Could It be Any Colder?

I'm in Iowa now. It's really cold. I mean, really f&cking cold. We got sleet and then snow last night. This morning, I was up at 7 shoveling the drive and walks. There is no grass to be seen. Snow drifts. I think the high today was maybe 25...with gusts up to 40 mph. It really is awful. I don't want to come here anymore.

And today, I decided to send Wiley a package, so I get my box, fill it up, fill out my customs form, and then when I go to the counter, Ms. USPS worker informs me that I can't send a package to Bosnia. I told her that that can't be right - I lived there and got packages from the US from the post office - from three different states. "Nope, I have a note here that says Bosnia's been sanctioned." She motions to her coworker and flashes a yellow piece of paper. "Has this changed?" "Nope," the next worker says. "It's been like that for a year." I again say, "But my fiance is there, and we've gotten packages there and from there through the postal service." They're not buying it, and give me a phone number to call. So I dial.

"You've reached the number for free legal services for Texans," a friendly recorded voice tells me. So I call the post office to tell them the number isn't valid, and I get a lady who says, "You can come back to the post office. There are no sanctions against Bosnia - it was for a very short time, but we know a guy whose wife lives over there and had no problems."

GEE, REALLY? I believe I said that to you retards the first time I stopped at the post office. So I go back. The two who were of no help to me the first time said, "Did you get it figured out?" And I said, "Oh, you're sending it." They seemed surprised when I told them that they had given me a defunct number. "Well, we're just telling you what we were told," and then, "That must've happened very recently," and then I responded in a less than sugary voice because I'm really quite pissed by this time, that I just returned from living there for five months, and I had no problems getting stuff from people from the US. Had you listened to me, or maybe checked with a supervisor, you could've helped me the first time. "We should be given the correct information," one of them said, and I agreed, SO YOU COULD BE HELPFUL TO PEOPLE INSTEAD OF SENDING THEM ON A GOOSE CHASE. Those two said that since they didn't know what was going on, I'd have to wait for the one who actually knew what was what, and when I asked if I could finally send my package to Bosnia, she gave me a look that I took as, "Sorry my coworkers are stupid." Maybe not, but that's how I read it.

So Wiley, in about a month, you should get a package. Hopefully it arrives. This lady seemed to know what she was doing. Thank goodness.