Today was my mailman's last day

[BWVDenise]

He has had this route for more than 30 years. We have only lived here for 5 1/2 years, but I will miss him SO much. He is truly one of a kind. I never thought I could get so emotional over my mail carrier retiring!!
Then, of all coincidences, my ds had to read a story for homework this weekend about a mail carrier retiring and his last day on his route. I was crying buckets while he was reading!

 

[Serena]

We had the same mailman for 15 years and last year he had to have surgery on his back and then retired too. I understand how you feel.

 

[Dan Murphy]

We have had Bob for years also, Denise. It's great to have people around us like that. Congratulations to him!!!!

 

[ez]

I am a letter carrier myself, and it does my heart good to hear how much your letter carriers mean to you. I know I have developed many heartfelt relationships with the customers on my route, and I hope they feel the same about me. With the postal service so often being slammed, its so nice to feel that we are still appreciated. Hopefully, you will get another good carrier on your route.

 

[cgcw]

Our letter carrier is a gem too. He's been on our route for about 5 years and we've gotten to know him over time. Always has a friendly smile as he goes by. We even see him trick-or-treating with his little girl around our blocks. It's nice to see the family side of him.

 

[JasonLyons]

I dont know my mailman but I know the my garbage man, especially the guy on the back of the truck who wont lift nothing over 20 lbs

 

[JohnTBap]

Originally posted by JasonLyons
I dont know my mailman but I know the my garbage man, especially the guy on the back of the truck who wont lift nothing over 20 lbs

That's right! You're a fan of GARBAGE DAY!

Say, did you get him a present?

 

[JasonLyons]

yes I did, I got some red bags, I thought it would brighten up his day

 

[JohnTBap]

Originally posted by JasonLyons
yes I did, I got some red bags, I thought it would brighten up his day

ROTFLOL!!!!

TOLD YOU I was all over the map!

I mean sad mailman chick - did you get him a present?

 

[browneyes]

Originally posted by JasonLyons
yes I did, I got some red bags, I thought it would brighten up his day

I have 3 different mail people that stop by. I don't know any of them personally, but I was picking up a prescription for my ds one time and I had to call out my address to verify who I was. There was a lady near me that repeated my address and told me who I was because she's one of my mailpersons.

 

[tar heel]

I wish it were mine retiring -- he's a jerk. He's one of those people who is always in a bad mood and complaining about something. I know our cul-de-sac is tight and a pain in the neck for him b/c of the tight turns, and I've said that too him, too. But still absolutely every time I give him a nice smile when I'm outside, he calls me over to complain about something. Could be kids, bikes, garbage cans, piles of tree limbs, neighbors putting their wrongly delivered mail back into the box, etc. Our next door neighbors just did an addition, and the construction trucks really exacerbated the situation. Several times OUR mail delivery was skipped b/c of trucks in front of their house. Our neighbors felt so bad that they sent us a gift from Harry and David.

 

[BWVDenise]

yes, we and some other neighbors went together and got him a g.c. for golfing and some other golf related items. He loves to golf. We sure will miss him. Our is a walking route, so it's easier to get to know the carrier than when they drive from mailbox to mailbox.

 

[Poohbear123]

5 different Mail Carriers....no-one likes the Route! Half the time, I get someone else's Mail. I feel like giving them a Map!

 

[ez]

Just a couple more things... I know how much it sucks when you have a bad carrier, or different carriers on your route all the time. There is no defending that. It is my observation that the postal service doesn't really care if an employee is accurate or personable...they just care how fast they go. We have a few poor carriers in our office, and I have never seen them receive any kind of discipline. To get by with less manhours, many routes go uncovered, are split into pieces,resulting in alot of delivery problems. Postal supervisors seem much more interested in making their numbers than anything else.
As far as blocked mailboxes go, technically a carrier doing curbside delivery doesn't have to deliver the mail if they can't get to the box- now I usually do, but if a car is there for a couple days I will leave a note. I have 500 stops on my route, if everyone had their boxes blocked, it would take me forever. It is also a safety thing,its very distracting if you are in a culdesac, bikes, garbage and kids in your way..it amazes me how parents let small children run or ride out to the mailbox. Ever once in a while we hear about horrible accidents.
On a lighter note, my best friend is also a letter carrier, we have both delivered mail in our town for over 15 years. When we are together with friends, and someone mentions a name, we immediately look at each other and say their address... we can't help it! It drives our friends crazy!

 

[Krisu]

We just got a new mail carrier who came and introduced himself, brought a bisquit for the dog and asked where he could leave packages if we weren't home! Years ago my parents received a letter from my cousin in England. She was young and only addressed it to Uncle & Aunt and their first names with just the city and state. It got there with no problem. Another plus about long-time carriers is they know your neighborhood well and would be the first person to notice anything or anyone suspicious. If you have an exceptional carrier it might be nice to mention it to the Postmaster.