Edmunds Members - Cars and Conversations

graphicguy · May 2021

@snakeweasel …I owed. That’s why I waited to the last day to mail them. I know the IRS is…well…the IRS. But, if my returns are considered late, even though I sent them on time. And, I have to pay a fine, my guess is I’m not the only one affected. Just fired off a letter to both my Senator and Congressman to let them know what is going on. Not sure they know, or if they even care!

imidazol97 · May 2021

henryn said:
Complaints do no good whatsoever. It's amazing that FedEx and UPS never have this problem, just USPS.

I never in my life had these kinds of problems with the USPS until I moved here in 2011. And the neighborhood is gentrifying, going upscale, but the postal service steadily declines, so it's probably not just this neighborhood.

FED Ex and UPS also have delivery problems. UPS delivered a hard drive to my next door neighbor's home a few years back. FED X regularly leaves my packages at 107027 instead of 107072 Imid Drive. I have gotten the packages for those at the reversed address as well.

As for the USPS, the old time workers who, for the most part, cared, have rapidly retired. The replacements are the youngsters with little sense of duty. I have returned 3 items in the last 8 weeks that were in my mailbox #0069. All were addressed to different PO Boxes (at least they were in the same post office building, LOL). Two years ago my replacement Shell credit cards didn't show up. Weeks later, they were in my PO Box. I asked the guy (now retired) who cared. He said some groups have boxes that they check only once a month, clubs, etc.. So they just found my cards that had been sitting in their box in error.

The USPS has been trying to cut costs within the bounds the Govt will let them. Stuff started working toward efficiency in an earlier admin are blamed on the current admin, e.g.. We went through a reduction of sorting and all our mail goes to Columbus for sorting and then comes back to the Dayton star series of post offices. It used to be sorted in Dayton until 10 years ago or so.

imidazol97 · May 2021

Tax envelopes? I always leave off the postage and have the clerk weigh them to be sure they're under weight and in proper size envelopes since there's an extra charge for some over size envelopes. The clerk weighs, stamps, and post marks with a hand stamp. Done. Plus I get a dated receipt.

stickguy · May 2021

I do that too Imid.

And congress knows. They are a big root cause of the problem. Even before last years intentional destruction.

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

stickguy said:
If they will up the rate to $25/hour I might consider it as a semi-retirement gig.

Sorry, they’ll only pay you what some other old coot standing in line behind you will work for. I hear they will pay $25/hr. on Fantasy Island though.

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

graphicguy said:

jmonroe1 said:

tjc78 said:

Hmm.. wonder if this is true.

I seriously doubt that those batteries are “draining toxins” into the ground. But, if I was an oil company or a gas station owner, I’d say the same thing.

jmonroe
Astute observation. I agree. That said, there are companies growing by leaps and bounds who are recycling car batteries. They’ve always been around as ALL cars have batteries in one form or another. Their business is exploding, now.

Can’t attest to France’s recycling efforts, or even if this story is true. What is true is they’re recyclable….from the metal to the batteries. Based on the condition of those cars in the pic, it’s no wonder they’re worth less than the cost to repair. They look pretty used up. No mention of their actual value as scrap, though.

And, as we all know, there comes a point when any car has no useful life left; where it costs more to repair the car than the car is worth. Sounds like these cars in Paris have found that point.

I doubt anyone here has anything in their fleet that has reached that point, though.

Speak for yourself.

qbrozen · May 2021

oldfarmer50 said:

stickguy said:
If they will up the rate to $25/hour I might consider it as a semi-retirement gig.
Sorry, they’ll only pay you what some other old coot standing in line behind you will work for. I hear they will pay $25/hr. On Fantasy Island though.

Sure enough. I mean, even $15/hr is a helluva lot of penny whistles and moonpies, ya know?

explorerx4 · May 2021

Put up the last pair of shutter. Installing the outside top screws was scary.
I guess attaching images isn't working so well.

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

henryn said:

graphicguy said:
RANT du ‘jour…..the guy running the Post Office has been the target of the troubles we’ve seen over the last year or so as to its disfunction. As an aside, I went to the post office to get my picture taken for my Passport Renewal. I had noted longer lines over the past 12-18 months, and I’ve also noticed a lot of turnover at my local post office. Where there used to be people I knew by name working there, it’s been a carousel of unfamiliar faces the last year and a half.

Anyway, was talking to the postal agent who was taking my picture to send to the State Dept with my application for my Passport renewal. Making small talk, I mentioned that the crowd must be for tax day, and that I was glad I had put mine in my mailbox so the local postal worker would have it to be postmarked on MAy 17th. She said not to be surprised if I get a letter from the IRS asking for penalties because my Tax forms weren’t postmarked on May 17th.

