Reflections of katlupe: May 2024

Tuesday, May 28, 2024

Receiving Deliveries In An Apartment Building

US Postal Service

Living as I do, as a single retired senior citizen without a vehicle, I rely on buying things I need or use online. That means I get many deliveries. Sometime through FedEx or UPS. Most times through the US Postal Service. Sometimes I like one better than the others. Sometimes not so much. It has been only within the last year or so that I started getting deliveries on Sundays. It didn't really matter to me if they came on Sunday or not because I was used to waiting until Monday for the delivery anyway. Those deliveries are usually from Amazon and don't always come through the post office.

Intercom System in Entrance

Where I live we have locked doors to our lobby. Our mailboxes are in there. So whoever delivers our mail or our packages has to come inside the building. You cannot just leave them outside the doors like some have been doing. One Walmart Delivery person left 3 bags of groceries in the entrance of my building! Anyone could pick it up there! There is an intercom system right at the entrance to the lobby. Just push a button to whatever apartment you have a delivery for and that tenant will open the lobby door for you (from their apartment). So easy! Yet these delivery people do not know how to use one!

Last week I placed an order with Amazon for three different sets of gel pens. Three different colors. I believe they were from the same seller's store on Amazon. One set came within a couple days inside my mailbox. The next one came a day later but outside the lobby in the entrance in a chair. It was directly under the intercom (that the delivery person could not figure out how to use). The last set is the blue ones that I have been excitedly waiting for (of course). This set has taken a trip back and forth to Norwich, NY (where I live) from Syracuse. The funny thing is the post office is two blocks from where I live and twice it has been inside their building waiting to be delivered! Instead they sent it back! It took SEVEN days to get from NJ to here! That is, IF they actually deliver it today. My Informed Delivery email today said it would arrive today. I shall see.

I think these delivery services, whether it is packages, groceries or even food from restaurants need to teach a class to these people. One entitled, How to Use Good Sense to Delivery Items So Customers Actually Receive Them. I realize they are in a hurry to make the delivery. But if the customer does not receive it due to where you left it then you did not make the delivery. Ask yourself, "Is this spot safe from someone stealing packages?" Outside a building would be red flag to most people. Why is ringing an intercom so difficult for some? When they ring mine, I go right downstairs to get it. They don't even have to come up to my apartment.

Doors locked!

I am changing a couple of things I do from now on. I chose one certain day of the week for Amazon deliveries. Amazon said sometimes they may not come on that day and of course, that defeats the purpose of it. It is worth a try though. I will not choose a week-end day. Maybe a Tuesday would be a good choice. I will stop ordering groceries on week-ends and choose one certain day of the week for those deliveries. The regular mailman who comes to my building must have a key to the building as he has no problem with deliveries. So sticking to weekdays would be the thing to do.

Stairs to the lobby doors are steep!

Another thing these delivery people do is to leave heavy boxes at the bottom of the stairs in the entrance. The sign on our building clearly states it is senior housing. So they must know we are not capable of carrying heavy boxes up the stairs! I have struggled with getting my pet bunny's box of hay up the stairs more than a few times. Yet a number of times I open my apartment door to find someone delivered the hay right to my apartment door! It is not that difficult for someone to do the job they were hired to do. Just do it the best you can. Don't do it halfway. I am one of those customers who writes reviews or answers the email that the company sends me asking how the delivery went. I tell them the truth. So if you do a good job I will tell them that too.

Thursday, May 09, 2024

Wake Up Every Day With Positive Thoughts

Every morning when I awaken I think of a positive thought for my day. No matter what I am going through at the moment I bring that positive thought to mind. To focus on something other than my troubles. No matter what I do there will always be something that is not good going on. Often I am telling myself not to dwell on it. Things will work out some way or other. Worrying makes it worse.

Just one day at a time is brilliant advice. I have found it more useful though as I got older. If I can make it through today that is all that matters. Thinking too far ahead in the future can be depressing. Since I have no way of knowing what is ahead so why should I worry about it? Think happy thoughts or at least positive ones. It can be as simple as thinking I will have a good cup of coffee this morning. Or I will clean out my storage locker today. Whatever gets you thinking about doing something you can do rather than what you cannot do.

At least for me, I can worry and think constantly about a problem and don't get anywhere with it. As soon as I stop thinking about it and get motivated to do something else that worrisome problem is gone. It worked itself out. At times the problems I am overwhelmed about turn out to be a blessing in disguise. If I hadn't had that problem in the first place I wouldn't have had to change the way I was doing something. The change is usually for the good.

