At least our winter flowering cherry was happy with another dreary, yet wet, day.
Last night Louisa asked me to send pictures of her lifelong friend Gemma, who will be 40 tomorrow. I sent her three,
of which this is one from my daughter’s birthday party of May 1993.
Three days ago ‘we began with a trip to the Lymington Post Office collection office to claim a parcel undelivered because of a shortage of £2 in postage. The good news was that there was no queue. The bad news was that the office was closed. I took an alternative option which was to stick the extra postage on the back of their card and post it back to them.’
This is what we received in the post this afternoon:
The first of these images is of the front of the card addressed to the office with my 3 first class stamps attached. At the current rate of postage that is £2.45. The With postage section on the reverse side addressed to us is the direction I followed. Grammar enthusiasts might like to note the superfluous apostrophe in our name. A postman told me that ‘Today’s date’ is the date the post office received the parcel, not the date on which the card was delivered. That was in fact several days later.
I tried very hard to resolve this on line where I couldn’t even access the revised opening times. Of all the options from which to choose to request help there wasn’t one which would cover having received the returned card, clearly addressed to the Delivery Office itself, with no indication of the parcel. And, as usual, there was no way I could find a telephone number.
We decided to go in person. The office was closed. And only open from 8 to 10 a.m. in the morning.
This called for a rainy forest trip.
The anonymous decorator of the Pilley Hill Post Collection Box seems to be celebrating 2022. Maybe it will improve.
Behind Jordan’s Lane alongside which lies Pilley Lake, I enjoyed a friendly conversation with two master thatchers. This cheered me up.
On the lane itself one donkey was guarding her foal while another couple were silently arguing about the bay tree they were pruning. The larger animal kept butting the smaller out of the way.
The Culinary Queen produced another delicious beef pie for tonight’s dinner – and for a couple more besides. Firm boiled potatoes, Brussels sprouts and carrots were the tasty vegetables; onion gravy completed the platefuls which were accompanied by Hoegaarden in Jackie’s case, and Castillo Catadau Gran Reserva 2014 – a delightfully smooth rounded Spanish Tempranillo given by Ian for Christmas, in mine.
I must commend the thatchers! Bravo for such extraordinary expertise in their profession!!
The donkeys are sure cute, aren’t they?
That first foal is particuarly cute. The postal service situation may require intervention from the Ministry of Silly Walks.
A very good suggestion, Liz. Setting John Cleese onto them would cheer anyone up. Thanks very much
You’re welcome, Derrick, any time!
haha, you’re right, Liz. We may have long lines at times, but at least out post offices stay open.
Although my local post office closes for an hour for lunch.
That’s better than only open an hour or two.
I’ll give you that! 🙂
Thank you very much, GP
Delightful post. Love the pics, love the animal pics. Have a wonderful day.
Thanks very much, Holly
Thank you for sharing the day Dwight!
Derrick of course , my keyboard has a mind if it’s own.
🙂
??
The thatchers are doing a great job! Our post office does the same thing, pay up or no delivery. I like the decoration on the post box, very positive for 2022!
Thank you so much, John
Those thatchers are terrific. I, too, noticed the apostrophe. 😉
The apostrophe was the icing on the cake, Laurie. Thank you very much
I am so glad these craftsmen still exist, Laurie. I wonder how many generations back their skills go.
I noticed that errant apostrophe also, because that’s what we pedants do, right?
Who are you calling a pedant?
We know who we are, Derrick.
🙂 Jackie says I am one
Tee-hee! You bet.
I’m glad the thatchers cheered you up and if they hadn’t, those cute donkeys were there to do the job! I enjoyed your postage story 🙂
Thank you so much, Barbara
The donkeys are adorable and the thatchers are impressive. Now that you know when the post office is open….
Thank you so much, Pat. First I will have to prove who I am…..
Oh, good luck with that, Derrick.
I’ll vouch for you, in as much as electrons can serve as proof of identity. ; )
🙂 Thanks very much, Pat
Open only 2 hours in the morning?? I am cranky about that and I’m not even you ha-ha If it’s only open 2 hours it’s gonna be a really long line isn’t it?
I love your posts because I always see things I’ve never seen before. There’s such thing as an expert thatcher ?! So cool.
The only time I’ve ever seen donkeys in my life other than the zoo, is a little thing in my area They used to do for fun once a year called donkey basketball.
Thank you very much, Rose. I love the solidarity in your first paragraph, and am pleased you like my posts – as I do yours.
Maybe the postal workers are recovering from the holidays? Sorry for the hassle, Derrick. I never like “mission unaccomplished.” I enjoyed the outing, though. Thanks for taking us along.
Much appreciated, Jill
Between the friendly thatchers and the delightful donkeys, I’m sure they would have cheered up day Derrick …
Absolutely, Ivor. Thanks very much
Love the photos of the donkeys! Shame about your struggles to extract your parcel.
Thanks very much, Sheree
The Post Office are pretty much a law to themselves!
No wonder they are struggling, John. Thanks very much
I too have visited the PO delivery office on several occasions. I understood they close at ten to allow the postmen to get back out on the streets and deliver.
It occurred to me that if your house was still a working post office you’d have probably received your parcel by now!
