Hi,

I never have before, but I was just thinking the other day how much I appreciate our mailman (er, lady). How everytime there's a sub. the mail gets messed up. And, I realized that other than leaving a few cookies out in the mailbox for her a few times, I've never actually tipped her.

Do you tip your mail carrier? If so, how do you do it? (I thought I'd watch this week and make sure it's our regular carrier, then hand deliver it to her). I think I heard somewhere they're not allowed to accept cash, but I thought I'd put a few bucks ($5 or $10) in a card. Does that sound OK? What would you put on the envelope -- Ms. Mail Carrier, nothing, Mrs. Mailman? I don't want to offend her!!!

From what I have heard, they are not allowed to accept cash. Not sure about other gifts, or even a g.c. When we have a good mailman, I will give him a small ($5range) present, but ours this year is rather unremarkable.

I give them $20 each, the guy at the post office and the mail carrier who delivers to my house. I get a ton of boxes in the mail and I am at the post office about 3 or 4 times a week mailing out so they go above and beyond what they do for normal customers. My mailman even calls me at home and we email back and forth, so like I said not a normal customer. He did tell me they aren't supposed to take anything, but they really are great and deserve it imo.

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"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

I don't give them cash. I didn't think they were allowed to accept it either. I make up a nice package of homemade fudge and other candy. I probably wouldn't give homemade candies if we didn't know her personally.

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I mail alot too. I have a favorite counter clerk who doesn't make me wait for her to do all the customs forms on my military packages (why they require those is beyond me...). If I had more time for baking, I might make something...but then again, at my local PO they told me they toss baked goods. ... so I give a box of chocolates or I have also done a care package for them....filled with the same kind of snacks and goodies that I send to the troops. Also, all my clerks drink Dunkin Donuts so a small DD gift card is another idea I have.

cj/

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I was walking home one night and a guy hammering on a roof called me a paranoid little weirdo. In morse code. -Emo Phillips

With our old mail-carrier I would give him homemade baked goods and a gift card to Starbucks because you hardly ever saw him without Starbucks in hand I miss him so much he always checked on me and our elderly neighbors and others with health issues to see how we were if he didnt see us for more than 48 hours. This new mail-carrier deserves a kick in the pants nothing less he is awful and I have complained I am tired of not getting my bills espeically my credit cards, I have one or two neighbors who will bring the misdelivered mail to me, but the rest could care less and send it back it could be a language barrier thing too for them not bringing it to my home, 80% of th neighborhood english is a second language and most dont read either language well, but thats not here or there it s a matter of the mail-carrier mis-delvering it or picking my mail up and dropping it in my front yard or the neighbors, it is just ocmpletley horrible. I had one creditor call me about my returned bills even though I pay them like clockwork automatically every month bill or not, they were rather snotty about it, and I was like nope havent moved still in the same place must have been misdelivered and they dont believe me think I am dodging them even though I am paying.

My Foster Mom's brother is a mail-carrier and he is not allowed to take monetary gifts when they are offered he asks them to donate it to a certain charity instead.

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~ Christine ~
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I don't ever see our actual Postman, so I don't do anything.....


I have a nice old man who works at a post office I go to, who always helps me out when I'm mailing stuff to Dh and the Guys...I bring him starbucks cards, and he loves 'em. Brought him 2 so far this deployment...This is really the first time I have given anything to someone dealing with the post office

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"You can never really pay back. You can only pay forward."

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O-H-I-O

I usually tip him $20 - this year I gave him $30 because I ship a lot of packages for eBay and he never complains about how many I have. He even takes my international packages to the window to get stamped - he's a doll!

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Mary

We never have the same person. Our route is a training route, so we're forever getting a new person. I miss our old mailman, he always would come back in the afternoon when I had packages, rather than these newbies that leave them right in front of the door. It's almost like saying...HEY! COME STEAL ME!!

I do however tip the newspaper delivery lady...she always tries to get the paper close to the porch and that makes me happy.

I also do heavy eBay shipping from home and usually give mine movie certificates (about $20 give or take depending on the volume I've sold during the year). It is basically part of doing business for me as she takes good care of my packages and is part of the reason that I have earned all of the positive feedback that I have on eBay. It's so worth it.

I love my maillady!! I've never given her a gift before but after reading this thread I made her up a goody basket with homemade candies/cookies. I also wrote out a heartfelt Christmas card. I'll give it to her tomorrow. Thanks so much for reminding me how much I rely on her and how she always comes through for me.

Selena

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I think just telling them how much we appreciate them means so much. Being in there all of the time you see some of the nasty customers they have to deal with every day. The guy behind the counter never complains about the amount of stuff I have, it makes me look forward to going, not like it's a chore, we have a good time.

