control of "landing rights" at some airports.

Amazon made a deal with USPS for Sunday deliveries. If USPS can get a few more to sign on, it may be a great revenue source. What surprised me one Sunday was when a piece of outgoing mail in my mailbox was picked up on a Sunday. A long time ago, like in the 1950s, during the week before Christmas we actually had scheduled deliveries on Sunday. Back then there were a lot more first class letters and packages.

Many years ago, to prevent thefts, federal tax refund checks were delivered on Saturdays. Back then, most banks were also closed on Saturdays. A lot of people cashed their checks in bars, liquor stores and grocery markets.

jtk

[Edwin Santos]

The government doesn't run the Post Office.

jtk

I always thought it was a government agency, whether direct or indirect.
But now you have me wondering. If the government doesn't run it, then who does?

[John K Jordan]

Some government pensions replace Social Security. The employer and the employee don't pay into Social Security and instead there is a pension that replaces Social Security. I would think that if someone held another job and paid into Social Security for at least ten years that one would get Social Security based on the other employment.

Hmmm.... My wife collects a government pension and SS. I don't know why. Seems she had an option many years ago to pick one program or another. Maybe she picked the right one.

JKJ

[Mike Null]

I seem to recall that 36 quarters of participation was required to qualify for SS. You could work the rest of your time at a federal or local govt. and participate in their pension plan.

I am a big fan of the USPS and UPS; not so much FedEx.

[Jim Koepke]

I am a big fan of the USPS and UPS; not so much FedEx.

In my old location my feelings were the same. The FedEx Ground drivers were terrible. Often my packages would be sent back to vendors saying it was a nonexistent address. My memory doesn't recall the local company they bought for ground delivery when they expanded at a time UPS was having contract negotiations. One significant package from Lee Valley was delivered to parts unknown. After that, all my orders at Lee Valley included the instructions to not ship via FedEx.

(After posting my memory spit up Roadway systems. Even after taking them maps with my court highlighted they still had problems. I would have to drive about 30 miles at night to get my packages when they messed up.)

Now the local FedEx route owner lives two doors down. My FedEx is always delivered at the end of the day, but at least the driver knows my address is real.

The UPS drivers are also great. If it is a new driver and there is snow, they will actually walk my long driveway to deliver. Most of the time they are shown my pile of pea gravel and told it is okay to go in the greenhouse to borrow a shovel. Sometimes a bucket full of gravel is left where they would turn around, just in case.

jtk

[Jim Becker]

I always thought it was a government agency, whether direct or indirect.
But now you have me wondering. If the government doesn't run it, then who does?
The organization isn't "government" but is pretty much under the government's purview from a regulator perspective. That's probably one reason that the USPS URL is a dot com and not dot gov...

[Brian Elfert]

Hmmm.... My wife collects a government pension and SS. I don't know why. Seems she had an option many years ago to pick one program or another. Maybe she picked the right one.


Some government pensions replace SS. Many government pensions you collect both your pension and SS.

I recall when I got my first job in 1988 at 16 years old it was a summer seasonal job and I didn't have to pay into Social Security or Medicare for some reason. I got to keep my entire pay with zero deduction as I claimed exempt on my W4 form since I never owed any income taxes on my meager income. I worked there for seven summers and after a few years they started deducting SS and Medicare taxes.

[Bruce Wrenn]

A few note about USPS. First the bad. Packages arrive by air into Raleigh (my distribution center,) only to be forwarded to Greensboro (70 miles away,) and then resent to Raleigh, before being sent to Apex. To extra days time and unknown amount of handling. Next, i have a package that came from China to Raleigh in six days. Handed over to USPS on Feb 28th, not to be heard from again. Still waiting, but not holding my breath. Now the good, starting with our letter carrier. With packages, she brings them to the house. If we aren't home she places packages on covered back porch. Monday this week, UPS left a package on front stoop, despite a 100% chance of rain. I mail my blades to Dynamic in Buffalo, using flat rate box. Second day after mailing, they are delivered to Dynamic. UPS takes a week to bring them back from Buffalo. I get packages from Oregon in two days, but it now takes a letter two days to come from Raleigh to house (25 miles.) Sunday, stopped at post office for wife to mail a payment. Noticed that only the "reserve" trucks were at post office. Rest were out delivering priority mail and Amazon Prime. Forty some trucks, along with drivers out on Sunday morning. Didn't see a single UPS, or FedEx truck though. Under both FedEx, UPS, and DHL, post office does a lot of "last mile deliveries." Unfortunately for letter carriers, if these companies don't arrive before they start their route, carriers have to return to post office and pick up packages

[Gary Ragatz]

“My understanding is my pension and 401k equivalents disqualify me from ever collecting Social Security.”
Really? Can someone explain?


It's complicated - what a surprise! Here's an article from Money magazine that attempts to explain:

https://money.com/social-security-benefit-wep-cut/

[Ron Citerone]

Many years ago, to prevent thefts, federal tax refund checks were delivered on Saturdays. Back then, most banks were also closed on Saturdays. A lot of people cashed their checks in bars, liquor stores

jtk

You say that like it's a bad thing!:D:D

[Jim Koepke]

You say that like it's a bad thing!:D:D

No, it is not a bad thing. Most of the time waiting until Monday was okay with me. At one time while living in a small isolated part of town one of the grocery store owners was known as "the bank of Bob." He would cash checks for his regular customers. During this period, my checks would be cashed on Saturdays. He was a good man and was missed by the community on his passing. This was a few years after my moving from the area.

jtk

[Bruce Wrenn]

Had a package arrive at Raleigh distribution center early Wednesday AM. Thursday early AM, it was in Greensboro, and back to Raleigh late Thursday PM. Why didn't they just keep it in Raleigh the first time it was there. This morning, tracking showed package at Raleigh distribution center at 10:00 AM. Today, about 10:30 AM mail carrier drives up to back steps, not only with that package, but with second that tracking shows is still in New Hampshire

[Phil Mueller]

Thought it only fair to report the package arrived yesterday, in pretty good shape I might add. Roughly 4 weeks.