US Postal Service

[Greg112]

23 hours ago, Kirk W said:

Since informed delivery has now been around since 2014, you might want to check again if you are interested. 

 

Checked 3 addresses in 3 different states where we tend to hang out for longer periods and no joy. Maybe this topic will emerge periodically in the future to remind me to check and see what may be coming on board. 

[packnrat]

 receive all my bills on time and with no problem what so ever.

i pay by computer, due to some how my creditors get the check a day late. so they can charge a late fee.

and thanks to the government shutting down everything. i buy a number of items online, and shipped to my po box, so i am helping to keep the USPS open.

the USPS tracking is not so great, up-dates are slow if at all.

stuck in my s&b for six more years. (job, family).

[Velos]

Update:  I receive my priority mail on the 21st of December. 

I have used FEDX twice this month (12/2020) once to receive my SKP mail and once to send mail to California.  Price was same as Priority mail delivery time via ground was estimated at 3-5 days and both were received in 3 days Christmas week.   Will be using FEDX for future SKP mail forwarding instead of USPS priority mail.

 

[hemsteadc]

On 12/22/2020 at 6:48 AM, packnrat said:

 receive all my bills on time and with no problem what so ever.

i pay by computer, due to some how my creditors get the check a day late. so they can charge a late fee.

 

You still pay bills with a check?

[bigjim]

1 hour ago, hemsteadc said:

i pay by computer,

H did you not notice this in packnrats post. I pay a few of my bills by check through the mail and in person.  Occaisionally I get a discount for paying with a check instead of a credit card.  

[hemsteadc]

8 minutes ago, bigjim said:

H did you not notice this in packnrats post.  i pay by computer

Yes, I read the whole post, indicating he has the bank issue checks and gets paper bills. Perhaps that's not what he meant. Perhaps he will answer.  Not sure how you travel and get paper bills.

Edited December 31, 2020 by hemsteadc

[packnrat]

it would be great if i could get a discount by paying with a check. i pay nothing by cc. just direct payment from the bank.

sad but when a check was used the cc company's had (still do) a way so the check to them is delivered late.

but as of today's date, i can not remember the last time i wrote out a check.

[Al F]

21 minutes ago, packnrat said:

it would be great if i could get a discount by paying with a check. i pay nothing by cc. just direct payment from the bank.

sad but when a check was used the cc company's had (still do) a way so the check to them is delivered late.

but as of today's date, i can not remember the last time i wrote out a check.

I bet the Credit Card companies have a kickback deal with the local postmaster to hold the credit card payments until they are past due.   🙁

[2gypsies]

1 hour ago, packnrat said:

it would be great if i could get a discount by paying with a check. i pay nothing by cc. just direct payment from the bank.

sad but when a check was used the cc company's had (still do) a way so the check to them is delivered late.

but as of today's date, i can not remember the last time i wrote out a check.

Do you know that you can do AutoPay of your credit card (& most bills, nowadays) so there are no chances of late fees?  We rarely use cash or check for anything.  Everything is done via credit card or AutoPay through our bank account.

You can find a credit card that gives you cash back so you're really earning money by using a credit card.... IF you pay it off fully each month, as we do.

[sandsys]

2 hours ago, bigjim said:

H did you not notice this in packnrats post. I pay a few of my bills by check through the mail and in person.  Occaisionally I get a discount for paying with a check instead of a credit card.  

Our dentist gives a discount for paying by check. The challenge is remembering then finding the check book.

Linda

[Barbaraok]

2 hours ago, sandsys said:

Our dentist gives a discount for paying by check. The challenge is remembering then finding the check book.

Linda

So does ours.  I write maybe 5 checks each year.  Mobile Techs also don't charge the extra fees for credit cards when you write a check.   Even had one Mobile Tech who gave me an even better deal for cash - which I happen to have because I went to get cash the day before, so used it and then made another trip over to the ATM nearby to replenish our 'tip' funds.   

Like most, we set up all most all purchases through credit cards (using ones that have rewards back to us), even set up payment of Estimated taxes with IRS through an ETF from our checking account, and the property tax for our park model is done the same way.  

[hemsteadc]

19 hours ago, Barbaraok said:

  I write maybe 5 checks each year.  

My check register still shows payments from 20 years ago.  About the only time I'll actually write one is at a self-pay campground.

Edited January 1, 2021 by hemsteadc

[Barbaraok]

Haven't used a check register in years.  Note it on the receipt and when we get home enter it into Quicken, then get notice from bank when check is cashed.  I get notified by text when any purchase/depost is made to ANY of our accounts.  Even set Dave up with 1 credit card he can use directly from his computer and set up Apple Pay on his phone for him - and each transaction gets a text ping on my phone.   Sometimes I feel like the phone now rules us.  

[DanZemke]

2 hours ago, Barbaraok said:

Haven't used a check register in years.  Note it on the receipt and when we get home enter it into Quicken, then get notice from bank when check is cashed.  I get notified by text when any purchase/depost is made to ANY of our accounts.  Even set Dave up with 1 credit card he can use directly from his computer and set up Apple Pay on his phone for him - and each transaction gets a text ping on my phone.   Sometimes I feel like the phone now rules us.  

I handle things similarly, but prefer good-enough, rather than thorough record keeping.  

