Going Postal at the Post Office

Yesterday I had to take some stuff I sold on eBay to the Post Office. It was ready to go, I just needed to pay for the postage and get them out of my hands. I was excited because we have a Post Office right next door to our apartment complex. I got my 4 small packages (which were light, but awkward to carry) and walked over... only to find a line to the door. I decided to wait because it was already almost 4pm and I needed to get them out to their new owners.

People, the Post Office is going out of business for a reason! It's not because people aren't shipping things, because there was a line out the door when I got there, and out past the door when I left an hour later. That's right, an HOUR later! Let me preface this by saying that on Sunday I went out with Nic and some of our friends on their boat for a few hours. I am still in excruciating pain from my sunburn I got that day. I didn't want to put on clothes, let alone stand in line at the Post Office for an hour of my life. Especially in the pain I was in (and am still in).

There were only two people working the counters and one of them was doing a Passport application for almost 30 minutes. Then the other lady got a customer with a box of stuff to send. They knew each other and she took her time getting his gazillion packages shipped for him while they chit-chatted. Then when the guy that was doing the Passport got done, he helped a few people before going on a break! Who takes a break when there is a line out the door at 4:30pm? Someone finally comes to relieve him and then when the other guy gets back from break, the relief guy disappears with a customer at his counter. She waited for almost 10 minutes before jumping over the Mr. Break Guy to finish her transaction. Then another guy gets up with a huge box of stuff he's sending! I'm sitting there very slowly getting to the front of the line and thinking that this has to be some sort of joke. I'm waiting for the camera to be pointed out to me and them to tell me that I'm on some sort of practical joke show. Nope.

So the guy who is two people in front of me finally gets to go up and he's trying to get his family's Passports done. The Postman tells him that they stop doing Passports at 3pm. They have let this man wait in line for over an hour to tell him he needs to leave and come back later. Of course, the man speaks no English and so his son is translating for him. I'm just floored by the whole situation. I finally get up for my turn and the lady that's been walking around with her clipboard not doing anything except yelling for pickups, no money involved, tells me "You're just now getting up here?" What? I couldn't believe it. I felt like telling her if she would get on a counter so she can involve money, the line might move a little faster. I finally got out of there a few minutes till 5pm and passed the poor suckers lined out the door for their non-customer service.

And the best part is that my 4 small packages about the size of a shoe box cost me $29.80 to send! I felt so ripped off.