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Postie Tips |
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Have you ever wondered why some posties are disgruntled?? Well, the following are a few pointers just for me to vent. Truthfully, a lot of people just don't realize these pointers until they actually have to deal with them as a postie. So here goes...... ---First and foremost please keep a clear path to your mailbox. Letter carriers require at least a three foot width to get through. We carry a mail satchel that makes us a little on the hefty side:) Often we have to deal with parked cars blocking our way, or things such as garden tools, toys, etc, and snow and ice. ( Ice, by the way, is the worst to deal with!! Even spikes and good footwear won't help!). Hanging baskets, untrimmed branches and even decorations sometimes get in our way, too. ---Make sure your house number is visible from any angle on the street in front of your house. This is not only a good idea for delivery people, but also for emergency vehicles. ---Every now and then check your mailbox hinges and lubricate when necessary. Also check for any rough edges that might catch our poor fingers and rip them to pieces. ---When mailing parcels and using felt tip marker for addressing.... cover the addresses with clear tape. In shipping, there is always a chance for a little moisture to get near parcels (waiting to be loaded on trucks or planes) and the felt could get smudged and illegible. ---Also, when mailing pictures or x-rays, wrap in plastic, then add a stiff piece of cardboard to prevent bending. This won't add much to postage... if anything. ( we do our best.... but the shipping process can be damaging even at the best of times) ---Another important mailing tip.... Don't forget the postal code!!! Did you know that most of the major centres in Canada rely on optical sorting machines to sort most of the billions of pieces of mail going through the system??? These machines read the postal code and sort accordingly. Be especially careful when giving your postal code out verbally. A misunderstood first letter could send your mail to the other side of the country! The first letter represents the province...or area of province, the first three letters combined designate the city or area of city. The combined six letter/numeral combination of the postal code will sort your mail to the right or left of a city block. Just a few first letter codes that I know are: 'V' goes to British Columbia; 'T' to Alberta; 'S" to Saskatchewan; 'R' to Manitoba; 'P' to Quebec; 'K, L, M, N' all to Ontario; 'E' to New Brunswick and 'B' to Nova Scotia. ---Please do not expect counter staff to "just go get" your check. Canada Post handles millions of pieces of mail every day, and sometimes your check really may be in the mail, and not quite in the office yet. ---For your own security please clear mail from community mail boxes regularly. Unfortunately, these are often targets for vandals. For postie convenience having mail cleared from mail boxes at your house and post office box makes less hassle for us if you happen to get lots of mail. On this note.... if you do gets lots of mail, consider getting a mailbox that is large enough to handle all of it. ---If you happen to mail several pieces of mail at a time and prefer to bundle them with an elastic, that is most appreciated. Please consider the inside workers, though, and use a thick elastic which is not too tight. Many of us have had the unfortunate experience of trying to take off thin elastics that are too tight, and have them break and snap on our fingers. Believe me, it HURTS! ---If you happen to have a friend who is a postie, please don't get them a musical card for any special occasion. Sometimes in normal mail processing, a musical card in the mail is set off just by being bumped. You have no idea how annoying a haunting rendition of 'Happy Birthday' or 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas' is until you have to listen to it for a couple hours until that particular piece of mail gets delivered. |