Funny little story that might be useful

Thanks for a good laugh.... Must remember this when I & misses get older

Very nice story, Jack.

I saw this posted on Facebook, made me laugh

rod222 Great to see they took humour in it. I love reading story's like that. Truth be told the post office worker do quite a lot of good work that we never hear about. The Video I posted about the Irish mail train the workers use to do a collection for one of the orphanages.

I received a box of chocolates from work that I will not eat, Think I will take a walk with the dog to my post office and re-gift the box to them, Also have a gift card for Tim Horton's ( mega coffee chain in Canada) who's coffee I don't care for that I can throw in. Think that will make their day. In the new-year they will be fuelled with sugar and caffeine.

As a kid in Ireland it was tradition to have a Christmas box for the postman/lady. It was ether a little cash or a present. Our postlady was a great woman Ann Flynn she would be in the post office at 5am sorting out the mail for her run. The post office was also in the local store that did not open till 9am. at around 7 she would be off on here Honda 70cc delivering the mail. If you were like me and being a kid waiting for your approvals from Stanley Gibbons or a letter from a pen pal You would know what time she would be at your house. Living next door to the post office I would often knock on the door at 6am asking any mail, if I had mail it was one of the first to be droped off so she would hand it to me. When I hit 15/16 and other interest came along I would often be knocking at the door for other things.

Being a rural Irish village the store had a slate ( credit book) where you could just go in and put stuff you purchase on the slate and in the end of the week/month pay it off. If it wasn't for this system many family's would starve or go cold. The store sold everything, coal for the fire, propane for the stove, it had a little butcher counter where you could get your meat. Each day a different meat would be delivered, on Fridays it was fish, and Saturday he would have joints of roasts or chicken. Big staple was Bacon not the bacon the our Americans would know but pickled/corn pork, in America you would know this as corn beef ( but in Ireland it was pork) Bacon cabbage and spuds was the staple, you have that a few times a week, another was the good old chips and eggs with bake beans, a very inexpensive meal, still one of my favorites. The store owner was also the Postmaster, he would hand out the old age pension or any government pensions as well as the baby bonus checks. Folks would also have a post office savings account book. Cuddy the Postmaster/store owner was a very important person, he was also a great guy, people would run up a bill then when they got their payment from their post office pay off the slate. Sometimes before he would hand over the cash payment he would open the account book add up the total and subtract that from your payment

The savings account with the post office was great, you get a book and buy saving stamps stick them on a page and when it was full you would have that amount put into your savings account pass book. They used regular postage stamps and hand cancel them then the page would be ripped out and put in a bag to be sent to the G.P.O. I guess these were then passed on to charities or sold as used stamps. I think that's why there are so many of the low value definitive of Irish stamps.

I always enjoyed the small town post office, well getting back to what I was going to say, as a 15/16 year old until I left the town to come to Canada I would often stop at the store at 6am to get a pack of smokes, Ann would come to the door and ask what I needed I tell her I need a pack of 10 John Players and a box of matches, she would go pick them up from behind the counter and write them in the book. There was more then just me some days Ann would cut you short but till get you your smokes and tell you that she is busy, those days the mail would be late.

Ann knew everyone on here mail route and never made a mistake, we had a dozen or more Patrick Rooney's And Smith was a common name in my town she knew things like who had family were so was able to know that a stamp with a Canada stamp was bound for a certain Patrick Rooney or if it was from England another. She knew the hand writing of peoples kids and when they would write home. Ann would often drop the mail off ( everyone had a letter slot on the door ) and be greeted by the person of the house, her Honda 70cc was a sound everyone knew. She was often the only person that older folks would see. She spend many hours having a cup of tea with them. She was almost family to some.

At around 2pm she would have all her route completed, she park her bike at the store and do her paper work. Ann would often then pick up some items like smokes and head off on her bike, she then drop them off to the older folks that were not able to get out, she did this out of goodness and on her time.

This time of year I always think about Xmas when I was a kid and my thoughts always drift to that store, If I was a writer it would make great material for a book or movie. I sure do miss those simpler days.

Some of the small towns the post office was in the store that also had a licence to sell liquor and beer but only on the premise.
You would see a couple go in while the wife did the shopping the man would sit at the little bar and have a pint. When I was a kid we would go on holidays to a town like this visiting relatives. One of my uncles would sit at the bar and play checkers every Friday afternoon with the same person while both their wife's did the shopping, this went on for a good 50 years. As they were farmers Friday was town day. He had no car but a small Massey Ferguson tractor that both of them would ride in. As kids he would attach the hay trailer and we go in with them sitting on hay bales.
Simpler times.

   Another little story of caring and sharing.The property we live on is part of an old resort here in the mountains.The natural evolution here is either they fall into disrepair or some one makes them whole again.There not being much call for vacation retreats of the sort from yesteryear the owner opened a family friendly pub.
   Two of my girls came a calling for Christmas and we thought it would be nice to share some time with the owner and have a cocktail.On arrival the owner was behind the bar seems all his barmaids had family and he was plain stuck there.It is most uncommon and extremely rare it is definitely not what he likes to do.He fetched us our first drinks but,informed my second oldest if we wanted another she was going to have to take care of that.Eagerly she agreed and behind the bar she goes.In the meantime other patroons were arriving and now my other girl who has catering experience announces she will act as waitress.Off she goes with menus in hand and of course our new barmaid is busy filling drink orders.
   The owner calls his new bar person over and says"Let's see how good you are".With that we challenge her to make numerous drinks which the two of us just have to test.In the meantime the rest of my party ,wife ,boyfriends etc.are ordering food and drink.A merry time for all.
   Dad(me) and the owner have been garbage drinking for some time when I announce it's time to pay the bill and get to bed.My daughter gives me a blank look and says" I didn't make one". My wife and her proceed to figure out what everyone had to eat and drink and write it on my check.The owner rises up off his bar stool grabs the check and crumbles it up."Merry Christmas" says he and off we stumble home.On arrival a large gift bag and I do mean LARGE is hanging off the doorknob.I peek inside there must be ten bottles of various liquors.The owner had sneaked out after raiding the liquor room and made it up the hill and back.
   The funniest part is I very seldom drink and this represents a lifetime supply to me.Was definitely a Christmas to remember.