At War With Canada Post

It started in March.

My wife bought two sweaters for her cousins in Japan, put them in an envelope and off to the post office, one of those small back corners of a drug store, behind the diapers and next to the family planning shelf. The package was weighed, prices were given and we opted for the cheapest, surface air.

A few weeks passed and my mother-in-law sends us (or, actually, my daughter) a large box full of toys, DVDs, clothes and snacks and tells my wife how much she paid for it, which wasn't that much more than we paid for it. And she sent it by air. (One note here -- Japan Post is undergoing a transformation from a bloated, government controlled agency to a lean privatized business, which has matched an unsurprising rise in customer service. My father-in-law, who owns his own business, has a postal worker stop off twice a day and ask if there is anything to be mailed, a sharp contrast from my upbringing in the suburbs where all mail was delivered to one of those brown and grey boxes and the only mail deliver I saw was in picture books).

So I asked my mother, who sent me packages over the years, and she didn't pay much more than what we did. Of course the value of the goods isn't connected to the price of the postage, but our last Christmas in Japan my mother sent me two boxes full of presents and paid a little more than what we did.

I call the customer service centre, explain my situation, and this is where it gets interesting. The friendly representative tells me that it 'appears' that I have been overcharged, about double, and that I should return to the postal office and ask. So I do and two employees there tell me that it looks wrong, but I should come back and talk to the manager, who is there from 10 to 2, Monday to Friday.

Of course I have to work so my wife goes, with my daughter in the stroller, and asks to speak to the manager. Instead the woman who originally processed the package talks to her, uses sarcastic language, and calls her 'sweetie'. My wife leaves the store angry, and of course, calls me, because it's all my fault.

I call the customer service centre again and I lodge a complaint, and I'm told that I will be contacted in 5 business days. On the 6th business day I call again, and I'm told that I will be contacted in 5 business days. On the 6th business day... yada yada yada. I kept being told that it was 'progressing'. About a month and a half passes, and I haven't called in a few weeks, so I call again and the representative tells me that someone should have contacted me about this, and an 'high priority' e-mail has been sent out. (Ironic note that should be pointed out - Canada Post uses e-mail)

The area supervisor calls me two days later and tries to blow me off. He seemed unaware of the specifics of my case and handed out a lot of empty phrases. I then contacted the Ombudsman and a few weeks later I receive a call (and eventually a letter) that I will be reimbursed, as a sign of good customer relations, and that we will receive a letter of apology.

Reaffirming story, right? The system, cracked as it is, works but sometimes you have to give it a push. Well...

We received the apology letter first, addressed to Mrs. Gregory Devine. The letter refers to my husband, and the employee in question has been coached about his behaviour. Sounds good, except that I'm not a woman (thought I cry like one when punched) and the postal employee isn't a man. (I think). Always one ready and eager to write an angry letter, I wait for the cheque, promptly cash it and send it off.

During the tail end of this I re-read The Crying Of Lot 49, a great book that revolves around an underground postal system, a total coincidence, though it could be linked to some murky subconscious memory.