Canada Post

There are time when the lives we lead, or at least the absurdity of the political, social and economic morasses we are forced to survive in are so kafkaesque that we have no choice but to cry or at the very least, scream in despair. But then there are other times when those exact same circumstances cause us to smile and rejoice in the absolute joy of meeting people who in spite of the ludicrousness of their bureaucratic life, find a way to make it all work.

It is my habit when traveling to and from the west coast to send by mail some of my possessions. When I am hitchhiking this means that my pack is about 15 pounds lighter than it would have been if I didn't mail my stuff out. It also means that my pack looks smaller and I think that means that I get more rides. My most recent trip west by train required me to have a sleeping bag, boots and other cold weather gear that I normally would not need out west.  I was concerned that trying to get it all on the airplane for my flight east would require it to be checked. I didn't want the hassle, so I decided to mail back some of my stuff and just walk on with a small knapsack.

I had assumed that getting an empty box from one of the myriad of liquor stores in the area would not be a problem. I was wrong, it turns out that people drink a lot less than I thought in Duncan or at least they don't drink anything that comes in boxes. The best that I could find was a rather beaten up box that had once contained vodka. I took it home, stuffed it with all the bits and pieces of stuff that I didn't need for my trip home, sealed it with miles of packing tape and attached a large piece of paper with my address on it. The box was well addressed and well sealed. I anticipated no problem mailing it. It looked, I thought, like all of the other boxes I had mailed.

When I got to the postal outlet (London Drugs) I was informed that the package could not be accepted as it was in a box that was clearly labelled on the sides as containing liquor. Apparently Canada Post was concerned that as the old box had once contained alcohol, it automatically meant that that I would be shipping alcohol in the box. Perhaps not surprisingly it is against the law to ship alcohol using the postal system although I am not too sure if they (the postal authorities) are more concerned about the smell from all of the breakage or if they are protecting the health of the recipients. I mentioned to the kind lady that it was somewhat absurd to assume that just because the box had once contained booze that it still did and that further more no one in their right mind would consider shipping a bottle from BC to Ontario by mail. 

I was frustrated. It is hard to find strong boxes of the right size and I had done a good job in terms of sealing it and addressing it. The postal worker was pleasant and she agreed with me but said that she could not accept the box as it was. I could feel my blood pressure rising as I thought about having to go to have to go to the dollar store, buy brown paper, re-wrap the box and then get it all weight again etc. What a silly rule! The only strong boxes (for free) are liquor boxes, but you can't use them without wasting more paper. If I had had the time I would have staged a protest.

But then this kind lady said that she had some extra brown paper that someone had left behind at the back of the office. So after paying her, she got the brown paper and tape out and proceeded to wrap the sides to hide the labels. She didn't even want me to hang around while she did the work. What a delight!! She was forced to follow the bureaucratic, silly rules but she also had a solution. I was charmed.

When I paid for the box on the 14th of January, I was told that it would take eight to ten business days. It was delivered to my house yesterday, January 19th. That is six days including the weekend and the day I dropped it off and the day it was delivered. That is great service.

In these days of reduced government service and the sometimes almost overwhelming urge to complain, it is always worthwhile to celebrate the small victories that individuals have over the silly, intrusive and absurd rules that are imposed upon us.

Well done Canada Post!!