ode to my people

I literally learn something new everyday.  What I learn often has to do with my friends at the post office.  Over the last year, we have become quite close.  They are watching Axel grow up.  While I was once giving people the "shut your mouth, I have a sleeping baby in this car seat" look...they are now giving me the "shut your toddler up" look.

Now I KNOW that the world has gone to this internet shipping business.  They have fancy labels with bar codes and it's all printed out.  But being the old fashioned girl I am, Axel and I will be walking the packages until the post office has closed and a computer has taken it's place.  Even then we might go to Loretta's house for some help with that.

Of course the bios below are only what I know of my friends and the pictures aren't real, but you get the idea.

Loretta is a simple woman that perhaps grew up on a farm.  Unlike this woman, she is older (55ish) with short dyed brown hair.

Loretta has taught me that you CAN be nice to everyone.  I watched her one Monday for nearly 45 minutes explaining to an foreign woman (obviously trying to send things back to her home country) who didn't speak English very clearly and appeared to have no money.  She was packing and unpacking what seemed like hundreds of clothing items and trying to fit them in smaller and smaller boxes.  First she wanted to ship them overnight.  That cost about one million dollars.  She continued on with different boxes and different time frames until she herself had had enough.  45 minutes Loretta dealt with this woman and the post office line was REALLY long.  Finally the customer threw up her hands and said "WELL THEN I NEED SOMEONE TO HAUL THIS BACK TO MY CAR."  The rest of the line just froze, Loretta on the other hand said, "ok, I'll be right out."

Saints do live among us.

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Meet Jim.  What I see of Jim I believe is drastically different than what you might see at home.  Jim has 7 kids (all under 20) and I believe work is a vacation for him.  He supposedly lives in a really tiny house where the older kids are now in the alternative school (for behavior issues) and the younger ones are wild and dirty.  One of his high schoolers just had a baby who she wants little to do with, so Jim is up most weeks with his 10 week old grandchild.  He also just had a niece, her boyfriend and their kids move in because they lost their apartment due to "lack of rent money".  All in all, he has 15 people living in his house, one bathroom and ONE post office salary!

Jim is so sweet, walks with a limp and every day it seems like the first time he has run the computer.  He does remember mine and Axels name though and if I forget my receipt or anything else on his counter, he puts it in a "special spot" and gives it to me the next day.

What a gem.  Raising Americas youth all by himself.

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This is Jeff.  I don't know anything about his personal life.

Jeff is dedicated to his job.  That's why I chose this picture.  He is so dedicated to the post office, I think he would personally deliver your mail if his own life was in danger.  Old ladies wait in line and let people go ahead of them so they can visit Jeff.  He knows them all by name and by the way he talks so slowly and articulately, I think in a former life he either worked in immigration or a nursing home.

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Slap a wig on this man and call him "Suzy Q".  Thats what her co-workers call her and she is equally as lazy as this guy.

Again, not much known about her personal life but Sue has taught me a lesson as well...how to effectively use Workers Comp so you never have to work.

She is out of work 4 or 5 days a week due to some injury or another.  It's virtually impossible to get injured at a desk job, but Sue continues to do it on a regular basis.  If her arm isn't in a sling or her wrist wrapped up, I wouldn't recognize her.

In front of her window there is a sign "No parcels over 3 pounds.  You will have to wait for the next window to open."  This sign ensures her extra breaks because only people with parcels actually have to mail them inside.  Duh.

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Tom is last because he is my last pick to handle my mail.

Tom has taught me that if I can't say anything nice, don't say anything at all...

...I don't always follow that advice though, so I will trash talk him just a little.

He is creepy, talks in a robot voice (if he talks at all) and if you ask him a questions he just repeats a line from the "post man handbook".  Rude, strange and I let people go in front of me so I can visit one of my true PO friends.

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So there you have it.  My only adult conversation happens daily at the post office.  I felt I owed them a piece of my blog and here it is.

I will be on vacation this weekend at a wonderful resort called "Ruttgers Bay Lake Lodge".  Relaxing with my family, having meals prepared for me, slowly swinging by the lake...sounds like heaven! 

Down in Louisiana, my uncle is getting married!  - Sorry we can't be there, but we'll see you soon for a rockin' reception in Minnesota!