This morning when I woke up I thought about what I was going to make for my meals today. Very positive thinking! That is one reason I make sure to have my kitchen clean every night right after supper. I used to let my dishes sit until after supper. Then a change I made a few months ago is to wash dishes after each meal or when doing food preps. It is easier for me since I cannot stand still for very long without being in pain (from my knees). When I walk into my clean kitchen in the morning to get my coffee I feel good (yes, just like the song says!).

It is those little changes that seem to make a difference for me. If I am sad about something I will watch Seinfeld reruns to cheer me up. If I am worried about my health I will go for a walk or go sit in the park and people watch. Pretty soon I am not worrying anymore. If I can't do something about whatever it is at this moment then I am not going to waste my time on it any longer. Later on whatever it was is gone or just does not seem to be that important any longer. Life is too short to worry it away.

Wednesday, May 08, 2024

Remembering Good Times With My Family

My parents in 1979

My brother and I were quite lucky to have been born to our parents. They were the best parents and we clearly knew we were loved and wanted. It was just the four of us and I feel we were a pretty close family. Our parents spent time with us even though they worked. In our early years we lived in Harpursville, NY. My parents built and ran a gas station that was right across the road from our house. At that time the road was very busy with vehicles and tractor trailers going by almost all day long. Our gas station was the local hangout for teenage boys learning how to work on their cars. My father didn't mind teaching them how to fix and do preventative maintenance. That was why my brother learned at an early age how to drive and fix them.

Dran's Atlantic gas station in Harpursville, NY

Even though our gas station was open seven days a week, my parents managed to put aside some time for our family. We always ate home cooked meals by my mother. Sometimes my father did not eat with us because he was so busy across the street. When that happened my mother would eat with us and then go across the street to mind the station so he could come eat his meal. She could pump gas and check oil and add oil if needed. That was back when gas stations were full service stations. She also did all the book work for the business of running Dran's Atlantic gas station.

My uncle winning a race!

I think it was Friday nights that we went to the stock car races at Five Mile Point in Kirkwood, NY. Mom would bring heavy army blankets for us to sit on. Back then bleachers were basically a slab of wood and not that comfortable. I would end up laying on the blanket covered up. The excitement for me of the races would be overcome by sleep. My brother though, was into it the whole time no matter how late it got. After the race we would walk around the track and he and my father would examine all the places the cars had wrecked during the race. We also went to races in Pennsylvania. I think it was Penn Can. Not sure about the exact name now.

Our family, Grandmother, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins & Me

In those years all my aunts, uncles and cousins lived nearby and we saw them often. Almost every Sunday Mom would take me and sometimes my brother, to visit her brother (my uncle) and his family. It was my favorite place to go! I loved my cousins and would have fun playing with them. Sometimes we would pick up my grandmother and take her with us. If my brother was with us he would hide in the back of the car and tell me to get our cousins to come out and look for him. They would too! He would surprise them by jumping out of the car! I don't think they were really surprised because I had to hint he was out there for them to go look anyway.

Grandma

I spent a lot of time back then with my grandmother. She lived 8 miles from our house. I loved being there with her. Sometimes I would spend two nights or more with her. She would make me a bed on the couch in front of the television. It was so cozy and I felt so happy being with her. She would make us popcorn and hot cocoa. We would watch television with all the lights off. Often she would tell me stories about her growing up on a farm. Her old house was beautiful to me. I loved it even though her children (my aunts and uncles) wanted her to get rid of it. It was full of treasures!

Grandma in front of her barn

She had almost 100 acres of land. There was a big barn right across the road. It was a sad day when they took it down. I remember that day clearly, even though I was really young. I found a baby bird that must have fallen out of a nest. When I brought it inside my grandmother (who thought birds were nasty and full of diseases) had me put it in a box and set it out in the yard for the mother bird to get it back. Later I checked on it and it was gone. At the time I thought the mother bird did come back for it. Now all these years later, I wonder if my grandmother removed it from the box and put it somewhere that I would not see it.

Grandma's home on Snow Road, Harpursville, NY

Now all these years later my memories give me comfort. I like to remember those times with my family. Memories are even more important than pictures as you age. I can picture every room of my grandmother's house in detail. Actually all the houses we lived in too. I don't need pictures to remember them. You may not remember things as they actually were or happened. It doesn't matter though. Your memories are your memories. Treasure them!

Pages