December 30, 2015
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USPS
I sent a book of my poetry “Stray Thoughts/ Winged Words to a dear friend in India. She lives in Mumbai. She has been my friend from Xanga and we still keep in touch, even though she is not on it anymore. Some of you may remember her from her Xanga days. She posted with her name Fadia as the ID .
I sent the book out on the 10th of December, by First Class International Priority Mail. I thought it would take about ten days for it to reach Mumbai where Fadia lives. For the last ten or twelve days I have been tracking the USPS number, and I keep getting the “In Transit” message. I thought that meant that it has reached Mumbai and is stuck in their Customs at the Airport.
Today I called the main post office here to ask them to check about the package and where the delay was. Do you know what they said? “The package has not left the US Customs. It is still in Chicago.”
I couldn’t believe it. It was bizarre to say the least. I asked the guy, “So, what now, and when will it get out?” He answered, “It is held in the Customs at the airport, and we have no way of contacting them or finding out what is going on!”
Anywhere in the world I could have suspected improper Customs regulations; but would never have doubted our Customs in the US would take so many weeks to send a little book in a manila envelope, to India.
Needless to say I am disgusted. Calling all people who work at the Customs in Chicago, "HELP".
Comments (10)
I think they need a pay cut!
I have had some shenanigans with postal people too. Next day turned into more days than regular mail.
Very frustrating indeed.
Sorry, Dr. Zakiah, but struck me funny. I guess your poetry is a threat to National Security.
Ridiculous!!!! Hope the Custom agents read it. Maybe it will sweeten them up.
Happy New Year.
Frank
My poetry is a threat to National Security. That is funny. I should have thought of that earlier and not wasted so much of my emotional stress over it. Thank you for making me feel better.
So frustrating!
No kidding.
You should not take the failures of the snail mail office personally. They are undergoing a big financial squeeze.
CIA Director John Brennan's email has just been doxxed, and by a teenager. Look, I am saying there is major paranoia in the national security apparatus, and they're looking to retake control. Bureaucrats gonna bureaucratize.
Two days ago, my yahoo mail engine refused to send an innocent message because "TO PREVENT ABUSE YOUR MESSAGE CANNOT BE SENT NOW." Thousands of yahoo users had the same problem. Thus it will ever be with bureaucracies.
I didn't take it personally John. I was just disgusted. So much frustration. Please read my response to Valerie above. Thank you for your support.
Yikes. Seems this is yet another sign of the times - where all packages are suspect. No doubt they are pouring over your poems looking for secretly coded messages! Ridiculous! Although I do believe there is a huge amount of power in the written word and your poetry is at the top of the list of words that can change hearts!
That's a huge compliment Val. Thank you. I got a message from Fadia this morning. She has finally received the book today. Almost a month later! Two more days, and it WOULLD have been a month! I could have taken the train through Siberia and the long route and reached her place ten days earlier! But, I am glad she had got it. However, yeah, there is a however, I had called the Chicago Customs at O'Hare and talked to them and sent them emails. I was told that the package is not traceable, yadi yadi yadi. This was early last week. Meanwhile my friend's daughter is visiting her daughter in LA, and will return home to India this weekend. Therefore, I signed another book and sent it out to her by guaranteed mail which would reach her tomorrow, telling her to take it with her and mail it out to Fadia. Now, Fadia will have two books! I know I could have waited, but I was almost certain that my book was lost in the mail. End of the story!
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