I went into a mini neurotic fit. I asked how that could be? She said they had shifted away automated sorting, and timely postal processing and delivery so they could do hand processing. What?

The result of this idiocy, if you even take a letter to the post office in the a.m., on any given day, it may or may not be postmarked as mailed THAT DAY!

The Postmaster General can’t be fired, relieved of his duties, kicked to the curb, whatever they can do to him, fast enough.
I don't know whether the post office has fallen apart, or it's just the neighborhood that I live in. But around here, the USPS sucks, big time. Half of the normal mail (envelopes) should have went to my neighbors on the same block. Half of the packages should have gone to the same street number one block over. Complaints do no good whatsoever. It's amazing that FedEx and UPS never have this problem, just USPS.

I never in my life had these kinds of problems with the USPS until I moved here in 2011. And the neighborhood is gentrifying, going upscale, but the postal service steadily declines, so it's probably not just this neighborhood.

Mail service is fine around here but a recent dividend check did go missing. The replacement was ok though.

fintail · May 2021

Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.

graphicguy said:
RANT du ‘jour…..the guy running the Post Office has been the target of the troubles we’ve seen over the last year or so as to its disfunction. As an aside, I went to the post office to get my picture taken for my Passport Renewal. I had noted longer lines over the past 12-18 months, and I’ve also noticed a lot of turnover at my local post office. Where there used to be people I knew by name working there, it’s been a carousel of unfamiliar faces the last year and a half.

Anyway, was talking to the postal agent who was taking my picture to send to the State Dept with my application for my Passport renewal. Making small talk, I mentioned that the crowd must be for tax day, and that I was glad I had put mine in my mailbox so the local postal worker would have it to be postmarked on MAy 17th. She said not to be surprised if I get a letter from the IRS asking for penalties because my Tax forms weren’t postmarked on May 17th.

I went into a mini neurotic fit. I asked how that could be? She said they had shifted away automated sorting, and timely postal processing and delivery so they could do hand processing. What?

The result of this idiocy, if you even take a letter to the post office in the a.m., on any given day, it may or may not be postmarked as mailed THAT DAY!

The Postmaster General can’t be fired, relieved of his duties, kicked to the curb, whatever they can do to him, fast enough.

henryn · May 2021

explorerx4 said:
Put up the last pair of shutter. Installing the outside top screws was scary.
I guess attaching images isn't working so well.

Let's see if it will work for me ...

graphicguy · May 2021

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

jmonroe1 said:

tjc78 said:

Hmm.. wonder if this is true.

I seriously doubt that those batteries are “draining toxins” into the ground. But, if I was an oil company or a gas station owner, I’d say the same thing.

jmonroe
Astute observation. I agree. That said, there are companies growing by leaps and bounds who are recycling car batteries. They’ve always been around as ALL cars have batteries in one form or another. Their business is exploding, now.

Can’t attest to France’s recycling efforts, or even if this story is true. What is true is they’re recyclable….from the metal to the batteries. Based on the condition of those cars in the pic, it’s no wonder they’re worth less than the cost to repair. They look pretty used up. No mention of their actual value as scrap, though.

And, as we all know, there comes a point when any car has no useful life left; where it costs more to repair the car than the car is worth. Sounds like these cars in Paris have found that point.

I doubt anyone here has anything in their fleet that has reached that point, though.
Speak for yourself.

@oldfarmer50....I thought of you. But, you're a welcomed fixture here, so did not want to belittle your fleet that is more.....ummmmm.....vintage and well worn!

graphicguy · May 2021

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.

graphicguy said:
RANT du ‘jour…..the guy running the Post Office has been the target of the troubles we’ve seen over the last year or so as to its disfunction. As an aside, I went to the post office to get my picture taken for my Passport Renewal. I had noted longer lines over the past 12-18 months, and I’ve also noticed a lot of turnover at my local post office. Where there used to be people I knew by name working there, it’s been a carousel of unfamiliar faces the last year and a half.

Anyway, was talking to the postal agent who was taking my picture to send to the State Dept with my application for my Passport renewal. Making small talk, I mentioned that the crowd must be for tax day, and that I was glad I had put mine in my mailbox so the local postal worker would have it to be postmarked on MAy 17th. She said not to be surprised if I get a letter from the IRS asking for penalties because my Tax forms weren’t postmarked on May 17th.

I went into a mini neurotic fit. I asked how that could be? She said they had shifted away automated sorting, and timely postal processing and delivery so they could do hand processing. What?

The result of this idiocy, if you even take a letter to the post office in the a.m., on any given day, it may or may not be postmarked as mailed THAT DAY!

The Postmaster General can’t be fired, relieved of his duties, kicked to the curb, whatever they can do to him, fast enough.

Not sure what "renew through the mail" is. But, I am unaware of that option through the IRS (or the State for that matter).

