Mad At The Stupid Post Office

Dang, stupid post office. I sent my husband to the PO ,and he went to the one thats closest to us, a huge fairly new "hub" with pretty pictures of stamps all over, lots of collecting "stuff", albums, pictures, mugs,etc. and do you know they only sell one type of 42 cent stamp!! Its the flags and they said if you needed say a 5 cent stamp, you had to buy a label!And not selling stamps doesn't make them any faster either, because the lines are always long there.
He said they weren't very nice about it either, that they acted like he was a bother.

This ought to be against the law!

I usually go to the one by my school. I love the postmaster there, she's a collector, and haven't stopped at this one in a while. They said that they hardly ever sold stamps, so they stopped ordering them. They had even took the vending machine out of it!

So, I called "my" postmaster and she said that she hears complaints about them all the time. And she told me that she would put back new releases whenever they came out for me!

So there other post office!

that is why they are having financial problems

I found that Post Offices (both in the US and Canada) are much more informed philatelically when the Postmaster is a collector. Having worked in a Post Office where both the Postmaster and the Assistant Postmaster both collected was a great experience; they went out of their way to make sure everyone on the counter was informed whenever a new stamp came out, and how to deal with collectors and their requests. I didn't need informing all that much, as I was already a collector, but I was the only one among the counter staff that was. My co-workers, who didn't collect, were all conversant regarding stamp collecting and weren't at all flummoxed whenever someone showed up to request a corner block or something.

Unfortunately, I have found out over time that this was rare; most PM's are nothing but civil servents.

I think that you should take this one step further, Stefani, and send your concerns to someone who can actually look into it and maybe change it. It's all too common for the public to complain and vent to the first person they see, and usually that person has no way of solving the problem. I would suggest that you send a letter of concern to the Postmaster General in Washington, or at least to one of his assistants, who will probably be listed at the USPS website. It's true that they are civil servents too, but they are supposed to be accountable to the public, and they have to answer you. Carbon copy in your local representative, so they know that someone else will be raising your concerns with them as well.

I recently had a similar problem with the Mint regarding a coin issue that was supposedly going to be released in only one province (according to most of the Mint's own bulletins); one letter later to the right person, and I'm told that the coin in question (with a relatively low mintage) will now be released through the Mint's own store as well, likely at par as is customary for new circulation-grade coins. I doubt that they would have done this without my complaint (if you're interested, see http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/...PIC_ID=45370 at our sister forum).

Sometimes, all it takes is one letter or e-mail to the right person to get something changed.

I think that most of us have had our issues with the post office. Especially as collectors we may take it more personally. If not don't worry the time may come. LOL
I had mine last fall and it still bothers me.

what happened stamperdude?

Remember to vote with your business!

In these times of deficit the post office will once again be looking to close some of its offices. Part of the decision depends on the volume of business at a particular site. The post office near my in-laws has been on the list several times in the past but because of the volume of loyal customers it is still there. If you have to go out of your way a little bit to use a site with good customer service it is worth it in the long run.

Richard

I no longer bother to go to the post office to buy collectible US stamps. Most only carry a small selection. In the past decade, USPS has closed most of the philatelic centers, or converted them to handle passports, cancellations, and special mailings only.

If you want to collect current mint US stamps, I would suggest that you purchase them online/phone/mail from the USPS Philatelic Fulfillment Service Center (or whatever they now call it, nicknamed the salt mine/dome) in Kansas City. I believe that shipping is still flat rate of $1, and they will have the complete selection of what is still officially still available. You can also ask to be put on their catalog mailing list.

k

Khj is right.....

It's generally refered to as "The Cave"........here's their toll free phone number to request a catalog.

1-800-782-6724 or request a catalog from any post office.

That's right, it's nicknamed "The Cave". Thanks for the correction.

I actually did some work this morning, and it's got my mind all confused.

Oh well, it's back to the salt mines...

I normally do most of my "collecting business" with the local Philatelic Window. The clerk, Jan, is always smiling, knows my name, and really appreciates her stamp collecting customers. I have been fortunate that the 3 towns I've resided in for the last 25 years of collecting have PO's that carry most if not all recent stamp releases.

Johnstamp,
As for what happened, it was a simple misunderstanding of what can and can't be done upon request by a stamp collector. I asked for a circle date hand cancel for that exact date on an unaddressed envelope to be then be handed back to me. I was going to add a cachet to the cover which was for my son's 2nd birthday. I was told that the envelope would have to go through the mailstream and would have to be addressed nor could I have it placed in a protective glassine cover even if I added the normal 17 cent charge. This was the first time I had this happen in over 2 years since I began collecting postmarks from all over the US. Needless to say I was very frustrated. In the end, I left the cover for the philatelic clerk and it was taken care of properly & the other staff was educated a bit.

I am glad that at least the cover was taken care of properly.....The post office could have at least included in the training of their staff how to handle collection related tasks....This is the post office where I do business and so far...some of its staff are halpful to me as a collector..pthers are rude...

Johnstamp
I was prepared by the end of that day to go back with Rules & Regulations out of their USPS Operation Manual. Thanks to help from the philatelic online communities. I still have the printouts handy in case I need them in the future. I'll have to scan that cover and post it.

GRRRR....I am the one mad at the US Post OFfice...I went out of my way today to visit the ONLY remaining Philatelic Center here in San Francisco and ended up being turned away coz they closed it for teh day for "unknown reasons" but I suspect its coz the person in charge was absent....A whole afternoon wasted ....

My philatelic window clerk goes to lunch the same time I do and is closed on Saturdays, so I rarely have the opportunity to stop in unless I'm off during the weekdays.

Johnstamp

You'd better stop taking pictures of the post office -- someone's going to have you arrested as a terrorist

I live in a small town -- generally the postal clerks are friendly, but have never heard of a philatelic window...

KirkS