aprillikesthings:

Your somewhat-yearly reminder that mail carriers work fucking long ass hours in December, especially entry-level carriers who haven’t made career yet. The USPS can’t hire seasonal carriers for Christmas (clerks and handlers yes, carriers no), so it’s just the same people who deliver your normal mail. The year I was a mail carrier during the holidays I worked over twelve hours on Christmas Eve, and only got one day off between Thanksgiving and Christmas, because I was driving off packages even on Sunday. 

But mail carriers are allowed to receive gifts! They just have to be under $25 in value and not cash (though…..I don’t know of a single carrier that didn’t just quietly accept cash, tbh). Most people give candy or baked goods, but a gift card to a nearby coffee shop is a pretty good idea, too. A lot of the greeting card companies make cards specifically for mail carriers!

If you can’t give your carrier anything, a word of kindness can go a long way. Five years later I still remember the people who took the time to thank me, or told me to go ahead of them in line at the coffee shop on my break. (Just don’t slow them down–yeah, I’d love to come in and have a hot drink, but I literally can’t spare the five minutes, sorry.)

(Also, make sure your house number is visible and lit and your box is easy to find, and if they deliver to your door make sure the path is clear—if one person gets done they’re often given part of another route so they can get everyone back to the station, so the person delivering to your house might be trying desperately to figure out Which House Even Is This in the dark!)