And, I agree about DeJoy. What a corrupt and worthless public servant. Whatever we're paying him, we should demand that money be returned, with interest.

venture · May 2021

It's not difficult to fix the Post Office. Deliver mail 3 days a week. That way you only need a little more than half as many people. Even better, deliver mail on Wednesdays and get rid of the local Postmaster. They don't do anything anyway.

snakeweasel · May 2021

graphicguy said:

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.

graphicguy said:
RANT du ‘jour…..the guy running the Post Office has been the target of the troubles we’ve seen over the last year or so as to its disfunction. As an aside, I went to the post office to get my picture taken for my Passport Renewal. I had noted longer lines over the past 12-18 months, and I’ve also noticed a lot of turnover at my local post office. Where there used to be people I knew by name working there, it’s been a carousel of unfamiliar faces the last year and a half.

Anyway, was talking to the postal agent who was taking my picture to send to the State Dept with my application for my Passport renewal. Making small talk, I mentioned that the crowd must be for tax day, and that I was glad I had put mine in my mailbox so the local postal worker would have it to be postmarked on MAy 17th. She said not to be surprised if I get a letter from the IRS asking for penalties because my Tax forms weren’t postmarked on May 17th.

I went into a mini neurotic fit. I asked how that could be? She said they had shifted away automated sorting, and timely postal processing and delivery so they could do hand processing. What?

The result of this idiocy, if you even take a letter to the post office in the a.m., on any given day, it may or may not be postmarked as mailed THAT DAY!

The Postmaster General can’t be fired, relieved of his duties, kicked to the curb, whatever they can do to him, fast enough.

Not sure what "renew through the mail" is. But, I am unaware of that option through the IRS (or the State for that matter).

And, I agree about DeJoy. What a corrupt and worthless public servant. Whatever we're paying him, we should demand that money be returned, with interest.

In most cases if you are renewing you only have to send in the application with your new passport photo, old passport and the fee. That's what I did this spring to get mine renewed.

snakeweasel · May 2021

venture said:
It's not difficult to fix the Post Office. Deliver mail 3 days a week. That way you only need a little more than half as many people. Even better, deliver mail on Wednesdays and get rid of the local Postmaster. They don't do anything anyway.

One word "e-mail"

jmonroe1 · May 2021

stickguy said:
I do my own but have just normal stuff. If I had complicated investments, rental property, or an LLC I would hire a pro.

I'm a professional cheat.

jmonroe

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

graphicguy said:

oldfarmer50 said:

graphicguy said:

jmonroe1 said:

tjc78 said:

Hmm.. wonder if this is true.

I seriously doubt that those batteries are “draining toxins” into the ground. But, if I was an oil company or a gas station owner, I’d say the same thing.

jmonroe
Astute observation. I agree. That said, there are companies growing by leaps and bounds who are recycling car batteries. They’ve always been around as ALL cars have batteries in one form or another. Their business is exploding, now.

Can’t attest to France’s recycling efforts, or even if this story is true. What is true is they’re recyclable….from the metal to the batteries. Based on the condition of those cars in the pic, it’s no wonder they’re worth less than the cost to repair. They look pretty used up. No mention of their actual value as scrap, though.

And, as we all know, there comes a point when any car has no useful life left; where it costs more to repair the car than the car is worth. Sounds like these cars in Paris have found that point.

I doubt anyone here has anything in their fleet that has reached that point, though.
Speak for yourself.
@oldfarmer50....I thought of you. But, you're a welcomed fixture here, so did not want to belittle your fleet that is more.....ummmmm.....vintage and well worn!

Feel free to belittle, I do all the time.

fintail · May 2021

Maybe I misunderstood. Passport renewal. I got a pic at Costco or a local photo shop (I forget) and just mailed it all in, a few weeks later, had my new passport, but this was in 2017, I think.

Check out DeJoy's history, par for the course in the relatively recent timeline.

graphicguy said:

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.

graphicguy said:
RANT du ‘jour…..the guy running the Post Office has been the target of the troubles we’ve seen over the last year or so as to its disfunction. As an aside, I went to the post office to get my picture taken for my Passport Renewal. I had noted longer lines over the past 12-18 months, and I’ve also noticed a lot of turnover at my local post office. Where there used to be people I knew by name working there, it’s been a carousel of unfamiliar faces the last year and a half.

Anyway, was talking to the postal agent who was taking my picture to send to the State Dept with my application for my Passport renewal. Making small talk, I mentioned that the crowd must be for tax day, and that I was glad I had put mine in my mailbox so the local postal worker would have it to be postmarked on MAy 17th. She said not to be surprised if I get a letter from the IRS asking for penalties because my Tax forms weren’t postmarked on May 17th.

