Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Swap Completed and a Lesson's Learned

*** Note - If you are looking for the Sew Stitchy Jelly Roll Giveaway you will find it here :)

The Tetris Color Charm Swap is complete!!!  The packages have all been mailed.  I had so much fun checking the mail each day to see what fun fabrics arrived.  Sorting was actually pretty enjoyable.  And I really didn't mind the organizing and so forth.  In fact . . . I loved just about every minute of this swap . . . That is up until the last 120 minutes.


And in the attempt to show the bad along with the good . . .  here's the story . . .  (Which could be subtitled What Happens When Melissa Doesn't Think.)

I arrived back in town on Sunday night.  I had a huge pile of packages that I sorted on Monday.  I was expecting the last 4 packages Monday evening.  The mail arrived and 3 packages were there.  Okay, slight panic.  But there is still a day to work with.  I packaged everything so that all I have to do is add the last 8 charms as soon as they arrive.   I wrote the last package owner and she assured me it was on it's way.   So no worries, everything will still be fine.  Still having fun at this point.


So today I go to check the mail . . . and you guessed it, no package!!  (Start the last 120 minutes)


I figure 2 things are against me now.  1 - The quilt-a-long starts on Tuesday (that's in 1 week) and 2 - I am going camping tomorrow. (so I can't really send packages)   So basically. . . I am out of time now. So, I decide to resort to my stash. There was no way I was going to hold up the entire quilt-a-long on one package.  I have some yard cut's in my stash so I iron them and lay them out on the cutting mat.  And I am in such a hurry that I cut the first row wrong!!!!  Grrr!!!


So . . . after totally kicking myself, I get some more stash and continue cutting. I finish cutting the charms, admire my completed stack for about 1 minute, bag the remaining charms, and put them in their designated envelopes, and then seal and tape all of the packages.   First lesson learned . . . The next swap, leave more time.  Set the deadline and then leave a good week of wiggle room.  (Down to about 90 minutes now)




I box up the packages and call my husband.  He will be home in 5 minutes, which is awesome as I don't have to take the kids to the post office!!!  The second my husband gets home I tell him I'm headed to the post office and I will be back in about 10 minutes.  I just have to run in and drop off all of these packages.



So I get to the post office and gladly there is no line.  I place my packages on the counter and tell them they need to be posted today if at all possible.  The clerk looks at the first package and informs me that I will need more postage.  I am confused as I know it is a flat rate envelope and there is enough postage on it.  She then informs me that the postage on it is VOID because it has been taped over.  HORROR!!!

In my haste to make sure none of your packages opened in transit, I taped them up super good.  I was super generous with the tape as some of the packages that came to my house were pretty hammered.  Here I am trying to make sure everything is just perfect, that they won't have to take time adding tape at the Post Office, and wham, it slaps me in the face.  (Please don't tell me that most people know this already :)

I was about to just start crying at the counter.  I wasn't up to forking out all that shipping and it made me sick to think they had already been paid for and I totally messed them up. So after a few panic moments,  I asked if I could try and peel  off the tape.  The clerk said I could try but they closed in 45 minutes.  (45 minutes left now.)

So there I was . . . over on a side counter trying to gently get the tape off of the stamps without ripping the stamps.  You can imagine some of the looks I was getting from other patrons.  The whole time I am just dangling somewhere between furious and devastated.  After 40 minuites (of what felt like 4 hours) I headed back up to the counter with my packages.   I managed to get all of the tape off on the packages but one.  (It decided not to cooperate and just rip off all together.)  I ran back up to the counter with 5 minutes to spare.

I watched them date stamp each one to make sure it was good to go!!!  A few they were a little hesitant on as a corner of the stamp had ripped or a little tiny piece of tape was still on it, but I think they took pity on me and let those ones slide.  After they said they were good to go I climbed in my car and started crying.  I think the stress was just needing to come out.

Major Lesson Learned - So . . .  For any of you out there that want to do a swap of your own some day . . . Remember, Never, ever, ever tape over the stamps!!!  (And yes, I am probably the only one that needed to learn that at the Post Office but just consider it a reminder :)


So that's the story.  And even with the crazy end . . . I am still so incredibly happy I hosted this swap.  It was a lot of fun.  And yup, I am starting to bat around the idea of another fabric swap.  (but not for a month or so.)  What kind would you like to see???
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33 comments:

  1. I wouldn't have known that either! Sounds like you are definitely ready for that camping trip.

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  2. That is total bull! I do this every single day and about 1/4 of the time I am out of label stickers and tape the whole darn thing down. They were just being mean. Argh I want to go over there and give them a piece of my mind!They say don't tape over the postage because the scanners don't read it as easily but the postage isn't void. Also if it ever happens again just know that you can get your money back if you printed it online it takes a few days but you can cancel it and they will refund your money.

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  3. I had NO idea that you couldn't tape over stamps. Thanks for the warning.

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  4. I think they were just being ridiculous. I have taped over stamps before and they have never said anything to me. They should still be able to scan or will still be visible. Sounds like a stressful day that could have been easily avoided if the post office workers just cut you a little slack. Hopefully you have a relaxing trip!

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  5. Melissa I really think every post office is different. I Brooklyn I learned this tape lesson the hard way...and the line there is always a two hours wait no matter the time of day. But since I've moved here to upstate NY no one has ever given me a hard time at the post office. AND I've received plenty of packages with tape on the postage. Grrrr... Go camping and take some deep cleansing breaths!

