'Tis the Season

I bet with a title like that you expect me to talk about the holidays. In a roundabout sort of way I will but what I'm referring to more so than anything is the USPS (United States Postal Service) and mail.

We've talked before about my mail system. My system is a little something like this: I usually check my mail about once a week. I make a nice little pile by desk until I am ready to separate the items, shred, and pay bills.

I feel pretty good about my system of checking it once a week as it is secured and honestly, why touch it more than I have to right? Right.

Well, can we say with the holidays my once a week system isn't working so well? The mailbox is filling up too quickly.

Tuesday night when I went to get my mail, I was greeted with an empty box and a note saying they were holding my mail at the post office as it had gotten too full.

Excuse me? I just checked it Sunday.

I had two packages and some birthday cards to mail so after work yesterday I entered a realm of hell, my local post office at 4:45 PM. There were 17 people in front of me and at least 10 coming up behind me. This location closes at 5:00 PM.

Luckily I had my Centro in hand. I checked my email, twitter, facebook, and myspace while standing in line {sidebar: I love that sucker but have grown tired of the Claus commericals quickly}.

Slowly I made my way to the counter and then it happened. The lady behind the counter scolded me as she handed me my bundle o' mail. She said something to the effect of next time I better fill out a hold request or else.

Um, ok. I grant you I probably should be checking my mail more often than once a week and you are exhausted from a long day of dealing with people but or else? Really?

I smiled. I nodded. I took my pile from her and handed over my packages and cards. I bought some holiday themed stamps for the holiday cards to be mailed this weekend.

Then I got the heck up out of there as quickly as I could.

The kicker of it all? Once I sat down with my pile and did my thing the majority of it was junk. Not bills. Not magazines. Not love from friends and family. Nope. Majority of it was advertising related.

From now until the first of the year I will check my mail as if I have a box like this at least every couple of days.

Seriously. Or um, ya' know, or else.

Peace and Love Peeps.

Photos courtesy of DigitalTek and Avelino Maestas' flickr accounts.