Ask a Mailman (City Letter Carrier) anything

1237 Questions

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

What do the strobe lights on the top of some of the trucks mean

Asked by Fjfjfjjdkd over 5 years ago

I think it’s just a general caution strobe that means this truck may make many starts and stops and it may be slow moving. I think it’s similar to hazard flashers.

248 Votes

So I know this video has been out there for a while but what do you think? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dOCyzG4BktQ

Asked by Ryan over 5 years ago

I have never seen that video before. Not knowing the background of the situation, I can’t make a judgment. I know that there are mentally ill and depraved people who work at USPS and in the public. Either this woman perceives she is being stalked by this letter carrier or she actually was being stalked and he is denying it.

247 Votes

What do you think of mail in votes?

Asked by Mario Kart Wii underated almost 5 years ago

I am copying and pasting my reply to another post of the same subject. Thanks for your inquiry.

I believe there has been a lot of doubt purposely introduced into the voting-by-mail process by President Trump. My opinion is that voting by mail is very safe and reliable. There are a few important points I’d like to make:

If you vote by mail, please follow the instructions given on the absentee/mail-in ballot regarding deadlines and signing your ballot. Also, voter fraud via mail or in person is quite rare. Several states have been doing almost full vote-by-mail for a number of years with minimal issues.

I plan to either vote by mail or vote early this year in NY State. If you are concerned about a mail-in ballot being received by your local election authority, I recommend dropping it off at a ballot collection box. I don’t believe there should be any issue as to how the USPS processes election mail. I think of it as just like having another couple of pieces of mail per address to deliver. We absolutely have the capacity to handle this in my opinion.

My bottom line—have confidence in the USPS in handling election mail for this coming 2020 General Election.

Thanks for your interest. This is a very important issue in the year of COVID-19 where mail voting will be utilized more than ever.

245 Votes

How did you get thousands of questions and other forms got a couple hundred if even that???

Asked by I am almost 6 years ago

I don’t know how I get so many questions. My job isn’t that exciting, but my theory is that some questions have more to do with customer service issues versus my actual performance of the jon. I’m glad to answer many questions but always caution that they are out of my area of expertise and it seems there is so little consistency throughout the USPS. I occupy a miniscule part of the postal world. I also try to respond within a couple of days to each question so maybe that leads to others who have questions that i will give a prompt response. Thanks for what I think was a compliment.

245 Votes

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Have you ever found a suspicious package that you had to turn into the police?

Asked by Jane over 5 years ago

Fortunately, no. The only thing I’ve ever seen in my office was a package that may have smelled like marijuana. I don’t know what ever became of it. We are trained to be on the lookout for suspicious packages.

245 Votes

Should someone have a degree to do this job?

Asked by Bobby over 5 years ago

It is definitely not a requirement whatsoever to have any higher education for this job. No college degree is needed and won’t likely help or hinder your chances of being hired. I have a Bachelors degree (4-year) from s public university in NY. Most of my work colleagues don’t need have college degrees. The job as a letter carrier can be taught in a very short amount of time. You must be in reasonably good physical health and having good organizational skills and being a safe worker are important. I think having a degree helps me understand more about the USPS in general. I am curious by nature so I like to learn more than just how to do the job. Many of my coworkers aren’t that well educated and tend to believe things too easily they may hear through the rumor mill and spread it as fact. I really don’t like misinformation.

242 Votes

StephenHello sir what do you think about mail in voting

Asked by Stephen about 5 years ago

That is a very timely question. I have a lot of faith in the Postal Service able to handle the volume of absentee ballot applications as well as completed ballots. Due to the coronavirus pandemic I believe it is much safer for people who prefer to vote by mail be given an equal opportunity as those who want to physically go to a polling site. In June, 2020, the area where I work had 2 elections. One was a Democratic Party primary. The other was a school budget vote. Both seemed to go smoothly with respect to sending out and retrieving and processing election mail. Several states have been conducting VBM elections for years and I don’t believe there are any major issues that have arisen with respect to voter fraud or ballots being counted.

241 Votes