I went into a mini neurotic fit. I asked how that could be? She said they had shifted away automated sorting, and timely postal processing and delivery so they could do hand processing. What?

The result of this idiocy, if you even take a letter to the post office in the a.m., on any given day, it may or may not be postmarked as mailed THAT DAY!

The Postmaster General can’t be fired, relieved of his duties, kicked to the curb, whatever they can do to him, fast enough.

Not sure what "renew through the mail" is. But, I am unaware of that option through the IRS (or the State for that matter).

And, I agree about DeJoy. What a corrupt and worthless public servant. Whatever we're paying him, we should demand that money be returned, with interest.

Sandman6472 · May 2021

Laurasdad, worked for the post office in Boca Raton for 31 years and lived there by the university from 1977 to 1981. Did some graduate work at FAU and our two girls went to college there, living on campus. Have lived just one town south of Boca since 1987 and am in Boca for work on most work days. Like two times today. Nice place to visit...and live.

imidazol97 · May 2021

Post Office delivers a lot of mail for a small cost compared to UPS and FedEx. They should skip Saturday delivery (and Sunday). Last I recall when that was brought up, it was congress (who cares which one) that quashed the idea. I just read that liquor delivery is being proposed.

Amazon used USPS for delivery for a while, and that included Sunday delivery, at a loss to USPS. Now AMZ has its own delivery fleet specialized toward their style of delivery.

Despite having misdirected deliveries that I listed earlier, the USPS still goes to every home and business, almost, every day. I'm watching a package that shipped Monday on Rockauto for an order placed Monday morning. It started in Winston-Salem NC and is already in Cincinnati's package distribution center. It is scheduled for Thursday delivery here in a suburban Dayton Post Office, but I suspect it may get to Dayton overnight tonight, Tuesday, and be delivered Wednesday. All for $6.99.

I believe we have a couple of retirees from the USPS in the group.

Sandman6472 · May 2021

Been gone for a few days so missed al the goings on in here about what was probably the Covid and all that goes along with it. We've had both vaccines but I still wear a mask in public, maybe not necessary but I feel better.
I for one, am glad we're where we're at and hoping that life gets back to a new normal going forward.
My biggest concern now is this chip shortage as it's effecting our work schedule. New vehicles are coming in very slowly, and some days are busy while others are pretty slow which means quitting earlier with a smaller check.I prefer longer hours once I'm out of the house.
Got the news today that I start my other gig at the Toyota store Saturday at 11. My hours will be Saturday & Monday from 12:30 to 6 which works out well. Am usually home these days/hours doing basically nothing so might as well earn a few more bucks. Have always wanted to be a shuttle driver but my cane has prevented me from this up to now. The two guys who interviewed me didn't seem to care about it but they were kind of blind sighted by it as I didn't mention it in my Indeed.com resume as I feel it's not important enough to mention it. Same situation at Enterprise as they didn't seem to care and it's proved to not be an issue yet. They wanted me all day Sunday also but said working 6 days wasn't going to happen, let me do the two or I can't take the job. they took me anyways but this morning, asked again if I could do some more hours. Said let's start with the 11.5 and see how that goes. If things work out, I could see me going up to 15 or 16 hours/week which should be acceptable. But, keeping that under my hat for now because I want to see if it's really something I like or has the dream of doing it been more fun than the reality. We shall find out this coming Saturday at 11 am!

cdnpinhead · May 2021

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.

You seem to achieved a "flag" on this post, much as I did when I commented on the efficiency of the government in general.

Welcome aboard.

sda · May 2021

I feel for our postal carriers. They are driving 30 year old vehicles and have to cover larger areas. Our area is experiencing tremendous growth and I doubt the carriers are getting additional support. It is not unusual that we get mail after 7pm.

Sandman6472 · May 2021

The postal service has declined since I worked there, it's much worse now. but I get a decent pension for my 31 years of service, and when I pass, the wife will get half. But if she goes first, I still get the same. Got out at the right time, 11 years ago, though it wasn't my choice. Our class action lawsuit is still winding it's way through the courts, and there's an excellent chance that we're going to win. And we should, by the way!
As for tax prep, I sleep next to my preparer so I know I'm getting very good service. She also works for TurboTax during the season plus is required to take classes during the year. And she's completely honest, a real black & white individual. I let folks know that upfront, just so they understand. I myself, are a gray area person on certain things, but believe if I'm making money, I should pay the appropriate taxes on that gain. Always better to make something and pay the taxes than not make it at all I'd wager.

