Life in Raleigh

(Not like Oregon…. But never dull)

 

 

Background:  I moved to Raleigh NC, due to a transfer in position with the master of “I’ve been moved”, namely IBM approximately 5 years ago.  And I’ve traveled throughout the US on business and pleasure, and never found anything with quite the contrast in climate, most suitable to a full time vacation, than in Oregon.  However, life in Raleigh is not dull….

 

Living some 10 miles outside of the city of Raleigh, on a horseshoe shaped ½ mile street with only a few neighbors, life has been quiet until recently.  Whereas one of the few pleasurable references to living here has been that I could quickly get through the back-roads, now every morning, I cannot get out of my street… except by carefully wading across some two blocks of traffic… poking my head out so some car in the opposing lane does not hit me as I cross thru the blocked traffic heading right, to turn left to my daughter’s school.

 

And my mail service is just downright horrible.  As I’m sure you are all aware, the “U.S.” Postal service is now not a true government institution (i.e. government workers), but rather a private but big company…. Although as I understand things, the seal of a “U.S” Postal service facility on an un-tampered sealed letter is still grounds for legal action, such as common law copyright.

 

Nevertheless, the mail service just “*!!**” Period.  I only receive about 2/3’s of my magazines, with others showing up late, half tattered and torn.  A clear documented example is an audit of my corporate account which took 10 days from when they sent it out to when it arrived.   Many packages do not arrive, although the bill for them seems to squeak through – what fun.  And the postal service delivery guy or gal, seems to change frequently…. Not everyday mind you… but with sufficient regularity as to make one wonder…?

 

Here are some fun examples:

 

  1. In most towns where I have lived, mail is a big thing.  It is easy to send a letter…. With some form of postal box at:
    1. Outside most banks (at least the major ones),
    2. Along side of supermarkets, or often late night convenience stores
    3. On major street corners (or dugouts to help the traffic)

In Raleigh looking for a drop box for mail (not FedEx or other private carriers) is like looking for the hidden egg on an Easter egg hunt… Where do you think it was?…. on the outside corner of the shopping center, beside a roll of small boxes for the local businesses…. How absurd,,, and to think they make each merchant (including major supermarkets) walk thru the rain to get their mail… no wonder things get lost!

 

  1. Stopping in the local post office the other night to drop a letter off... too late obviously for any postal workers, and only three slots under which you can drop your mail... Guess what they read?…. the first says “Metered” – OK, I know what that means – like a postal stamp from a machine……. The second slot reads “Stamped” – just like my letter - so I drop it in……. The third box says Misdirected Mail (and Box Rents).  I just couldn’t help thinking….
    1. Does that mean things are so bad that every third letter was misdirected?
    2. Does that mean if you want to misdirect a letter – put it in that slot?
    3. Or what…. Scary thoughts

 

  1. Speaking of rain… how many people know that next to the Northwest states, that North Carolina has the second highest rain count in the US?

 

  1. Southern courtesy and hospitality is one thing… but it can easily go too far.  Traveling down a reasonable busy main street, local drivers often stop traffic to let those on intersecting streets with stop signs - enter the main street you are on…. Letting these other folks out, even amidst the honking of horns behind them… are they crazy?… does right of way mean anything, or is there some “hidden” stop sign we don’t see?…. sorry – I just don’t get it.

 

  1. In the local corner gas station the other night I overheard a woman (with a debit card in hand) attempting to get the local station owner to allow her to pay with the savings account related to her bank account (hopefully you all realize that a debit or bank card can only access, for debit purposes, the checking account part of your accounts…. Of course you can transfer at a bank some savings to your checking account… but not thru the debit process and surely not at a gas station)… thinking – this person must be from out of town….

 

  1. By the way, not to speak this time of Raleigh, but does everyone know that the date you place on a check does not mean anything anymore????… Can they cash it before the date?… Unfortunately the answer is “Yes”.  The counter position to this is that if the check if attempted to be processed at a local teller window, it may be rejected if the date is prior, however, for all those checks you mail out, this is not the case… Don’t believe me? – check it out for yourself… if not I’ll refer you to several sources who will verify this…. Incidentally, twenty (20) years ago this was not the case.

 

  1. More to come….