I haven't used a checking register in over 3 decades.  But have used Quicken for many years.  I used it for a consolidated view of several accounts and to feed TurboTax each year.  Never used it for expense tracking or budgeting.

Every month, I scan all of my credit/debit/checking charges, to see if they seem reasonable.  I only recall two instances of bogus debits.  One was for a subscription to some kind of vitamin plan and the other was a subscription to a gaming service.  

My approach is better suited to me.  Presumably, your approach is better suited to you.

Different folks, different strokes 🙂

[Kirk W]

2 hours ago, Barbaraok said:

Note it on the receipt and when we get home enter it into Quicken, then get notice from bank when check is cashed.  I get notified by text when any purchase/depost is made to ANY of our accounts.

We do pretty much the same, but different software and no Apple pay. I get text from the bank account and any of our credit cards at each action. I do record all receipts of any kind and from any source. I'm not sure how long ago we stopped with the check register, but it has been quite some time. We don't do a formal budget either, but we do track almost all of the money we spend. 

[DJohns]

On 12/20/2020 at 11:57 AM, pjstough said:

Where did you get this information? Are you talking about truck drivers who are USPS employees, or companies that contract with the USPS to haul mail?

I know this is late but we got our package by Dec 24. I got the information from our local postmaster after she called the Detroit postmaster.

[DJohns]

On 12/20/2020 at 2:53 PM, bigjim said:

I wish I knew DJohns and had  grudge against him or her.  If that were the case I might say the information came from someone in the 3rd toilet on the left.  This is one of my favorite sayings mostly as joke but sometimes seriously.  In this case it is as a joke.  It does seem to be the case that much of our information today is quoted from some source that seems like that. 

I got the information from the postmaster who called the sending postmaster. You need to watch your!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

[bigjim]

2 hours ago, DJohns said:

I got the information from the postmaster who called the sending postmaster. You need to watch your!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

I would say that is good source.  Even that can vary a little as I have learned in my travels. Where I am now there are three small post offices in 7 miles.  One of the 3 is clearly better than the other two.

[packnrat]

do not feel alone on all this, monday a package arrived at my post office. but then was forwarded to another town just up the rd, now today (wed) they do not know were it is, believed it was sent back to sacramento.

i have had one package go to at least six different citys up and down ca... after it was in my towns office. finely after three weeks i did receive it. and it was tracked the whole time.

[TXiceman]

Amazon reshipped my part via USPS and it arrived a few days later.  USPS closed my search for the original as resolved.  I do not know how they resolve it.  They changed the tracking info and decided it was never shipped.  Yesterday, it showed up with out any explanation.  Got to love such competent workers....not.  If I had shown such a work ethic, I would have been fired.

Ken

[durangodon]

I use Amazon a lot.  I've had a few shipping screw-ups.  I've spent time with both the USPS and Amazon investigating.  This is how I understand they happen.

Your order gets filled at an Amazon warehouse, there are many across the country.  Your item is assigned to a pallet.  That pallet is then scanned and enters USPS tracking, even though it hasn't left Amazon facility.  From there, that pallet is loaded and sent to a post office by a "shipping partner".  When it arrives at the post office, the USPS tracking shows it as at that post office.  Then, the USPS scans the item for the first time.

If the item was not on that pallet, it will still show as being arrived at the post office along with the rest of the items on that pallet.  There's a good chance that the USPS never received the item, at your post office or any other.  So, the post office looks bad because their tracking shows that they have the item at your local post office and in reality it never showed up.  Your local post office can do a detailed print out of tracking which will show specifically if anyone at USPS has ever actually scanned the item, but they don't always have time or initiative to do so.

I'm not defending the USPS, they screw up plenty on their own.  I'm just saying that, at least with respect to Amazon, many times the failure lies with the shipper before it ever actually gets to the post office.

[Velos]

Its competition between like businesses:  USPS, UPS, Amazon, DHL and USPS.  Just my guess the older a company the harder it is to make changes to stay competitive in part due to management, limited long term planing and lack of attention to constant pro-active endeavors after getting in a comfort zone.  Many times changes do not occur unless forced by stock holders, a balance sheet or a customer base. The world keeps turning whether we want it to or not and if we don't keep moving we eventually fall off.

Edited January 7, 2021 by Velos

[Kirk W]

46 minutes ago, durangodon said:

I'm not defending the USPS, they screw up plenty on their own.  I'm just saying that, at least with respect to Amazon, many times the failure lies with the shipper before it ever actually gets to the post office.

You gave a very good explanation of how that works.  Thank you!

Edited January 7, 2021 by Kirk W

[2gypsies]

I ordered an item via Amazon and received a UPS tracking #.  However, when I tried to track it constantly all it gave me was that a label was created on that first day.  Eight days later it arrived and there was never any tracking of it.  

[Velos]

He's been touted as the smartest man in the world, what if Elon Musk took over the USPS?  He's got electric car company, a space exploration company and an internet service etc..

"Once it becomes fully operational, Starlink will be able to offer internet access from virtually anywhere on the planet. The goal of the Elon Musk Starlink effort is to launch thousands of small satellites, all of which will be in low Earth orbit. They will be able to transmit fast internet signals down to Earth."  Source:  https://www.androidauthority.com/what-is-starlink-1134426/