Going Postal

I have never been an advocate for what us cyber folk lovingly call "snail mail" I remember back in elementary school when there was still the Pen Pal craze...I would write one letter than never even come close to completing a reply. I hated the time it took to write, stamp, address, mail...then wait and wait for it to GET there...then wait even LONGER for the return response. Yes, I am impatient. Surprise Surprise. My brothers both served two year missions for our church. I think I wrote them each...one letter. And oh boy! When EMAIL was invented..I was alllll over that one! Instant send, instant response HURRAY!

In all actuality though, snail mail is a great thing. It shows more care. More attention. Just the fact that someone went though ALL that "trouble" to send you a simple letter. As much as I might hate it, I never lack in pure happiness when I see a letter in the mail for me that doesn't contain "junk mail" or, more often, bills. The US Postal Service was founded by good old Benjamin Franklin back in 1775. Dont bother doing the math...I already have. That means that for 234 years, letters have been traveling all over this country, waiting to be torn open and read over and over.

Back in 1885 it cost about 2 cents to send a one ounce letter. And it took NINETY YEARS to go up to 10 cents in 1975. That's some time! Now get this. Just for us younguns, in our parent's lives (since most were born at or near '75 if not before...) the cost of one stamp has risen 34 cents! It took ninety years to rise 8 cents. And only 34 to rise...what do you know! 34 cents! That is one cent a year.

Now now, I understand the "need" for price changes. They say it costs more to print the same designs on the same pieces of paper they have always used. But really. We are paying SO much in taxes, in gas, soon no doubt will have to pay for the very air we breath. And 44 cents seems like such a trivial thing to complain about. But here I am, ranting. Not so much about the fact that we are closer and closer to paying 50 cents...then a dollar...to send a one ounce letter. Its just the fact that you would think at least ONE thing could stay at least somewhat...reliable? Dependable? Cheap? I am sending about one letter a week to a friend now. And today I sit down to stamp the envelope and see I only have one forty-ONE cent stamp left. Goodness. So now I cant even mail it off until I can find time to drive over to the post office, hope they are open, buy MORE stamps... And the sucky thing is stocking up on stamps seems almost pointless, since next year they will go up in price again.

You would think the greed could stop somewhere. "Dear Pony Express, Im sorry we failed. I would send you this letter, but I dont have a stamp. Sincerely, Me." They care more about getting those few extra cents out of every letter-sender than they do... oh say...in keeping people in touch with those we love. You shake your head and go "Well jeez! Why is she complaining! Email is free!" For now... Just you wait. I will not be surprised by anything now. We are over $2 trillion dollars in debt. America is bankrupt. Im waiting to hear the next "charges" we will all "owe" in order to "save" the economy.

So for now, I am sitting here, looking at the stupid 41 cent stamp in front of me and muttering my apologizes to Ben Franklin. Things never stay the same. Cant even depend on a dang sticky stamp anymore.

Can you tell I am going postal today? Rant...over.