Post Office Packs in the Patrons

No matter how busy you were over the holidays, chances are the folks who work way down at the end of High Street were probably busier. Throughout December, the rush had been on and lines at the post office intermittently went out the door.

They’re busy all year, but the last quarter is normally the hardest, said Moorpark Postmaster Richard Sigman. First it’s catalog season and then it’s the holiday rush, he said.

“It’s mainly parcels [during the holidays],” he said. “The volume itself has dropped [from catalog season] but the packages are heavier.”

Even so, postal clerks said they think the volume may have been greater than in the previous year.

“I think the boxes are heavier too,” said clerk Lisa Leal, attributing that to the flat-rate shipping options the U.S. Postal Service instituted a couple of years ago. “The flat rate boxes are very, very popular,” she said.

Even with the lines, she said, patrons have been in a good mood. That probably has a lot to do with the clerks themselves and the other people behind the counter.

“They’re always so friendly here,” said customer Marcia Blumstrum on a recent trip to the post office. “They’re always smiling and answer all my questions—and you know they’re answering the same things all day long.”

“You know that phrase they use, ‘going postal’—that’s such an unfortunate thing and is so far from anything that would even remotely apply here. They’re nothing like the DMV,” said Blumstrum.

Leal said she tries to keep a smile on her face and have nice words for everyone, but she can’t do everything customers sometimes want her to do.

For example, “You can’t just bring in a chicken and mail it,” she said, clarifying that the live animals can be shipped, but certain preparation is required and special paperwork needs to be completed. The same applies to fresh fruit and vegetables, and live plants.

“We actually get more chickens sent here than sent out,” she said. “The only thing is, they sit in the office and cackle.”

Alcohol is not allowed to be mailed at all, Liel pointed out—so no sending off a nice bottle of California chardonnay.

The Moorpark Post Office is located at 100 High St. and is open from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m to 2 p.m. Saturday. The post office is closed Sundays.

Moorpark also has two outposts that provide postal servces. One is at Xpress Grafix Printing, 6591 Collins Dr., Suite E2, and the other is at Casino Storage,  875 W. Los Angeles Ave.

Even as swamped as the post office was and as tired as Leal was by the end of the holiday season, she’s not complaining.

“I just feel very blessed to have a job. If I have to work a little harder at Christmas time, then so be it,” Leal said. “As long as you have health and happiness, that’s the most important thing.”