mail not for me

[threeplusfire]

What is with the mail lately? We've gotten an unusually large amount of mail addressed to our home with various names on it. Often it is junk mail and I toss it. But just today Fedex dropped a huge, clanking package on the porch addressed to a new and unknown name. Fortunately the truck hadn't left yet so I could run out and hand it back.

A few days ago my mail box was stuffed with cards addressed to another random person. It seemed weird there would be so many all at once. One of the envelopes was translucent and I could see the lettering of a condolence card. I felt weird and sad about it. At first I thought it might be a neighbor - our street name is long, full of numbers and letters easy to mix up. The name was unusual enough to be easy to Google and I found the person's facebook page. I messaged, asking if the person knew any of the names on the return addresses and if they wanted this mail.

It turned out her daughter died recently and these were all cards from old friends who had an address twenty years out of date. I put them all in a large envelop of mailed them to her yesterday. I felt sad for this person I don't know at all. I don't even know why I am writing about this. I worry it sounds like I'm bragging about my moral character or just sound excessively morbid. Mostly I just worry about lost letters and hope someone sends mine home if they are found.

Comments

[psylent1.livejournal.com]

For a month or so I ended up with *a lot* of random mail not addressed to me (or the last owners); I chalked it up to poor sorting at the Bluebonnet Station. I sent them a note letting them know what was going on, and it stopped almost immediately.

[tsarina.livejournal.com]

But was it to your street address? I've been puzzled by the amount of stuff addressed to our house for different people lately.

Usually we just get some random catalogs addressed to the previous owner.

[psylent1.livejournal.com]

In one case it was, which I just sent back to the USPS with a note saying what was up, because I did not find the person in Google. in others they were forwarded from the other person's address to mine, and I again gave them back to the USPS.

When I went to get the water service transferred over to my name when I moved in, the person at the Wells Branch MUD office made a point to warn me about the erratic mail service.

[cjwriter.livejournal.com]

This was our 4th Christmas in our house. Every year, we have gotten at least one Christmas card for the previous owners. This last time, it was only one card, but I can't help but wonder about their relationship with this person....

At least the phone calls about their debt have stopped....

[brienze.livejournal.com]

I think it's cool that you were able to find this person and send her mail to her... and bonus, now you know of someone else who used to live in your house.

I also think it highlights the (and I absolutely cringe to be choosing this phrase) information paradigm shift in the last decade or two... those friends of hers are 'old', both objectively and subjectively, if it didn't occur to them to look for her on FB/Google/whatever and verify her address for themselves.

Also also, I have been craving sushi so badly. HEB's rice isn't as bad as Alamo's was at the Back to the Future feast, but it still doesn't qualify as Good Eats. I just bought a $500 spinning wheel though, and fiber, so I keep telling myself I don't get to have sushi.

[imaginarycircus.livejournal.com]

I post about it when I get weird errant emails to my account. There is something quaint about getting the wrong mail. I sent a friend a small present and I never heard from him so I am guessing he never got it.

[k00kaburra.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you were able to locate her!