Hacking the postal service is almost too good

So anywho, get Shinobu's package ready. And last Saturday was a no-go. So today I try again. This time with my Rollerator so I can sit. Oh and I need help with that fricking head liner. Like either rip it out or fricking stick it up with something because jamming the Rollerator in & out ripped more of that disgusting thing off & I'm about to take scissors to it.

So I get in the Spangler post office & it's a different guy. Cool. He might know how to send a parcel internationally.

I pause here to state I have Shinobu's address in Japanese postal style. Postal code at the top, sender's name at the bottom JAPAN in roman letters at the very bottom.

And in kanji. I've done this before in Minerva with No Problem.

Either this guy is a comedian or what but he gives me a hard time about the address being in kanji & he can't read it. He has "not enough info to work with." I say it'll work - Japan is the only thing they need to know. Give me a declaration form to fill out & it'll work. Once it gets to Japan, it'll be fine. So eventually he relents & gives me a form to fill out.

Gone are the simple green declaration stick on forms. This is a more involved form. And man do they have a huge list of stuff Japan does NOT want you to send there. No copyright infringing items? No knives, swords, cremated ashes unless properly documented & handled & sent to the proper place. The list is crazy. Oh - be sure to weigh the items you put in your parcel. They need to know that. Never mind the total weight with packaging.

Anywho, I have no problem filling it out. He serves a couple other customers while I do my form filling and when he's ready, I hand him the form. He keys in the stuff I wrote, double checks my bad hand writing & gets it done.

$33 to send it First Class International. Yikes. Have air mail post rates really gone up that much? How do senders from outside the U.S. charge so little?

Anywho, his printers print the stickers needed & a receipt. The customs form has a tracking number. After 8 years, it is sent.