USPS Frustration !!

I just came back from the Post Office, Talk about exasperation!!
I went to send out some trades etc to some SCF members. At the counter I told the clerk that I wanted stamps not meters. She takes out the standard "Forever" Stamps. I told Her I would like some Commemoratives instead. She, just looked at me with a blank stare. She had NO IDEA what I was talking about. So, I pointed to a poster on the wall. Her response was "We ain't have nutin like dat"(misspelling IS deliberate!). I asked to see the Postmaster to express my displeasure. He was not in, WHAT A SUPPRISE! I left and went to another PO. Now I remember why I go to the Post Office by my office.
And the PO wonders why they are loosing money!!

you are not alone.. I have had it happen to me before...
You would think, that knowing the difference between stamps would be a prerequisite for the job.

Its not just the USPS revstampman, it happens in the UK too.
It seems to be a case of find a friendly, accommodating PO and stick to it.

The smaller the post office the better in my opinion. The small ones usually don't have a meter machine and have a better stock of stamps. Getting to know the clerk/postmaster helps. Granted this really works best in small podunk towns like mine, but I'm on first name basis with the postmaster and he orders his stock with his customers in mind. The larger post offices will use a meter on a 1 oz. letter rather than sticking on a simple 1st class stamp.

I have had nothing but really good experiences. Anything I bring to the "window" gets a nice circular hand cancel. The postman, though, doesn't know the value of the catch-up postage that I put on envelopes from time to time.

For catch-up postage (non-denominated) the USPS has a great pdf document available per the link below (I use it myself if I forget the value of older non-demoninated postage.)

http://pe.usps.com/cpim/ftp/manuals...00/q604a.pdf

For post office clerks, I find the smaller the post office the better (and usually no line).

Just yesterday I went to mail an envelope and asked the postal clerk to weigh it and stamp it with a stamp, not a meter. In their case, it wasn't a problem (as I don't think they even had a meter). In fact, it was the first time I was at this small branch post office and when I asked for some commemorative stamps, they pulled out the Mother Teresa and Hawaiian Rain Forest issues, all which came out just a few days earlier.

But what I was really taken back with was the fact that they still use the old COMBINATION post office boxes that were common some 30+ years ago. Now you see them sold off on auction sites. This post office still actively uses them!

I stop at a large inner city post office near my place of employment on occasion , and it is as spartan as can be, very few commemoratives. I spoke with one of the tellers and he said maybe 1 in 1000 ask for anything other than what is handed to them in the way of stamps. No reason to even stock more than a handfull of commemoratives or cartoon stamps.But he did know what a commemorative was though,He did say Christmas stamps sell well during the season.

The part's that botherd me most are that you work for a quasi Gov't agency. 1) How can not speak reasonable English. 2) How can you have a counterperson that doesent even know what a Commerative Stamp is. Even though their are no less than 8 Commerative Stamp Posters stareing you in the face ALL DAY LONG.

I guess this is an opportune time to apologise to all
I trade with.
The clerk was about to put a commemorative on my cover
last week, and I asked him to please affix a label.

Labels are the only way I can get proof of postage
(with destination) of articles I send, and I figure the label is still contemporary postage history, no matter how bland.

I realise this is annoying to the majority.

Short pay the postage by 1 cent. Then have them give you a meter for 1 penny.

Once or twice, when I had the correct postage, the clerk generated a label for $0.00 and attached it anyway. I didn't ask why?

I had a funny experience.

Bought something on DelCampe from Battlestamsps. Of course, he's plastered random stamps on the 8x11 envelope.

The lady at the counter looks at it and says something like "oohhhh - those are nice stamps"

She then proceeds to carefully cancel all the stamps that hadn't been cancelled at the P.O. of origin.

Oh well.

Prince Afa: Were any of the stamps canceled from Hoosick, NY or did she just cancel them all over again? My local post office normally cancels everything unless this was back in May or early June when I had to use the post office at the Albany mall. I don't know what the latter did to those covers.

Side note, if you drop something in the mail slot and you only use the older stamps without any tagging, sometimes they don't get canceled as the machines cannot see it. I rarely if ever drop anything other than bill payments down a lot, but if using older stamps always include at least one "modern" one.

Battle - no hassle on my side - just kind of funny!!

Small PO here and they're great. I really don't have any thing to do with them since I don't collect modern stuff. But they know me as the guy that gets "cool stamps" all the time (from SCF and other stamp purchases).

Been tempted to get a big envelope, and then have em make a whole series of labels from $0.01 to $1 and mail it to myself.

It's the same in Czech Republic. Every-time I go from PO I'm so irritated. Never happens, that they give what I want. The best PO is in Monaco. I wanted just few stamps and I spent almost all my money :-D.