Sandman6472 · May 2021

When I got my postal job back in 1980, my folks were super upset that their son was going to be a blue collar worker. My in-laws were thrilled because like me, they got it that on retirement, I'd be getting a federal pension, a pension with a COLA attached to it. And that if I passed first, my spouse would get half. But, I was thrilled to finally stop taking money from my folks to continue on in an education I didn't really want. G-d dropped the post office job at my feet and I was super glad. Never took a dime from the folks again, though they were more generous with my siblings then myself because of what I did. What can I say, dysfunction and a lot of $ can only turn out badly for some. But I never looked back, never asked for another dime, which seemed to annoy them even more I suspect!

sda · May 2021

Oh the joys of home ownership. The ac for our upstairs bonus room where I now work from home is not working. It gets warm up there. I had the seasonal ac system check up already scheduled for today so I asked them to fix it. Turns out it is an electrical issue, a simple receptacle switch, essentially a toggle switch that needs to be replaced and they can’t do it. Luckily I was able to schedule an electrician for tomorrow.

Sandman6472 · May 2021

Funny how the a/c always seems to go out in the summer time. A few years back, we started having issues the end of June and it totally died the end of July. South Florida in July is a very hot place to be and the house only got down to 80 at night which was rough. Within a day and a half, had a new unit installed with a high SEER rating for that time. It's been very trouble free, a York system, and we're very pleased with it. My wife thinks it's too cold actually at 78, so we keep it at 79 most days/nights. When we first got it installed, she asked the installer if he could make it blow a little warmer...he gave me a look that could kill! But he explained it to her very gently that that isn't something doable, it's supposed to blow cold air so it can moderate the inside temperature. But I knew exactly what he was thinking as she really had no idea how a closed a/c system really works.
We've been in this house now almost 34 years, moved in July 2nd of 1987, and this is our 3rd a/c system, installed in 2019. Our first unit was a Carrier, excellent unit, and the second, a Rheem system, not as good. Wanted a Trane unit this time but they said the York and Goodman units were just as good but had larger rebates, so they let me decide as my wife fled to our daughters place to get out of the heat. I had to miss work and take care of it all, as usual!

roadburner · May 2021

cdnpinhead said:

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.
You seem to achieved a "flag" on this post, much as I did when I commented on the efficiency of the government in general.

Welcome aboard.

I earned one for criticizing Louisville's Mayor McBikelane and our equally feckless Governor...

andres3 · May 2021

snakeweasel said:

imidazol97 said:

roadburner said:

We had our first jury orientation since February 2020. It was on Zoom, and it was a fiasco. The KY SC ordered judges to excuse anyone in high risk groups as well as anyone financially impacted by the pandemic. Needless to say, those two excuse were used as "Get out of jury duty free!' cards; 900 jurors were called in and 800 were excused.
My concern is being able to have a "jury of my peers." When broad bands of the population are excused from service on IMHO flimsy excuses of being scared by the media hype, I wouldn't be getting a jury of my peers.

OTOH, I recall when I got my last jury notice. I got them about every 9 months it seemed. I decided I couldn't effectively serve if selected because I make frequent restroom visits. I have trouble hearing softer than average talk when there's background noise (yes, I've looked into hearing assists--still looking). I also have trouble with dumb people. My doctor, who knows me very well, made clear she thought I was the type of person with STEM and logic background who should be on a jury. I thought she wasn't going to sign, but She finally signed the excuse paper.

Many of the jury notices came but I never had to show up for a cattle call--the cases must have been settled before a trial. But The one jury call where I had to show up, I was 2 away from being seated in the jury box. I wanted to avoid being selected. The defendant in late 20s was guilty and a career criminal, in my judgement from his body language and his behavior during the jury questioning. I could have voted without holding the trial.

I was able to glance at his notepad lying on the defenant's table while leaving for a break during jury candidate questioning. I forget what I saw but that confirmed my earlier body language impression of the guy. I was able to get excused because lawyers saw I really didn't want to be on and I had a connection with a policeman as a friend through my son's science olympiad activities.

I'm permanently excused due to age, physical factors.
If you are judging him based on his body language and behavior you shouldn't be on a jury, you should listen to the facts presented and make an objective decision based on facts.

When I was learning about personality types, there are just some that rely more upon the way people look and react than on what they actually say. Sometimes employers even give these kinds of tests when you pass the first or 2nd round of filtering for interviews and applications. I remember the test consisted of faces and recordings and/or faces and you read a statement supposedly made by the person depicted graphically.
You had to select what you thought was the "best" answer and sometimes the emotions shown IMO didn't match the words stated. So you had to decide which you felt was "stronger" evidence.

andres3 · May 2021

Every time I get a jury summons I remember one particular female judge in El Cajon who was the absolute worst I've run into in Traffic Circles, and I've run into some real doozies!
Her image and words come back to me, the mistreatment and disrespect shown to my "case" and I have to put in "AX TO GRIND" as an excuse to be removed from Jury trials. It's me being honest.
If it wasn't for this one particular judge I'd probably have never used that excuse. The other bad Traffic Court judges fall in line with my already "LOW" expectations, so no surprises there.

