I’m filling post office boxes when I hear this at the counter.

The customer mailed a greeting card, first class, no special handling (like insurance) with $700.00 in cash in with the card.

That card never reached the intended recipient, unfortunately.

She wants us to track it. As I said, she bought no insurance for it. A money order would have been safe and wouldn’t have altered the bulk of the card, but no. She sent $700.00 in cash, no insurance, no barcoded service for protective handling, in along with millions of other pieces of mail… and we need to track it for her.

Folks, please don’t send cash through the mail.

I order a music box as a Christmas gift for my sister. It is a handmade wooden one from an online shop in [Country in Eastern Europe]. It requires a signature for pickup and is being held at the local post office. I ask my dad to drive me as I hate street parking. We are waiting in line inside when my dad starts talking.

Dad: “How come you have to sign for it?”

Me: “I’m not sure. I’m guessing it’s because it’s from overseas or the store did it as a security measure.”

Dad: *Loudly* “What? It’s not like you ordered a bomb.”

The post office cashier gives my dad a dirty look and I shove him.

Me: “Let’s say that from now on post offices go by the same rules as airports: don’t say ‘bomb’ loudly or at all.”

My order ends up coming with a coupon, and my mom decides to order something for her brother for Christmas. We go through the same process where it requires a signature and my mom has my dad drop her off.

Mom: “You stay in the car this time. I don’t need you accidentally causing a scene by asking if I ordered a bomb from overseas.”

Dad: “I never did that.”

My mom glares at him.

Dad: “Okay, I did it one time.”

Mom: “And that was enough.”

I’m a clerk at a small rural post office. The front office is closed during lunch break for one hour so we can leave if we need to in order to get lunch.

I hear a knocking on the front door. Normally, we are not supposed to answer the door when we are closed unless there is someone with a postal badge on the other side, but this particular day, I decide to interrupt my lunch to help the lady on the other side.

Customer: “I desperately need three stamps!”

I oblige her and sell her three stamps for $1.35.

Customer: “Thank you so much!”

She leaves, and I go back and sit down to enjoy my lunch again. About twenty minutes later, I hear a knocking again. I helped someone before, so I might as well do it now since I’m through eating.

I open the door and it’s the same lady again.

Customer: “I have a problem. I’m mailing off bills and don’t want these pretty stamps you’ve given me.”

Me: “Unfortunately, we don’t have any other stamps at the moment because we’re running low on stamps. That’s why I gave you the prettier ones.”

Customer: *Rolls her eyes* “Fine! Just give me a refund, then; I don’t want these stamps.”

Me: “I’m not able to give refunds for stamps as all sales are final.”

It says this at the bottom of every USPS receipt, as well. She flies off the handle.

Customer: “I want my g**d*** money back! You had no right to give me those stamps!”

This was ALL during my lunch break when I decided to do something nice for her when I didn’t have to. I no longer open that door during lunch for ANY reason. I don’t give a s*** if it’s some little old lady on the other side who just needs a single stamp to mail a card to her dying father.

My coworker was helping a lady prepare her documents for shipping.

Coworker: “The rate to ship is [rate], and you’ll have to buy an envelope in addition.”

He went away while the customer filled out her forms. When she finished her forms, I took over assisting her and processed her package.

Me: “The total will be [total], including the envelope.”

Customer: *Flips out* “Why are you assuming I haven’t already paid for the envelope?!”

Me: “Because you were told you’d have to buy the envelope, but it’s not too late to provide your own at no additional cost.”

Customer: “That’s beside the point! You were wrong to group the charges together on the off chance that I had purchased the envelope elsewhere!”

Me: “I only made a verbal mention that the envelope was included in the price just so that there wouldn’t be any confusion about what you were paying for. I do ask customers where envelopes come from, normally, and I would have, had I not been an eyewitness to you taking and using the envelope from our retail rack.”

Customer: “Get me your manager!”

She then yelled to him about it.

Customer: “Honestly, it’s disgraceful! She should be fired!”

Manager: “Ma’am, was your intention to purchase this envelope from us?”

Customer: “Yes.”

Manager: “Did you want the two transactions rung up separately?”

Customer: “No, I wanted them rung up together.”

Manager: “Are you suggesting that we not charge you for this envelope?”

Customer: “No, you don’t get it! The point is that he should have asked me if I needed to buy the envelope!”

Manager: “And this envelope was already sealed and written on at the time?”

Customer: “Yes, I did that before he even started helping me.”

Manager: “It sounds like you needed to buy the envelope.”

My husband and I went to the post office. I gave the postmaster my name, and he gave me a large box. I brought it home and opened it up, and it was full of Disney stuff for little kids. I looked more closely, and it was for another person who lives nearby and has the same first and last name as me.

We went back to the post office and I explained things to the postmaster.

Postmaster: “Well, I’m still learning the addresses.”

Me: *Politely* “My birthday is coming up and I want to make sure we’re getting all our mail.”

I got back in the truck and said to my husband:

Me: “I thought it was required that if you work at the post office you’re able to read?”

This isn’t the first time this has happened and it probably won’t be the last.

I didn’t act rudely to the postmaster; my comment was only made when I got back in the truck. It’s just frustrating and annoying. And if we weren’t honest people, we could have kept all that stuff — and Disney stuff isn’t cheap!