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"A true friend is someone who thinks that you are a good egg even though he knows that you are slightly cracked." ~ Bernard Meltzer

I have given our mail carrier Target gift certificates every year. Either 10 or 20 dollars depending on the year and my own finances.

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From a mailady Tipping is, of course, optional. I never expect a tip. I am amazed each year at the number of peoople who go out of their way each year to remember me in some way. I am fairly new on the route I have now, and I have a sub on my day off who is the absolute worst carrier i have ever seen. She does not read the mail, I could go on and on, anyway I digress. We are not supposed to accept cash gifts, however people leave me cards alot. I have to say I am not a big fan of the baked goods- but we do bring them back to the office to share and they usually get eaten by someone. I get alot of chocolates. Those I give to DH's aunt who brings them to the nursing home she volunteers at ( I keep a couple boxes) My route is near a Dunkin Donuts, so I get alot of those GCs. Also have gotten Olive Garden, Texas Roadhouse, Longhorne, Panera, supermarket gcs. If you are in the cold weather areas- a nice fleece scarf (navy or black) from Old Navy is awesome, as are their fleece headbands. A good hand moisturizer for our dry chapped and cracked hands, pens, cheap black sunglasses, mittens with the flip tops that reveal half gloves. I would love movie tickets- I rarely get those. Some of my favorite gifts have been offbeat. One lady gave ne a cooking pot that I use nearly everday. The next year she gave me a collapsable cooler that I use alot. I liked the Entertainment book I got once.
I do not like it when people give me a $5 Dunkin Donuts card, then think they do not have to shovel their walk and stairs the rest of the winter. There are only a few like that, but they are out there.

Last year I gave my maillady a illuminations candle, this year im giving her a magazine subscription to what ever she picks, she told me that she has to toss the handbaked goods and my old mail man told me the
same thing they dont eat the handmade items, although he was quite the postman, he would lay on the horn
in the driveway if he had a package for you, I mean lay on the horn we couldnt get coats on fast enough.

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RIP Chibby my chinchilla 10/02/09

I have a family full of postal workers and my stepdad really rakes in the goodies at Xmas time. He is the only actual mail carrier the others work in the office. He has been on the same route for years so they all know and love him. He gets everything from baked goods, cash, gift cards and alcohol. I usually tip mine(who happens to be step dad's best friend) a gift card to a local restaurant and some cookies.

Yep - I just gave him a card with $25 a few minutes ago. He's a great mailman - always rings the bell if he has packages, will bring my mail first thing in the morning if I'm expecting something important, etc. I really appreciate his hard work.

NO........we have new mailman and he is a total jerk

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Brenda

GO #24 JEFF GORDON

Gave my mailman a beautiful Gift Package of asst Goodies as I sometimes think they have a Thankless Job.

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Without Health you have no Wealth!

I've done movie passes, McDonald's GC, a glove (hat, scarf set), Target GC.

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Toss the baked goods! Me, never! Depending on the quantitiy some of them might make thm home to my family
I got a box of Boy Scout popcorn yesterday

Our "paper lady" left us a Christmas card with her name and address written on the back of the envelope this morning. I figured it was a hint! Guess I will give her and our mail lady each a small gift. Maybe the trashman too!
One year I did give them all package of homemade Christmas cookies. I hope they didn't all get tossed!!!

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Thanks, Mailady for the tips!!

I never knew that mail carriers aren't supposed to accept cash gifts.

Mine isn't friendly at all - won't even wave unless there's no choice, but he's very very good at his job - so I'm torn.

I do give to the man who does our recycleables - he is older, works alone, and takes whatever's in there. I will try to get him this week, and I'll leave something for the postal worker, too.

Thanks again, Mailady! Hope you have a great holiday!

I gave my mail lady an assortment of homemade candies a few years ago, and she told me how much she loved the coconut strawberries. So now I just give her all strawberries.

Mailady...thanks so much for the other suggestions. I never thought about ear warmers, gloves with removable ends, or lotion. I'll watch for a few after Christmas sales and give her a nice pick-me-up in the dead of winter!

I would go broke tipping my mailMEN..... I have 3 different ones.

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"Madison AnnMarie " 6/13/2008

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Wow! Now I feel like a total grinch. I never even thought about tipping my mailman. I guess it is because I dont get many packages and I never see her. If we had more of a relationship, maybe I would have thought to tip her.

I asked my hubby what he thought about this and he said that he tips her every payday when the federal government takes taxes out of his paycheck and every time he buys stamps. I think maybe he is getting a little wore out from spending this holiday season.

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Sell crazy some place else, we are all stocked up here.