The irony of your second paragraph has also occurred to me, Sue. Thanks very much
I enjoyed all of your story and pictures Derrick. I am not surprised by the problem of deliver of your parcel. Something similar here. I am waiting on a parcel from my friend in India, it came to Ireland before Christmas and as there was duty on it €10 it was also not delivered. I went and paid the duty on the last day of the year, but to date no parcel has been delivered. I was told it could take another while until the duty office has cleared my parcel! The strange thing is that never before did I have to pay duty on a parcel from India!
That seems even worse than our problem, Agnes. Thank you very much
Goodness what a postal saga – I do hope it gets resolved soon and that the contents of the parcel is well worth all the trouble! … And Thank Goodness for the more reliable things in life – the flowering cherry, the New Forest ponies, The Culinary Queen, and the artful camera to record all 🙂
Thank you so much, Emma. We’ll see about the camera
Do you know what is in the parcel? Will it be worth the mental strain of trying to get it delivered? I love the first donkey picture. Most fetching.
Thank you very much, Tootlepedal. We have no idea, even who it sent it.
It is so good to see old crafts being maintained. But is the cost is exorbitant?
I don’t know about the cost, but there are many thatchers about, so the competition is probably keen. If a thatched house needs a new roof, a similar replacement is required by law. Thanks a lot, John
The new frustrations of our lives during a pandemic. Hope everything works out well in the end in getting your postal parcel.
I hope it is worth battling for, Rosaliene 🙂 Thanks very much
The knitting bombers throughout the Uk and here in NZ always bring a smile as I love random creative moments. Those men who do that roof thatching are certainly skilled and creative in their own right.
Thanks very much, Suzanne. They really seemed to want to chat, too.
The crochet mailbox hat is adorable. As for you trying to get your parcel, not so much. Lately it seem everything I order arrives with a delay, it seems to be a global phenomenon.
A crocheted mailbox, fuzzy donkeys, and watching master thatchers are good antidotes for bureaucracy, or anything else.
Indeed 🙂 Thank you very much, JoAnna
Your post office would fit in well in a small town a few miles from our city. Their hours seem to be designed to keep customers from bothering them.
That is what I thought, AnneMarie. Thank you very much
Having taught English for over forty years, I spotted the errant apostrophe immediately. It’s a case of “When will they ever learn?” Our post office is bankrupt, dysfunctional and is not to be trusted, so courier services do a roaring trade. Even in summer your donkeys appear to be woollier than ours, which mostly appear to be very short-haired.
Thanks very much, Anne. Apostrophes confuse many. You may like the paragraph beside the Fran’s Flowers picture in this post: https://derrickjknight.com/2013/06/14/8993/
Love that mailbox, the darling gray donkey, and the roof thatching! Your Spanish Tempranillo sounds delicious. Tempranillo is one of my favorite varietals. Cheers to you & Jackie, Derrick! <3 <3
Thanks a lot, Jan. I hope your improvement continues X
Me, too!!
UGHS on the postal problems. 🙁 Hope it all gets resolved soon.
Wow on the terrific thatchers! I admire their work!
Yay for the darling donkeys! I love their faces!
(((HUGS))) 🙂
Thank you so much, Carolyn X
Postal services are frustrating. Here there is no phone number provided for any local post offices or sorting centre. There’s just one 1-800 number which has a recorded message to “press” 1 for this, 2 for that, 3 for something else, then another recording that says, all our operators are busy. Expected waiting time 35 (plus) minutes. The recording gives you options while you wait which sends you back around in a circle and then…blah, blah, blah….
Good luck, Derrick.
Love the thatched pictures. 🙂
You describe most conglomerates so well, Chrissy. Thanks very much
You may be swimming against the tide with the post office parcel. Perhaps it contains flippers.
Nice one, Gwen. All will be revealed later today 🙂
For goodness sake! I feel for you, Derrick, and can only hope that the contents of the parcel will be worth all the frustration. Fortunately you found thatchers, pruners and and a jolly post box to cheer you up. And a delicious dinner to round off the day ?
Thanks very much, Sandra
Sometimes postal services are just impossible ? I have sent a greetings card back home and it took 1 and 1/2 months ?
Luckily those thatchers cheered you up ?
Thank you very much, Ribana
I love donkeys, so I obviously like your donkey series.
But the ones on the roof are fantastic as well. Especially the silhouette-picture you also used as the main picture for this post.
Thank you very much, Rabirius
The ongoing saga with the post office is unfortunate. At least the thatchers were there to cheer you up.
Agreed, Eugi. Thank you very much
I was in a long post office line yesterday, too. It’s Covid, I think, but the craziness of trying to do something online is not due to a virus. Donkeys always make me smile.
I agree about on line craziness, Lisa. Thanks very much
Sigh. I am sorry you and Jackie experienced troubles with bureaucracy again. The forest drive was a nice way to end the day. I love to see thatching in progress, and and the animals are always a delight.
Thank you so much from us both, Lavinia
So the parcel saga continues. At least you got some great photos and a delicious dinner, Derrick.
Many thanks, Dolly
You are most welcome, Derrick.
Now I understand Geoff’s reply to a comment you made on his blog … bloody bureaucrats and their ‘systems’!
Thanks a lot, Widders
I’m catching up on posts I missed because I had to finish a project. I liked Liz’s idea for solving your problem. I’m glad you were cheered-up by those amazing thatchers, but that little foal would have done it for me.
I try not to use the US postal service for anything these days. Sorry to hear the UK one is just as bad.
Love the thatcher and seeing what he does.
Thank you very much, Sherry