andres3 · May 2021

snakeweasel said:

andres3 said:
I joined this forum on Edmunds just a couple of months before purchasing my '06 Audi A3 in Ocean Blue Pearl w/ Sport Package w/ DSG.
It's been a good ride with Audi; 15 years of excellence.
New Topic: Insurance still sucks.
Now it's Health Insurance.
Admittedly.... I don't have a lot of experience really NEEDING TO USE my health insurance, but I've probably been with Kaiser for 95% of my life. That's a lot of blue moons on the calendar. The first time I need to get a surgery, it seems it's taking 1/2 year to get it. I got bumped since my procedure apparently isn't important enough. Does anyone find it odd that they can blame COVID for not offering better service and appointment time frames, yet don't return any premiums? They can't really blame Covid since March of this year though. How many months of additional premiums must you submit before you can actually collect an "insurance" benefit in health. SHEESHH. Do you know how much my employer and I contribute over the course of 6 months. Based on that huge dollar amount, I'd say it's unreasonable for Kaiser to have kept me waiting this long. After all, isn't "waiting forever" supposed to the the "CON" of single payer healthcare? Let me chalk up health insurance to just another insurance I'm sorely disappointed in for value.
Supposedly the CDC put forth a directive that hospitals put off any unnecessary or elective surgery until after the pandemic so that hospitals don't get overwhelmed by the expected number of Covid cases (which never was near the amount they expected). Look at it this way, if you cannot use it now then you're not that bad off health wise. That being said I have had no issue using my health insurance for routine stuff with my doctor.

I guess for balance I should have mentioned that for normal routine stuff Kaiser's been very good. They were particularly great with my wife and even more so my daughter when she was born. That's the reason I seek out and select Kaiser over other Health Insurances. They had some amazing nurses.

It just sucks being bumped because everyone and everything was scheduled, from family help visiting to my employment schedule. I'm told I should take the week after off. It seems like such a routine thing to have less than urgent surgeries "bumped" that someone actually forewarned me it might happen before it did happen.

tjc78 · May 2021

@snakeweasel said:
In most cases if you are renewing you only have to send in the application with your new passport photo, old passport and the fee. That's what I did this spring to get mine renewed.

Exactly what we did. I even followed the instructions and took the pics at home. For the kids we had the pictures taken at the post office.

Strange processing times. The kids we sent out a month before ours. My son’s came back first then mine, my wife’s is in transit but my daughters is still processing. So weird. You would think the kids both would have arrived before mine or my my wife’s.

snakeweasel · May 2021

Sandman6472 said:
When I got my postal job back in 1980, my folks were super upset that their son was going to be a blue collar worker. My in-laws were thrilled because like me, they got it that on retirement, I'd be getting a federal pension, a pension with a COLA attached to it. And that if I passed first, my spouse would get half. But, I was thrilled to finally stop taking money from my folks to continue on in an education I didn't really want. G-d dropped the post office job at my feet and I was super glad. Never took a dime from the folks again, though they were more generous with my siblings then myself because of what I did. What can I say, dysfunction and a lot of $ can only turn out badly for some. But I never looked back, never asked for another dime, which seemed to annoy them even more I suspect!

Back in 1983 when I got out of the service my sister who was a rural route carrier in Colorado said that she could get me a job as a sub on a few routes which could have led to a full time position.

snakeweasel · May 2021

andres3 said:

snakeweasel said:

imidazol97 said:

roadburner said:

We had our first jury orientation since February 2020. It was on Zoom, and it was a fiasco. The KY SC ordered judges to excuse anyone in high risk groups as well as anyone financially impacted by the pandemic. Needless to say, those two excuse were used as "Get out of jury duty free!' cards; 900 jurors were called in and 800 were excused.
My concern is being able to have a "jury of my peers." When broad bands of the population are excused from service on IMHO flimsy excuses of being scared by the media hype, I wouldn't be getting a jury of my peers.

OTOH, I recall when I got my last jury notice. I got them about every 9 months it seemed. I decided I couldn't effectively serve if selected because I make frequent restroom visits. I have trouble hearing softer than average talk when there's background noise (yes, I've looked into hearing assists--still looking). I also have trouble with dumb people. My doctor, who knows me very well, made clear she thought I was the type of person with STEM and logic background who should be on a jury. I thought she wasn't going to sign, but She finally signed the excuse paper.

Many of the jury notices came but I never had to show up for a cattle call--the cases must have been settled before a trial. But The one jury call where I had to show up, I was 2 away from being seated in the jury box. I wanted to avoid being selected. The defendant in late 20s was guilty and a career criminal, in my judgement from his body language and his behavior during the jury questioning. I could have voted without holding the trial.

