I don't have to go to the post office often, but the few times I've been here was without much incident.
The long wait times, I've found, was due more to the customer's inability to speak English, as this facility serves a fairly diverse area, including Elmhurst.
More times than not, the rep I've dealt with is what I can only describe as an older, white, hippy woman. She always has a good, cheerful attitude.
More recently, I was expecting an Amazon package on Saturday, 1/23/16 and it was marked as undeliverable due to a "blocked receptacle." This was before the snow really hit during the Jason blizzard. Puzzled (because there wasn't anything blocking anything, and parcels are routinely left in my lobby; I called the national USPS # who opened a complaint case (I didn't ask for one). On Monday, 1/25, I received a call from a private number, and the speaker, a male, with an Asian accent, apologized for the delay, and said re-delivery would be attempted on 1/26. No delivery. I called the Rego Park # and spoke to a gentleman who said they were swamped, and they were doing everything they could, to sort out the packages they were deluged with, but I was asked to PLEASE not come in, as it would be difficult to find the package.
Looking at my tracking updates, there were none, despite scheduling a re-delivery (I even got a confirmation of it). As of yesterday, my tracking updates weren't updated on the USPS website, and when I attempted to schedule a re-delivery, a message popped up stating that re-delivery wasn't possible in my zip code, and to go pick up the package. I had the day off, so I walked over to the facility.
While waiting in line, I saw a sign to the effect of, "If you were expecting a package between 1/23-1/25, delivery was delayed due to the blizzard. Sorting will be completed at the end of the day." Oh, shit, I thought. There was no date on the notice.
Just by chance, I saw an Asian gentleman running around behind the reps, and he took over a window, as another rep went off somewhere. As soon as I heard him speak, I knew he was the guy who called me. I explained the situation to him, and after showing him my I.D, he came back with my package. He could have blown me off, being that he already seemed harried, and there's nothing like pissed off people to deal with all day.
Get real people. 6 p.m. is like rush hour at the post office; think about how you're stuck at work as the day is winding down. Also, dealing with non-English speaking people all day, and reminding people all day long that they didn't fill out the right label, or the wrong field (when the instructions clearly state the instructions- I've been guilty of that myself).
So, yeah, it's annoying to get a notice stating a delivery attempt was made, when in fact, none was made, is misleading, and annoying. I don't know if that's the norm, as I've gotten my Amazon packages delivered MOSTLY on time.
I was mostly impatient that the headphones I ordered as a reward to my son had to wait. I got 'em today by personally picking it up. I'd like to think my attitude when I got to the window helped some. If I was pissed off and yelling, the guy may not even have made the effort. Whatever the real case, no lives were lost, and it wasn't as if I was expecting life saving medicine. While I've done my share of complaining on Yelp, I do try to find perspective in the situation. People are impatient, and often vent their anger at the first person who will listen, and that's often the person standing in front of them.
Overall, I get my mail, and deliveries on time- for the most part. I'm not saying we should lower our expectations, but be realistic about them. read more