I suppose I should have named the last blog - Last Blog As a Postal Worker...
First of all, I wanted to thank you all for the heartfelt comments and messages you left me. I will be on this site from time to time just to see how all of you are doing. My new business is doing great, but there are aspects of this venture where I still feel like an untrained PTF. December is a crazy month do learn a lot of on-the-job training. Several of my former co-workers have stopped by to wish me luck. Most of them, bought a small item and went on there way. A few of my former co-workers who had never said "Hello" or "kiss my ass" or "toss my salad" or "lick my beefcake", stopped by only out of curiosity to see if I left the Postal Service for the reasons I told folks.
Now that I am a Postal customer and not an employee, I am already perceiving a different perspective about the World's Largest Federally Funded Mental Institute. Brian Sheffield, who was my former co-worker is now my letter carrier at my bakery. Brian fills me in on the latest gossip. I set aside a cup of strong black coffee and an apple fritter for him when he delivers my mail. OurLadyOfGuacamole can tell you it has been super cold in Colorado. It's been so cold that Dolly Parton's nips have poked out 17 eyes and my balls need replacing. Along the Main Street area where I work, the public's perception of the USPS is FAR more positive than what you hear at work. It appears that all of the local businesses prefer the USPS over FedEx or UPS. They are all small businesses like mine want to save money and prefer the less expensive USPS. Programs like Customer Connect and RuralReach are fine, but I believe where we lose the most business is on the internet. Many dot.com companies don't even offer USPS delivery. I blame all of the marketing VPs that PMG JackPot hired years ago in not doing there job and to foresee the future.
A small anecdote, but this one is true: A mom and a little girl walked into my shop and saw Brian with his LLV crammed with gift-wrapped parcels. The girl asked her mom "If Santa brings all of our presents down the chimney than how come the mailman has a truck full of presents?"
In the short time that I have been away from the site - I have noticed some things. First, one of the three messages I received was from a pretty blonde named Anne from Phoenix who has been on here longer than I have. Did I write too many blogs at 3 AM not to notice her? Thank you for your message Anne. I also noticed a Cliff Claven character named Archie. I wished you were on here when I was a regular on this site. You seem like a fun person to know and, wow, has Daisy Duke changed - I remember when she soooo hott! And, Kathy from Fort Collins - tsk, tsk - you put your profile on here AFTER I quit the P.O. For shame!! LOL. I received another message from my good friend SuperSub about how this Postal Profiles is slowly becoming a ghost town. No way! We can't let this happen! Apparently, there are those that fear retribution from management if they write blogs on here.
In reality, my former station manager stumbled upon my blogs where I occasionally wrote satire about management - it was just too damned easy. He didn't like everything that I wrote but as the union steward I reminded him that reprimanding me for "exercising my First Amendment in writing a blog in jest" would qualify as top honors in the APWU grievance Hall of Shame. I love to write and I don't want to be another Postal Profiles lurker.
Remember all of those wise sayings you used to hear from momma. Mom-isms like:
-If you fall and break your back, don't come running to me. -If you dont stop playing with it its gonna fall off. -If you keep making that face, it will stick!
I agree with SuperSub, we need more people to write blogs on here. Here are a few of my own "mom-isms" I wish to share with you.
-If you don't write a blog your computer will freeze here. -Yes, dear... God is watching you when you don't write a blog... -I don't care if everyone else is reading without blogging... if everyone else was jumping off a bridge, would you do that too?
So if you're a lurker here, please do think about your future... and consider writing us a blog.
Of course, I wrote the last part tongue-in cheek. Lurkers are as valued as those that write blogs, depending on where/how they came as well as the amount of time spent on specific pages. In fact, I like lurkers - I imagine them to be very famous and influential people who don't want to reveal themselves or their true feelings for me. :) I also realize that this is the most hectic time of year and we are all busy.
By the way, the third message stated that my last photo received an unusual amount of views. I am bad about clicking the photo page on the site - so I had to take a look. By God, Kathy was right!!! The next time I ever put a photo on the site I will make sure to dress up and consume alcohol. Right on with the light on!
Merry Christmas to you all and holiday cheers - from the bottom of my champagne glass.
I have been away from this website for almost a month because there have been changes in my life. November 7th was the last day that I wore my window clerk uniform. Officially, my last day with the U.S. Postal Service was November 21st.
