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“It’s none of your business”….
mikee999
Posts: 619 ✭✭✭✭✭
So I’ve been going to the post office 2-3x a week to ship coins using their ground advantage w/tracking.
After punching in the usual yes & no into their system, the postal employee invariably asks what’s in there?
My impulse answer would’ve been “none of you business.” But I knew I had to be pc and said collectible coins - NOT.
I kept my cool and always answered with “merchandise.” They seemed satisfy with the answer.
Question: has anyone encountered the same or similar situation, and what was your reaction/ answer?
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Tell him it's a stool sample.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Yes. One clerk asks that every time. I think she doesn't know or can't recite the "any thing hazardous, liquid, flammable, etc." question. I always answer "nothing hazardous, liquid, flammable, etc."
Life member #369 of the Royal Canadian Numismatic Association
Member of Canadian Association of Token Collectors
Collector of:
Canadian coins and pre-confederation tokens
Darkside proof/mint sets dated 1960
My Ebay
Then they’ll say ever heard or use Labcorp
Say it's an SBA dollar and they will stamp it "not worth stealing".
Or junk xxxx
I always tell them old circuit boards since I ship in padded envelopes.
WS
Personally, I might say it’s one of these. Would almost be certain it wouldn’t be bothered.😉👍
>
Machine parts, but that's a different forum
Several times, especially when I ship registered.
I gather they’re skeptical I need registered shipping and/or the amount of insurance I ask for.
BHNC #248 … 140 and counting.
Love it!!!
Just mark stool sample on the outside of the envelope. That should dissuade any potential thieves.
My PO has modern equipment - the payment screen asks the required questions about contents. I tap “no” and sign. Never have they asked about contents regardless of stated value. We have a great PO in my area.
I say “artifacts” and the disinterested look on their face is immediate (often not in their vocabulary).
"She comes out of the sun in a silk dress,
running like a water color in the rain...."
I get asked occasionally. I respond ‘car parts’. I hate lying, but it works well.
Dave
I received a box from Modern Coin Mart (a non-coin purchase, oddly enough) and the sender's name on the return address said "Mold Testing".
That may qualify as "hazardous." 😆
Dead Cat Waltz Exonumia
"Coin collecting for outcasts..."
That wreaks the heavens 🤢
I wasn’t aware that the word “artifacts” wasn’t in the vocabulary of average folks. Great info, thanks.
You should try printing labels at home if you are shipping that often. You save money, time and no questions when you drop off.
No pc, no printer, no typewriter, no copier.
Just my iPhone 8+, padded envelopes, pen & paper. Usually buyers pay $6 for shipping. More for heavier stuff.
I'd tape those to the outside of the box to improve security.
Bricks... I know some guys who collect them and we swap rare bricks. We go out and look for broken down walls in fields and sometimes even just piles of bricks.
Do you know that a single rare brink from a company that was out of business within a year can be worth $5.
Do you know that there once were over 500 brick manufacturers everywhere in the USA? Every brick is marked with the name of the manufacturer and sometimes a slogan. But starting in 1930 with the railroads offering cheap freight rates during the Depression, many of them shut down and people would buy bricks for construction from nearby towns. It might be hard to get enough bricks and you could have bricks from five or even six companies used to build a single house. A skilled master bricklayer would be able to match/merge colors and the slight differences in brick sizes to create a pleasant appearance. A wall built by a journeyman or an apprentice would have visible areas that do not match. This is especially important because an area of bricks that are even 1/16" of an inch smaller will quickly show a poor offset.
Do you know how small 1/16th of an inch is?
Do you want to step outside and see what bricks were used to construct this Post Office?
I also have a catalog that lists all the slogans, do you want me to bring it in next time?
(it's all bs, but I bet you only have to spout it once per clerk, maybe once per Post Office)
ANA 50+ year/Life Member (now "Emeritus")
Author: 3rd Edition of the SampleSlabs book, https://sampleslabs.info/
Technically and legally, it actually is their business. There's a whole bunch of things that legally aren't allowed to go through the post. They want to make sure you're not shipping one of those things. Sure, there's a tick-a-box form to fill in, but simply asking the question can sometimes reveal things the tick-a-box misses. Plus, if you act all suspicious and cagey on being asked, they might well conclude that you're trying to ship contraband and put your package aside for further examination.
