Rhonda from the Bluegrass

Aw, shucks That was a very sweet thing to say, but . . . I am just doing my job. That's what I am supposed to do!

Hi, Carol! Welcome on board . . . how we love adding a new member to our much beloved little community! Your projects sound wonderful, and I love your idea about putting the little apartment above the general store. Awesome! I grinned when I saw that our much admired Jo Med told you to go for the landscaping. She is right, BUT . . . don't let her awesome pictures scare you off. Jo is just amazing, and even though I've been doing dollhouses for quite some time, I don't aspire to Jo's level. We will all thoroughly enjoy your landscaping & pictures no matter how small or how ambitious you go. We all start at the beginning, and it is a ton of fun to watch our own progress over time. You are completely right about the "addictive" part, and as Llyn so aptly put it ("to our collective relief"), that's part of the fun. Besides, I think as far as seeing the world in new eyes, this is the most wonderful hobby for doing that. I look at found objects in an all new way from non-miniaturists. To me, most things would "be perfect for . . . or that . . . ". Anyway, we look forward to hearing more from you & seeing your treasures!

Thanks so much, Kitty. I am always glad when people realize that some of us do care, and those of us who do, try to go "over and above" to try to improve as much as we can. I have always felt that no matter what job you do, you should give it your all. Every single job out there matters. I often watch my garbage men, out in the early morning bitter cold , and I always wonder if they know how much they are appreciated. Can you imagine life without those folks? It may not be a glamorous job, but they sure do "count" in the fabric of our society. The funny thing is, I often think that those who have the most thankless jobs matter the most. I wouldn't miss a business executive that quit his job as much as I would my garbage man! The "little guy" in a business is such an integral piece of the puzzle, yet they are often treated with disdain and I am personally sick of it.

Oh, my gosh! I have had the EXACT SAME experience happen on several occasions: both with certified letters, and with oversized packages. The last time it happened, I was actually watching from my upstairs window, saw the postman leave & thought the package hadn't come, then went down to get my mail & saw that he "tried to deliver a package" (liar, liar, pants on fire!), so I threw a coat over my nightgown & drove up the street to the next group of mailboxes (knowing he would still be there) and handed him the note for my package and informed him he did NOT try to deliver the package or come to my door. He looked sheepish, and handed over the package but didn't say anything. It really made me mad - not only because he was lazy & didn't try to deliver the package and that he lied, but also because it is a real hassle to get the package at the post office. First of all, you have to wait until the next day and secondly, because I have to drive several miles out of my way and then there is always a line a mile long. I guess I can say in all honesty that I am as disgusted as a consumer as I am a postal employee! And, every bit of this can be traced back to BAD postal management. Even though the carriers shouldn't be cutting corners & lying, I can tell you that they are often handed an extra route or two, on top of the one they are actually supposed to have, on their way out the door and this results in them getting off their normal shift a lot later than they are supposed to. I run into the same thing at my workplace: I run a very heavy zone (tons & tons of mail!) that is supposed to ALWAYS be manned by two people. Almost every night, my supervisor puts me on the machine alone and I have to personally do the work of two people and still get it out on time. And, not only that, but they check the computer records & if the "stats" aren't in line with their requirements, you still get a reaming even though you were doing the work of two people! I can tell you one thing: the USPS needs to have all the current management removed and start over with managers that take their jobs seriously. It would have to be better than it is now!

As an employee, if you complain about mishandling of mail, or anything else that isn't being handled correctly, you are labeled a "problem employee" and management goes out of their way to give you as much @$^@# as possible, every moment possible. A lot of my friends at work get really upset at how badly I, in particular, am treated when I bust my butt harder (and do a better job) than at least 99% of the people in that place. They always tell me "I wouldn't do it". Well, as I've mentioned on here previously, I do it in spite of them (as in management) FOR YOU ALL. That keeps me going, and I know it is the morally right thing to do. Some of my co-workers seem to forget that we are just the temporary custodians of your mail - that it belongs to you, and if we do something to damage it, it's the same as if we came into your home and broke something.

I bet it is fun! And, if I could command the prices that a Jackson Pollock piece can, I think I would enjoy the selling aspect a lot more than I do!

And, get this . . . even if you work there and CAN weasel the number you need from somebody, you almost NEVER get an answer! Almost every single phone call is put on voice mail. It is insane and frustrating, beyond belief! I honestly don't know how any business thinks they can operate this way. I get boiling mad when I hear postal management whine about business being down. I think "well, idiots . . . you are the reason it is down!".

Oh, Linda! That is EXACTLY what I am talking about! That's what I run into, as a postal employee, trying to deal with "management". I am glad you wrote your letter because you are 100 percent right . . . they didn't need to act like jerks when you were trying to find out what problem your mail piece had encountered. They should not only have been willing to help you, but should have been truly apologetic for your mail piece not being handled properly. I ask myself EVERY day, "why, oh why are these idiots acting like this?" "Who lets them by with this stuff?" So on, and so forth.

