Going Postal

The automated postal machine was being cleaned today, which meant I had to wait in line at the post office. This is a terrifying prospect even on an ordinary day, when the line snakes out the door and only two clerks are working behind the desk. Today, however, was not ordinary. There was only one guy in line, but there were only two clerks behind the desk, one of whom was helping a customer and the other was being berated by a very angry woman. From what I could gather, her mail had not been delivered properly. The unlucky recipient of her tirade remained calm the entire time, patiently explaining that the postal workers were doing their best to deliver mail, but it was hard given the cold and the snow. The complaining woman would not be deterred. At one point, it looked like she was about to leave, but then another postal employee said something about the streets not being cleared of snow which set her off again (the first employee reached her arm out, as if to say, "no, stop, don't set her off again," but it was too late, the lady screamed that the streets had been clear since Monday, which is all well and good except the big snowstorm didn't start until Tuesday, but luckily no one pointed this out.) The complaining woman than began to address those of us waiting in line, telling us that if we hadn't received our mail we were out of luck. We all tried to maintain as blank an expression as possible, sympathetic to her circumstances, but hopefully, not encouraging her to continue screaming. When she left, I turned to the woman behind me in line who said to me, "I've gotten all my mail." We talked about how sometimes you get other people's mail, but mail carriers are human and the snow has taken its toll on all of us. Then I said to her, "Maybe she is just really angry because she didn't get any Valentines this year." We chuckled. I don't mean to make light of someone else's troubles. It is possible she is waiting for checks and bills and not getting your mail can be annoying. But wouldn't a phone call have sufficed? Think about it. She trekked through snow and bitter cold to go to a post office in order to bitch out an overworked government employee. She didn't get her mail or do anything which would get her mail delivered. Frankly, something like not getting the love letters she was sure she was meant to receive seems like a far more reasonable explanation for her behavior. Of course, if I believed the Valentines had been sent and that it was only a matter of time before they were delivered, I would not be sent over the edge. I can be patient when I have to be. I can, however, understand being driven crazy from a lack of love. And the snow and bitter cold is taking its toll on all of us.