I was able to glance at his notepad lying on the defenant's table while leaving for a break during jury candidate questioning. I forget what I saw but that confirmed my earlier body language impression of the guy. I was able to get excused because lawyers saw I really didn't want to be on and I had a connection with a policeman as a friend through my son's science olympiad activities.

I'm permanently excused due to age, physical factors.
If you are judging him based on his body language and behavior you shouldn't be on a jury, you should listen to the facts presented and make an objective decision based on facts.
When I was learning about personality types, there are just some that rely more upon the way people look and react than on what they actually say. Sometimes employers even give these kinds of tests when you pass the first or 2nd round of filtering for interviews and applications. I remember the test consisted of faces and recordings and/or faces and you read a statement supposedly made by the person depicted graphically.
You had to select what you thought was the "best" answer and sometimes the emotions shown IMO didn't match the words stated. So you had to decide which you felt was "stronger" evidence.

The problem with how people look and react to things is that it is purely subjective and that the way someone reacts to a certain situation can vary from person to person. We are all different with different personalities and can react differently to the same situation depending on that personality and past experiences. That's why it is important to look at the facts and make an objective decision based on facts only.

roadburner · May 2021

I have to say that our local post office is great. Our mail carrier goes above and beyond.

kyfdx · May 2021

imidazol97 said:
Post Office delivers a lot of mail for a small cost compared to UPS and FedEx. They should skip Saturday delivery (and Sunday). Last I recall when that was brought up, it was congress (who cares which one) that quashed the idea. I just read that liquor delivery is being proposed.

Amazon used USPS for delivery for a while, and that included Sunday delivery, at a loss to USPS. Now AMZ has its own delivery fleet specialized toward their style of delivery.

Despite having misdirected deliveries that I listed earlier, the USPS still goes to every home and business, almost, every day. I'm watching a package that shipped Monday on Rockauto for an order placed Monday morning. It started in Winston-Salem NC and is already in Cincinnati's package distribution center. It is scheduled for Thursday delivery here in a suburban Dayton Post Office, but I suspect it may get to Dayton overnight tonight, Tuesday, and be delivered Wednesday. All for $6.99.

I believe we have a couple of retirees from the USPS in the group.

FedEx (and UPS) both have big contracts to transport US Mail by air.
FedEx has a division named SmartPost that uses the USPS for "last mile" deliveries. That's been a good partnership for both. (for at least the last 20 years)

imidazol97 · May 2021

kyfdx said:

Despite having misdirected deliveries that I listed earlier, the USPS still goes to every home and business, almost, every day. I'm watching a package that shipped Monday on Rockauto for an order placed Monday morning. It started in Winston-Salem NC and is already in Cincinnati's package distribution center. It is scheduled for Thursday delivery here in a suburban Dayton Post Office, but I suspect it may get to Dayton overnight tonight, Tuesday, and be delivered Wednesday. All for $6.99.

FedEx (and UPS) both have big contracts to transport US Mail by air.
FedEx has a division named SmartPost that uses the USPS for "last mile" deliveries. That's been a good partnership for both. (for at least the last 20 years)

We've had SmartPost items that do come in a timely fashion with the USPS doing the final step.

My spark plugs ordered thru Rockauto that started in Winston Salem are arriving today. The network of routes for the trucks (contractors?) have been honed through the last several years for efficiency. Starting at Winston Salem, 4 hours to Charleston WVa. 4 hours to Cincinnati regional hub (at CVG airport? I'm guessing). Overnight to Dayton and arrived at local PO at 7:12 am today. Out for delivery. Amazing the tracking allows almost real time following.

Also amazing is Informed Delivery that photographs and sends me pictures of all regular mail that is sorted at the Columbus hub for both addresses we use. And it's usually in one of our mailboxes the same day.

I'd question how the mail in Cincy area is sorted by the description of the desk clerk given to @graphicguy. I'd think the whole area goes to a center just like western and central Ohio goes to Columbus for overnight sorting and back to the local PO unit.

bwia · May 2021

I got my IRS tax refund today, about nine days after electronic filing. The amount was $112 more than I expected so I have to assume the difference is perhaps due to interest added to my refund. While it would be nice to get an explanation for the overpayment I think it would be wise to remain silent and enjoy that largesse as a Father's Day gift.

imidazol97 · May 2021

bwia said:
I got my IRS tax refund today, about nine days after electronic filing. The amount was $112 more than I expected so I have to assume the difference is perhaps due to interest added to my refund. While it would be nice to get an explanation for the overpayment I think it would be wise to remain silent and enjoy that largesse as a Father's Day gift.