Because of certain opportunities that have occured, I decided to take a chance on leaving my postal job to open up a business for myself. This is something that I have thought of doing several times before, but when I read statistics like 60% of first-time businessess failing in the first three years; I would get cold feet and stay with the more secure Postal Service.
My last day at work felt good, strange and sad at the same time. It felt good because I will be starting a new chapter in my life. Strange, because I'm leaving something I've come to know so well to venture off into a somewhat unknown future. Sad, because I will be leaving behind some actual good memories and there will be people that I know I will be missing because for a big part of my day I have spent 13 years with some of my co-workers. Of course, there will be a very small percentage of people whom I won't miss at all. I guess it is the people you get to know as co-workers and customers that have somehow touched your life, the different relationships that you build with them - the good times and even the bad times - that gets to you.
The small business that I am opening is a bakery and art gallery in the same building. To give you an idea of what my business is, I have recently started my website although it is still rough looking because there have been more pressing details in starting this business. My website is: www.markbivens.net
Why did I take this drastic step? Despite the bad economic times we are in, the timing just felt appropriate, all of the omens were right, the stars were in the right place too or whatever else you believe in. I was also offered some financial help in opening my bakery/art gallery from some of long-time customers that I met while I was a window clerk.
Starting out, I will be working more hours at my shop and, realistically, I will probably be making LESS money than I would as a postal clerk. But I will get to choose which long hours that I will work. I will chose to run my business completely different than model of post office which is now based on attaining only riches. I plan on building wealth. There is a difference between riches and wealth. Riches are based on tangibles such as bonuses and how much cash you can pump into your bank account. Wealth is based on intangibles such as independence and respect for others and yourself.
I had so many fantasies of how I was going to spend my last day in the Postal Service. But, I didn't follow through on any of those temptations. I do not want to burn any bridges in case my business doesn't work out.
I have met a lot of wonderful people on Postal Profiles and will be back on here from time to time - but it won't be as frequent. My job with the P.O. and serving the APWU was actually fun, but the work environment certainly could use some improvement
I know the most people care about their jobs on this site from their blogs and comments or the messages that I have received in my inbox over time. I wish all of you the best of luck at work and with your lives.
As I was preparing to close my window and to do the 1412 work of finalizing my co-worker's receipts and money, I heard a customer in the lobby area banging on the APC machine. I walked towards the customer to ask her what was the problem.
"Those brilliant minds within your management who decided to get rid of the stamp machines are a bunch of idiots!! All I want to purchase is a first class stamp for a letter."
What seems to be the problem, I asked.
"First of all, I have to put my bank card in this machine before I get a total for my purchase. It's like signing a blank check to a complete stranger. I want the total first before I give you people permission to take the money out of my account."
Actually, this customer brought up a valid point.
"Anyways, I put my card in this machine and touch the screen where it says "first class domestic letter" and look at the price I am given - forty two dollars and ninety eight cents."
She cancelled the transaction and began again. The same total appeared on the APC - forty two dollars and ninety eight cents. I told her that I would use my 1412 terminal and sell her a single stamp.
"Never mind, young man," she said, "I noticed that your machine works if I purchase a book of stamps. I will pay the $8.40 instead. I think your post office is in cahoots with the Bush Administration in taking all of our hard earned money to bailout those crooks on Wall Street!!"
Yes, this really happened at work today. The REAL problem was that our APC machine wasn't working properly and it was shut down after this transaction. And no, the Postal Service is not in "cahoots with Bush Administration" although I could empathize with the customer's frustration.
For some reason, there are those that believe that everything in life is surrounded by a deep dark conspiracy. There seems to be a large dose of this going on amongst the internet message boards and blogs. I was reading Tom's blog concerning a message from "Tsunami" who wrote a message on the letter carrier's message board. Tsunami writes that this came from an "area meeting." What area? Who knows? Coincidentally, he writes about the same "talking points" that were discussed at last summer's APWU Convention in Las Vegas. Perhaps, Tsunami truly believed he was doing the right thing in informing us about some undisclosed plans of the USPS. I thank Tom for including a follow up blog from a PostalMag reader who is knowledgable about Article 6 concerning layoffs within the craft.
