Into Each Life Some Frustration Must Fall

Stick a fork in me, because I’m done … done with ordering online. Not because of problems with sellers, but because of problems with post office personnel.

A few months ago, I had someone call from a religious organization in Hawaii, that’s been sending me monthly missives for years, inquiring if I’d moved because mail was being returned “No longer at this address”.

Since last week, I’ve been going back and forth with a seller about having not yet received an order of very expensive special lipstick, only to learn she'd shipped and tracking indicated “Delivered Mailbox, December 7”.

Wasn’t delivered to MY mailbox, I never got it, and there have been no break-ins.

You’d think that the individual who’s mailbox was the recipient of my packages would walk it over to me or turn it back in to the mailman, but that didn’t happen. We use to have neighbors like that, but Nurse Ratched has slowly chased off the majority of “nice” residents and replaced them with some pretty questionable characters.

At any rate today, after being unable to resolve the issue of that missing shipment of lipstick -- online with USPS or by phone, I made a trip to the post office about it and also the parcel I’d been so anxious to receive -- as I found tracking also indicated “Delivered Parcel Locker, December 7”.

WHICH mail person delivered mail on December 7^th, I’d like to know, because they appear to be doing a very poor job.

First in a long line when the post office opened at 9:00 this morning, the clerk was able to catch the mailman before he left on his route. After they spoke, the clerk returned with the best they can do for me is, “When he gets to your location, which should be in about three hours, he’ll check all the boxes. Other than that, it’s been ten days so …” and here he shrugged his shoulders, which to me was like saying, “You’re SOL lady.”

So feeling I would probably have to live with the losses, I returned to the complex to sit quietly with my needlepoint project to let the frustration go. Before settling in, however, I took a plate of cookies to the Community Room; cookies given to me last night by carol singers.

Along about 8:00, I heard what sounded like a herd of people coming up the stairs. Assuming it was the neighbor’s company, I was surprised to get a knock on MY door. No response to, “Who is it?”, so I looked through the kitchen window and there was a family of carolers.

With cookies.

Sooo nice.

That’s only happened to me once before in my life. Last time was about ten years ago, when I was living in a senior complex in Upland, and carolers from a local church caught me in a state of undress to where I had to hide my upper body behind the door. Of course, last night also caught me in an embarrassing state of undress.

I had an instant to think of grabbing a bra or grabbing the cell phone to take video. I opted for the phone and stood in the door, enjoying the concert, while looking like a baggy saggy old woman.

I’d not heard any singing before they came to my door, so I’m assuming they were selecting doors at random in different buildings, rather than door-to-door. “We love your Christmas display” one of the ladies said as they departed, which may be a clue as to why I got so lucky in this building, except karma. I’ve been planting Random Acts of Christmas Cheer around the city, and here a random comes back to me.

It now being afternoon, the mailman has come and gone with no word as to my packages. I doubt he even did a thorough search, so SOL it is.