I know a guy who always declares his coins to be "stamped metal discs". Has the advantage of actually being true, and matching up with what would appear on x-ray.
Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius, "Meditations"
Apparently I have been awarded the DPOTD twice.
Not true. Only postal inspectors can open a package or piece of mail and they need a search warrant to do so. A rank and file clerk can only open media mail because of the abuse of that form of mail.
Is this news to you
I use Pirate Ship and clerk just scans the package and gives me my receipt.
USN & USAF retired 1971-1993
Successful Transactions with more than 100 Members
Your response makes no sense.
"They", defined as USPS by you, cannot "open anything if they want".
I worked for the USPS for 31 years. I know what I'm talking about. Clerks, NOT carriers, NOT mail handlers, NOT maintenance, NOT ANY other craft, ONLY a clerk can open a piece of MEDIA MAIL to see if it qualifies for that service. They can not open any other service level of mail.
The USPIS, United States Postal Inspection Service, ONLY with a search warrant from a judge, can open ANY level of mail service. Examples, for you, are Express, Priority, First Class, Ground Advantage, Registered, etc.
To answer your other question, First Class and Ground Advantage are not the same.
Edited only to correct a typo.
I was told by my PO Ground Advantage has replaced First Class, months ago??
I believe that Ground Advantage replaced First Class Package Service.
Regular First Class letters and postcards are alive and well.
That is absolutely true, but you still mail letters First Class. Two different services as I was asked. I suspect that he was trying to trip me up.
100% correct.
Nope was trying to understand po lingo.
1. When sending merchandise it goes through “ ground advantage” vs months ago, first class.
2. Sending a letter is 1st class.
End of lesson.
100% correct.> @mikee999 said:
I'm sorry. I didn't mean you were the one trying to trip me up. It was another poster who I believe was trying to trip me up.
Did you mention bricks?
Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value. Zero. Voltaire. Ebay coinbowlllc
I suspect that text is either a high-level summary and/or out of date.
Only media mail is prohibited from containing correspondence, and that seems to be the key limitation in that text.
That text does not mention Priority/Express, etc., for example, but those often contain correspondence.
@BStrauss3 said:
Bricks... I know some guys who collect them and we swap rare bricks. We go out and look for broken down walls in fields and sometimes even just piles of bricks.
Actually there are a number of folks who collect bricks and some of them are quite rare and worth a lot more than $5.00!
K
@jmlanzaf
I'll say this and it will be the end of it for me. You're not worth trying to explain something to you.
Have you read the Fourth Amendment? My guess would be you have not. Read it. No entity, business, branch of government, Postal Inspector, etc. can take away our constitutional rights by writing "policy". It is dangerous to our rights for those of you to think that way just because the gov't "says so".
This flies in my front yard below the US Flag. It's a Gadsden Flag. It says "DONT TREAD ON ME". If you don't understand, or know what that means, look it up.
Living in northern California, I see those all the time. I could tell you exactly what they mean (now) but I would be promptly banned for the political commentary.
chopmarkedtradedollars.com
I usually say “collectibles” it’s not a lie, and it sounds like something cheap.
My YouTube Channel
Bless you and thank you for your service. That’s some tough and stressful work for those that actually do choose to work. I have no doubt you were one of those. 👍🏻🇺🇸📬
Having fun while switching things up and focusing on a next level PCGS slabbed 1950+ type set, while still looking for great examples for the 7070.
Thank you sir. That's very kind.
Wrong. You can yell anything you want in a theater. You just can't yell "fire" in a crowded theater.
Wrong again. Unless you live in a state that has banned them, federal law allows for qualified private citizens to purchase a machine gun.
You certainly have a knack for beating dead horses in order to try to get the last word.
In any case, I'll take the word of a 31 year USPS veteran over someone casually plucking sections from an online FAQ.
Now what the heck was this thread about? 🤔
‘Merchandise’ Is a great answer. It’s really none of their business just as long as they know that it’s nothing like Firearms, Explosives, drugs, flammable material or perishable items, etc.
Sometimes, it’s better to be LUCKY than good. 🍀 🍺👍
My Full Walker Registry Set (1916-1947):
https://www.ngccoin.com/registry/competitive-sets/16292/
In the case of paper currency, stating the contents as 'documents' works for me. It is correct, but vague enough to be boring.