When any of us write blogs or messages on the internet we have the responsibilty to include the source of information where we obtained the words we write. Some people believe that anything written on the internet is the gospel truth unless it has the letters "LOL" written after it. I have read far too much SPECULATION about the USPS' future with no documentation to back up their words.
Agreed, the USPS is arguably in the worst financial mess in its 232 year history. The national economy is facing a recession and the USPS is no longer the main messengers of communication - it is now MSN or AOL or whatever internet server you are using to read my blog.
As workers, the best we can do is to stay focused on our jobs, do our best in times of trouble and wait to see what the PO and our unions can do to get out of this financial mess. If you believe that your union is so far in bed with management that you can't tell whose ass is sticking up higher - than run against him/her in the next election. I became the local APWU president here after only 2 years in the P.O. It isn't that difficult to do. It's a job most people don't want to do so there is very little competition.
Upper management are busy using scare tactics again and this is nothing new. It is a pattern of their behavior to shake the trees of the craft to see what kind of fruits and nuts fall out. With some folks in mangement - intimidation supercedes intelligence. All of this talk of mass layoffs is something that I don't believe will happen. Anthony Vegliante released a statement on LiteBlue today that if any layoffs occur it will start within National Headquarters.
If you are of like mind and believe that management wants their PFP bonuses you will realize that if mass layoffs occur - the mail will be delayed. Overtime will be incurred on the craft and the PFP bonuses will dry up for management.
There are far too many safeguards within our respective National Agreements for mass layoffs to occur. True, there will be jobs abolished and employees excessed to other offices that may need the complement. Currently, the worst case scenario will be the abolishment of Tour 2 employees in preparation for the start-up of the FSS implementation.
But mass layoffs? If anyone on here has written documentation and NOT heresay about this kind of action, please let your union know about this. From my vantage point as an acting local APWU president, I have not seen ANY real documentation about this kind of action.
True, there will be changes AFTER 2010, and unlike what some presidential candidates will tell you - change is NOT always good. But, all of this undocumented SPECULATION does not do any good to anyone - whether you are in craft or management.
Speaking of conspiracies - what happened to Spauldo? Her profile just disappeared!! She dropped of my friend's list and I cannot find her!! Was it the government? Was it management? Was it aliens? OMG!!!
The news spread throughout Colorado about large veins of silver being discovered in the area of what is now known as St. Elmo. On October 31, 1889 - the town of St. Elmo was incorporated. This was the beginning of what was to be known as the Honeymoon Period. All of the houses were brand new and the saloons were filled with happy miners and barroom girls. Silver dollars were flying everywhere.
In 1898, an outsider named Horace Runyon came into town with phony platte maps and bogus deed titles and began jumping claims all over St. Elmo. One year later, in 1899, the Silver Depression hit Colorado and silver plummetted to under $2 an ounce. Eventually, all of the miners left town except Horace Runyon. He got his wish as he remained the sole resident of St. Elmo. No one knows the exact date of his death as his skeleton was discovered amongst his rotting possessions in that old white house at the end of the dirt road. The Honeymoon Period was over.
In the early 1920s, gold and uranium veins were discovered near St. Elmo. Once again, the good news spread throughout Colorado and people began moving back to St. Elmo. The town had a new saloon, a grocery store/post office and a movie house. All of the buildings were filled light and laughter with the feeling of joy and merriment. Mountain jays were dancing jigs and apples on a stick were covered with caramel.
This was the beginning of the Dazzling Period which lasted from the 1920s until the late 1970s. The two unions in town (the miner's and postal workers) worked in unison with the management of that day. However, as is custom with all legends and fairy tales, the Dazzling Period had to share its existence with a far more sinister future.
As the gold and uranium ore dried up, folks began to leave St. Elmo again including the town's postmaster. The future was looking dim for the town.
This is when the Dark Period began. There was no more laughter in the buildings or on the street. There were no shiny happy people hands.
♫♪☼Shiny Happy people hoooolding haaands! ♫♪☼
According to those who lived to tell the tale, the Dark Period truly began with the arrival of the new postmaster. Some claimed that she was possessed. Her demonic posession brought forth upon St. Elmo a wrathful being who haunted and grunted and scorned and burped.