I think you'll get a letter eventually and a 1099 INT next January for the tax on the interest. I did for 2020 that I just filed.

kyfdx · May 2021

imidazol97 said:

bwia said:
I got my IRS tax refund today, about nine days after electronic filing. The amount was $112 more than I expected so I have to assume the difference is perhaps due to interest added to my refund. While it would be nice to get an explanation for the overpayment I think it would be wise to remain silent and enjoy that largesse as a Father's Day gift.
I think you'll get a letter eventually and a 1099 INT next January for the tax on the interest. I did for 2020 that I just filed.

But, why would you get interest on a refund that comes 9 days after filing?

roadburner · May 2021

I hit all the traffic lights right driving the Clubman to work today; corrected for the onboard computer’s optimism it actually works out to 49.8 mpg.

graphicguy · May 2021

roadburner said:
I have to say that our local post office is great. Our mail carrier goes above and beyond.

Same here. My local post office has been wonderful, regardless of personnel turnover recently. It’s quick, convenient and my particular mail carrier is cheerful and helpful whenever I greet him at my mailbox to ask him something, or give him a package to take to the Post Office.

The fact that they are now less automated in mail sorting and seemingly/purposefully being hindered is what irks me. And, for what? How can hand sorting be less expensive and quicker than machine sorting?

Whatever this Post Master General is doing, he’s doing it all wrong. Plus, he’s clearly way out of his element considering his testimony last year. How he got the job is beyond me, because he should be removed from it as quickly as possible.

driver100 · May 2021

cdnpinhead said:

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.
You seem to achieved a "flag" on this post, much as I did when I commented on the efficiency of the government in general.

Welcome aboard.

It was probably a Russian Hacker. Go to the store, buy a $1000 VISA card, mail it to Box 55555, Toronto Canada, and I will have my people look into it and have that flag removed.

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

roadburner said:
I hit all the traffic lights right driving the Clubman to work today; corrected for the onboard computer’s optimism it actually works out to 49.8 mpg.

Either number is impressive but why does BMW feel the need to have the car lie to you? Do they feel that owners have such fragile egos that they need some puffed up bragging rights? Personally, I’d rather have a car that says “your gas mileage sucks, lay off the gas”

oldfarmer50 · May 2021

driver100 said:

cdnpinhead said:

fintail said:
Weren't you able to renew through the mail? I swear I did mine that way last time. On another note, DeJoy is corrupt trash.
You seem to achieved a "flag" on this post, much as I did when I commented on the efficiency of the government in general.

Welcome aboard.
It was probably a Russian Hacker. Go to the store, buy a $1000 VISA card, mail it to Box 55555, Toronto Canada, and I will have my people look into it and have that flag removed.

It’s funny, I looked at my record and I have one strike for “spam”. What is that exactly? Did I tell another member that his car warranty was about to expire? How does that differ from “abuse” which sounds a whole lot nastier?

roadburner · May 2021

@oldfarmer50: You can go into the service menu and adjust the calculation, but it doesn’t bother me that much. Apparently the pendulum has now swung in the opposite direction; the average mpg numbers in the X1 and 2 Series are pessimistic by 4-5 percent.

stickguy · May 2021

Farmer, it’s pretty easy to flag by accident. So that could be it. Or someone was having a cranky day! Maybe you were hustling veggies or something?

abacomike · May 2021

There have been quite a few posts relating to the USPS lately. I have no complaints nor do I have kudos for the system - it is what it is - an over budget, over worked government subsidiary/agency that has suffered greatly as a result of electronic mail and billing/banking. Ads that used to be mailed are now emailed to users and show up on the web when you surf.

My mail carrier delivers our mail after 4:00 PM 6 days a week. So I don’t check my mail until the next morning. 5 out of 6 days a week I have no mail in my box because all bills and statements are electronically sent to me and all my bills and statements are paid electronically. I have a page of “forever” stamps I bought over a year ago and have used just one stamp out of 24 stamps on the page.

Thus, the reason the USPS is losing money every year is due directly to a significant drop in first class mail. I don’t even send birthday or Christmas/Hanukkah cards anymore. I just deposit money into my kids and grandkids checking accounts at my local Wells Fargo bank, which the entire family uses for their checking accounts, and send electronic holiday and birthday cards to them.

So blaming the USPS for slow or lost mail or packages does not solve the problems they face. I don’t see a solution to the issues facing the USPS - they cannot solve their problems but ending Saturday deliveries would certainly help reduce budget deficits - not completely - but every little bit helps. 🤓

imidazol97 · May 2021

Agree.
I wonder if the exit of many of the older, experienced folks lies with the union at USPS and the retirement plan, which may be generous. Just like at GM and Ford. If there's trouble in the company, the retirement funds may be at risk so payouts may be reduced other than a few exceptions. Or pensions revert to the government plan for retirement plans in default and that means reduced payout.

I agree that skipping Saturday delivery and maybe even Wednesday delivery, could be a good cost saver.

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