Getting PO'ed

During my lunch hour I walked to the post office to mail a half-dozen pink peanut patties to my sister. There was a line. There always is at that time of day.

I presented my box and was given a Sharpie in order to mark through the amazon.com barcodes that were on my box. Then the clerk began the litany: Anything fragile, hazardous, liquid or perishable? No, no, no, and no.

Please look at the screen while I show you your mailing options. $16.95 for overnight mailing, $4.95 for priority, $4.90 for parcel post. I splurged on the extra nickel.

Do you need delivery confirmation? Insurance? For a $6 package, which I couldn't replace around here anyway? I don't think so.

She didn't ask if I wanted to pay by credit or debit, probably because I already had my money out when I got to the window. She also did not ask if I needed any stamps, which surprised me.

But she did ask: Could I interest you in a post office box?

I could not believe these clerks are required to ask that of customers. The immediate thought that sprang to my mind was: If I knew how much this package weighed, I could have paid for the postage online and skipped all this rigamarole.