These USPS horror stores make me cringe! Although my stomach is in knots every night I pull into the parking lot at work (knowing I have 8 hours or more of misery and belittlement ahead of me), I still firmly believe it is up to each and every one of us who are USPS workers to do our utmost to get your items to you in a timely and safe manner. After all, it's not YOUR fault that our managers treat us like crap. Once again, even though I couldn't have personally handled any of your mail (due to being in a completely different locale), I want to extend my personal apologies on behalf of the USPS to you. I wish I could make them straighten up and fly right, but heck . . . they never listen to me, no matter how beneficial an idea I may have to offer. In fact, just yesterday, I called the post office closest to my own home (not where I work) with a question as a customer . . . after it rang about 25 times, someone at the post office picked up the phone and immediately dropped the receiver back into the cradle without even speaking. I immediately called back and got a fax tone. I was furious - not just as a dissed customer, but as an ashamed USPS employee. I don't care if it is busy at Christmas - there is absolutely no excuse for behavior like that. I was appalled. I called Consumer Affairs and filed a complaint. I know many of the people I work with would consider that wrong since I work there, but come on . . . that's no way to treat any customer!!!! The sad thing is that the USPS handles a crucial aspect of our daily lives. We handle a staggering amount of mail each and every day. I believe in WHAT we do, just not HOW we do it. There is a very noticeable "Us versus THEM" mindset amongst postal managers - they consider themselves far above all of us "worker ants" and it creates a very negative impact on the atmosphere and especially the productivity of our process. I hate it. I want to fix it. I've tried. I've gotten nowhere. It has been suggested to me (even as recently as 2 days ago) that perhaps I should join Postal Management. NOT ON YOUR LIFE. I would never "cross over to the dark side", and if I was a manager and tried to make the differences that need to be made, I would be ostracized by the management body. I see bad things ahead for the USPS and I can't sympathize with management because they are bringing it on. I am, though, sorry for those of us who try to do the right thing and we'll end up losing our jobs too.

Aha! I got a big grin out of this one . . . I don't think it matters WHERE you buy your supplies (by the way, glitter can be used very artistically) . . . just how the artisan or crafter USES it. Isn't this a great debate? There are so many ways to look at this topic!

I work for the USPS, and I am thoroughly fed up with postal management. THAT is the problem. I keep the actual customers (you) in mind every single night I work, and try my best to get the mail run through the system quickly, so the mail is always on time, and carefully, so that the items don't get marred. Where the management comes into play as being the problem is that they treat all of us like garbage, which results in many of my co-workers developing the "don't gave a $^@^ attitude and manifests itself in poor quality work on their part, and also that this same "management" allows the slackers to slack while they hassle and belittle the honest, hardworking employees. I am not a carrier, but I most vehemently believe there is absolutely NO excuse for someone treating your package that way . . . it upset me to read it BECAUSE I know you are telling the truth. As much as I need my job, I can honestly say that I expect the USPS to go down the tubes soon and perhaps it is just as well. I don't know what in Heavens' name I will do to survive when it does, but it just can't continue the way it is being run. Every single night I work, as I am being treated with blatant disrespect and even hostility, by my supervisors and even upper management, I mentally remind myself how many people are praying for their unemployment or social security checks to arrive - sometimes just to be able to keep utilities on or to eat - and of the other important mail they hope to receive on time (birthday cards from Grandma, etc. . .) and I give more than 100 percent because I personally care about all of you. I just wish that other tired, jaded postal workers would take that mentality. I do my best for all of YOU, NEVER for postal management - who I consider abusive, uncaring individuals who don't even do their jobs. All I can say, is how sorry I PERSONALLY am for this having happened to you, and ask on behalf of the decidedly uncaring USPS, that you forgive us all. These are hard times, that mail belongs to our customers (not to those of US who handle that mail) and I really grieve that most of those who seem to be in a position to make a difference just don't care.

Sherry, you pretty much summed up how I feel about the casual use of the word "crafty". It really rankles me when I've worked over 100 hours on an intricate piece of beadwork (one of which won 1st place in a Fine Arts Competition), and someone says how "crafty" I am, as if they are bestowing a not-quite deserved compliment upon me. I feel the same about a dollhouse I have worked really hard on. Of course, I try to take it with a grain of salt . . . many of the people who say these things would never even make anything - most of the ones I have encountered spend most of their time watching t.v. (not like all of us who MAKE THINGS WHILE WE WATCH T.V.) or just "hanging out". I don't even actually like the term "crafty". It always carries negative connotations for me. In my case, that might be because both my maternal Grandmother and my elder Sister have been professional artists, and received recognition as such. One thing I can most assuredly say to you, Sherry, is that your work is always artisan level . . . NEVER just crafty!

I am wondering if mine is out there, too . . . but, I tried Googling my name and between a lot of entries that are mine (beadwork, as well as minis), I also saw a whole sea of other Rhonda Guy's and just gave up. I really don't like the idea of mine being out there either and I strongly suspect it is because I got an invitation to be someone's friend (someone I don't even know) from Facebook this morning and I wondered then how they had my email address. If it is HBS supplying it, that would explain the baffling invitation I got. I am thinking maybe we should all contact HBS and tell them we don't want our email addresses posted!

That's o.k., Gina . . . I would react the same way if I thought someone was insinuating something negative about my artwork. Besides, your dolls are so lovely, and I can tell you always put all of your creative self into them - of course you are protective of them. I would be, too! You're among friends, here, so I am sure that everyone else on here, like myself, understands and don't need an apology. Having said that, though, I have to agree with you that the holidays ARE stressful . . . I work at the USPS, so I can agree with that one first-hand! I sure hope everybody is having a really nice holiday season!