She raged, she flounced, she stomped and she SWORE!! The vilest of words that echoed throughout the post office and down the nearly empty streets of town. Their vulgarity was enough to scorch the paint off of the walls and nearby vacant buildings in St. Elmo. That is why they have that eerie look today, almost as if they were crying from the sheer torture of having to endure the distorted insults of the postmaster.
The murderous inflection put upon the words, "You need EIGHT hours to sort and deliver mail!!!" would make the windows rattle with a might only to be mirrored by gale force winds of a hurricane.
The postmaster's hauntings only lasted a few more years. Eventually, the next to last person to leave St. Elmo was a brown-nosing clerk named Gary. Gary asked the postmaster if there was anything he could do for her. The postmaster confessed to Gary, "All I wanted to do was to fulfill my grandfather Horace's wishes. I wanted to take total control of St. Elmo. I, Eleanor Runyon, have been a very bad woman. I deserve a good spanking. But before you spank me Gary, would you pull my hair as hard as you can?"
Legend has it, that after Gary left; Eleanor boarded up that old post office and slowly walked away to the old white house at the end of the dirt road. To this day, howls and shrieks can be heard down those empty streets and abandoned mines. No one knows what became of Eleanor.
But you can still see the old post office and visit that old white house at the end of the dirt road. It has no electricity and it is very dark. When you are inside you might run face-first into a cobweb. Or is it a cobweb? It could be the ghost of postmaster Eleanor. And when you hear the house settling, those might be the footsteps of Eleanor lurking closely behind you.
The regret of not treating employees with dignity and respect....the greed for bonus money.....the warm feeling that is missed when one doesn't think about anyone but themselves........those are the real haunting ghosts of the past and present.
And from all accounts, the ghosts of postal management are still haunting us from the voices of the day to the shadows of the night.
I have not been online much in the last two weeks because I have taken a lot of my union steward work home with me. This is not the way I would like to work on grievances. At work, I would prefer to work on my bid job instead of working on grievances. Two weeks ago, our station acquired a new acting station manager named Morgan. If I refer to someone named "Morgan Mindy" in upcoming blogs - you will know who I am talking about.
I watching MSNBC before I went to work this morning and they showed a program called "Inside America's Prisons" hosted by Joe Scarborough. Joe was visiting a prison in Canon City, Colorado. He spoke with different inmates about how they ended up on the wrong path in life. Most of the inmates were sleeved with tattooes and spoke in true street slang. There was one man that stood out on the show, a guy named Bob.
Bob looks like your next door neighbor. Joe asked Bob how he wound up in a penitentiary. Bob told Joe that he held a lot of jobs before going the wrong way. Apparently, he had earned a Master's degree in Engineering and had worked for Rockwell for 3 years before he was laid-off. Later, he worked for Boeing Aircraft and Lockheed-Martin and was laid-off from those jobs and had now turned 45 years old. It was becoming harder to find work. Bob had actually worked for the Postal Service for 4 years and quit to become an OTR truck driver. His loads included the normal cargo but he also shipped large amounts of narcotics in those loads as well. He said his pay was $15,000 a month. Eventually, Bob was caught.
Joe then asks Bob, "You have held a lot of responsible jobs. How hard is it for you to cope with prison life?" Bob was nicer than I would be - he just said, "I take it one day at a time."
If I were Bob I would have told Joe about my years with the Postal Service and the similarities it has towards prison life:
PRISON POSTAL SERVICE
1.) Big concrete building...................................1.) Big concrete building
2.) Fenced in...................................................2.) Fenced in
5.) Controlled time schedule...............5.) Controlled lunches and breaks
6.) Harassment about illness.................................6.) AWOL
7.) Very low morale...............................................7.) Very low morale
8.) Very harsh discipline................................8.) Very harsh discipline
But enough about the negativity at the P.O. - at least we have jobs unlike Bob and more than likely we WON'T be laid off. Oh yeah, I have read the stories about the USPS "considering" layoffs but that's another story for another blog.
I noticed that we have a new member to our site who is also from Colorado. Her name is "Our Lady of Guacamole." Hmmmm.....interesting name choice. I found an avocodo recipe she might like. The idea of the recipe sounds good but these small town papers in Colorado need better writers:
Personally, I think this would be a tasty snack no matter how big your breasts are.
