Postal Service Archives - Social Correspondence

What’s in Your Mail?

National Postal Worker’s Day was July 1, which seemed like a good time to check out what’s in your mail. As people have moved from doing business through the mail to electronic communications, first class mail has declined. Banking, including bill paying, and personal communications have largely moved online. Only occasionally do I receive handwritten notes, cards, letters, or postcards, and I suspect that I am not alone. Even event invitations are conveyed electronically, through sites that track responses (RSVPs) and comments from invitees. Since 1926, the USPS has tracked mail volume by type of mail.…

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July 22, 2023

Mail / Pandemic / Post Office / Postal Service / U.S. Postal Service

Slower delivery, higher costs projected for holiday mail

Holiday mail in 2021 will have slower delivery, higher costs, especially if you are shipping gifts or letters and cards across the country. Global supply chain issues, elimination of most air mail delivery, and labor shortages due to the pandemic all add up to slower processing and delivery times. Industry experts project that states west of the Rockies and mainland extremities states, including Texas and Florida, will be the hardest hit. But according to the USPS, new high speed package sorting equipment and facilities will improve service reliability and efficiency (albeit at higher cost and slower…

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November 8, 2021

Mail / Politics / Postal Service / Stamps / Technology / U.S. Postal Service

The Ten-Year Plan

Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and the USPS revealed a new ten-year plan on March 21, 2021 aimed at reinvigorating the postal service. Parts of the plan are ready to be implemented, including increasing the cost of stamps, slowing down first-class mail delivery in favor of more lucrative package delivery, closing selected facilities, and cutting back post office hours and staffing. Such changes are subject to approval by the Postal Regulatory Commission, an independent Federal agency. First-class stamps are currently 55 cents First-class mail volume has decreased by 28% over the past 10 years, one of the…

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June 3, 2021

Mail / Politics / Post cards / Postal Service / Stamps / Theater / U.S. Postal Service

Who Selects the Stamps

Who selects the stamps? Each year, the United States Postal Service issues approximately 35 new stamps, covering a wide range of images and fields of interest. In short, it is not hard to find something to like. New stamps are selected by the Citizen’s Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC) of the USPS, whose members are appointed by the Postmaster General. Playwright August Wilson is featured on a new Forever Stamp The CSAC was established in 1957. Currently, the committee has 13 members, representing “…collective expertise in history, science, technology, art, education, sports, and other areas of public…

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April 22, 2021

newspapers / Post Office / Postal Service / Stamps / U.S. Postal Service

Ponzi Scheme and Stamps

A certain type of fraud that dates back centuries, known as a Ponzi scheme, derived its name from a deception involving stamps in the early 20th century. According to the online Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a Ponzi scheme is “an investment swindle in which some early investors are paid off with money put up by later ones in order to encourage more and bigger risks.” Investors are led to believe that their investment is yielding unrealistically high returns. Despite the 20th century adage, “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is,” billions of dollars have…

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February 23, 2021

Creating chaos at the U.S. Postal Service

Mailbox, Annapolis, MD

Mail / Mailboxes / News / Pandemic / Politics / Post Office / Postal Service / Technology / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

Creating chaos at the U.S. Postal Service

Multiple crises over the past year created an unprecedented level of chaos at the U.S. Postal Service. The service has been disrupted by political disputes over mail-in ballots; removal of street mail boxes, mail sorting machines, and barcode readers; COVID-related illnesses among postal employees; and a much higher volume of mail and packages due to the pandemic. Some of the causes of chaos were deliberate and avoidable. First, there was the dispute over mail-in ballots. Due to the pandemic, many voters chose to cast their ballots by mail rather than wait in long lines to vote…

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February 1, 2021

city living / email / Handwriting / hiking / Letter writing / Mail / Pandemic / Politics / Postal Service / social distancing / Social Media / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

Politics and Pandemic

Land's End, San Francisco At last, there is good news on the horizon, a promise that a year dominated by politics and pandemic will soon be over. Politics never go away, but hopefully, the days will become calmer now that the November presidential election is finally over and a new administration is on the horizon. With two new vaccines rolling out, there also is hope that the pandemic will subside in the first half of 2021. Election years are always difficult, but 2020 was a doozy. It was a brutal year in almost every way possible. …

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December 30, 2020

Americans rely on mail delivery for letters, packages, checks, medications and more

Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / News / Politics / Post Office / Postal Inspector / Postal Service / U.S. Postal Service / Voting

New Threats to the U.S. Postal Service

Americans rely on timely mail delivery for letters, packages, checks, medications and more New threats to the U.S. Postal Service now challenge this essential service. Ongoing budget troubles have been further exacerbated by the pandemic and a precipitous drop in the use of first class mail. Add to that a new Postmaster General, a political appointee, who is making sweeping changes that reduce services, has endangered the ability of the Postal Service to manage mail-in voting Louis DeJoy, a businessman and major fundraiser for President Trump, took over the duties of Postmaster General on June 15,…

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August 17, 2020

Letter writing / Mail / Note cards / Postal Service / Social Media / Stamps / U.S. Postal Service

A Card in the Mail

Let's Celebrate is a newly released stamp by the U.S. Postal Service Whether it be a birth or birthday, a holiday, or the passing of a friend or loved one, life passages are best celebrated by a note or card in the mail. While an email or response on social media may suffice, there is no better way to communicate than a hand-written note or card. A recent survey by Morning Consult indicates that the U.S. Postal Service is, overall, the most trusted brand in America, ranked highest by Gen X and boomers. So when you…

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February 18, 2020

city living / Grandparenting / Handwriting / Letter writing / Mail / Mailboxes / Note cards / Post cards / Post Office / Postal Service / U.S. Postal Service

Notes for the New Year

The last of the cards and notes for the New Year come in a slow, uneven trickle, soon to be but a memory. Second to reunions and celebrations with friends and family, these physical notes, photos and greetings are my favorite part of the end of the year rituals, helping me to stay in touch with people who are important to me, both near and far. The post office continues to play an important part in people’s lives, judging by the crowds standing in line to mail packages and letters, either at the automated machines or…

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January 16, 2020