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  6. Melissa I really think every post office is different. I Brooklyn I learned this tape lesson the hard way...and the line there is always a two hours wait no matter the time of day. But since I've moved here to upstate NY no one has ever given me a hard time at the post office. AND I've received plenty of packages with tape on the postage. Grrrr... Go camping and take some deep cleansing breaths!

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  7. oh wow! I didn't really know that about the stamps, well it makes sense, but they could/should have given you a break....
    at least your swap is on time though. I had a regular swap -just for blocks- arrive back to me at least 4 or 5 months late, a few blocks missing and one block messed up that I couldn't use.... I LOVE swaps, but this was just NO fun!

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  8. Wow! I never heard that about the tape before. It would have been much more fun if you brought the kids with you and tried to get the tape off the packages!

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  9. Oh my goodness! What an ordeal! I'm so sorry that happened. Experience is always a good thing, I'm glad you learned from it! Thanks so much for all of your work in this!!

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  10. I agree with Jewel! I just dont tape over the barcode because of jerks like that. ALso remeber the date postage is printed and the date mailed doesnt have to be the same. I had some mail nazi in a tiny postoffice in the midwest refuse my postage causing my swap coordinator to pay more! Boy did I go online and complain. I had the postmaster from MY postoffice calling profusely to apologize and tell me how to get a refund. Sorry it ruined your fun.

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  11. Melissa,

    I totally understand what you experienced. I have lived all over the USA and each Post Office is so different. I am glad you enjoyed the swap.

    I also enjoy your blog. It is fun and inspiring.

    Have a great day.

    Linda F

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  12. Que chateação...Aproveite o seu acampamento, descanse e relaxe.Beijos.

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  13. Oh dear. We all learned a valuable lesson. Thank you.

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  14. HOW frustrating! I learned the hard way too...glad that part is over now - whew!

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  15. Oh Melissa, I was agonizing for you! So glad it had a somewhat happy ending. What an ordeal!!!! If you are up for another swap (though totally understandable if you take a long break after this one!), I would love to see an "I spy" swap with fun novelty fabrics!

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  16. I only know that because one of the gals I swap with was VERY addimante about it! I don't mail often (prior to this year and my bees and swaps and what not like ummm NEVER!) But I do have to say I am glad they were patient with you and even told you that you could untape them! But hey, it is done! You can breathe!! Relax! And have fun with the Tetris quilt now!! :o)

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  17. Oh no, you are not alone, been there and done that. and the crying too! Now have fun camping!

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  18. Oh No !!! You poor thing . How annoying.. I would have dryed too. Pleased you got them all sorted in time.
    Have fun camping.

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  19. I am sorry that it ended up being so stressful for you. Now the fun begins with the actual quilt along. Thanks for sharing your post office experience I will keep that in mind. I do think though that it really depends on where you go. We have a post office in a local grocery store that I prefer going to because the people in it don't actually work for the post office and they are so nice and helpful. Glad you did not have to pay for all that postage after we paid for our own. As far as I am concerned that is just mean of them to even expect that of you.

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  20. Wow. That was a bad 120 minutes. Putting on a swap seems like a big hassle. The people that participated are going to be so happy when they get their package. I was in a recent swap and when I got 5 yards of charm squares in rainbow colors I was ecstatic.

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  21. I didn't know about the no tape rule, either! You get an A+ in Perseverance and Adaptability.

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  22. Oh man, sorry to say, but I did know that, from someone else that did the exact same thing with a charm swap (so at least you know you're not alone!!!)

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  23. I definitely read enough tales of other swap hostesses to learn that this was a common issue when they took their packages to the post office - so sorry to hear that you had so many issues! I'm looking forward to hosting another swap myself, so I'll probably check back to see what other ideas people have! (The swap I just finished up, my first, was polka dots with coordinating kona solids!)

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  24. Boy I am ever sorry you had to go through all that. Did the last parcel ever show up? I am so excited to be starting this I can't tell you. Don't worry if my squares don't reach me by next Tuesday I can wait. Thank you so much for doing this you are one very sweet person.

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  25. Oh! What stress. I didn't know about the tape over stamps. Thanks for sharing this info. with us. That swap will produce some of the best quilts ever. Happy Camping!

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  26. Bless your heart! Sounds like quite an ordeal...I mailed a postcard 30+ years ago and put tape over the stamp. It was returned to me. At the time they explained that with tape over the stamp, a person could wipe off the postmark and reuse a stamp repeatedly. But like many have said, post offices seem to all have different rules...Have a lovely vacation.

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  27. I didn't know about tape and stamps either. What a horrible thing! At least they took pity on you in the end, right? I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see an i-spy swap. I've been wanting to make one for a while now but the idea of collecting a bunch of novelty prints is kind of daunting. A swap sounds perfect for that! Have fun camping! I'll be doing that in two weeks with my clan.

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  28. You poor thing! I would've cried too and probably not even waited til I got to the car! Even with you writing all this down I will still tape over it if I ever had to do this :(

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  29. Poor thing. Crying is very cathartic for one. Just remember there is no obstacle we cannot overcome. Stop, breath and start again.

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  30. Oh dear, time for a big hug!

    *HUUUUUUUUUUGGGGGGGGGG*

    Okay, now go and have fun on your camping trip!

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  31. We were all getting anxious just reading your post! What a trooper you are. So glad you didn't have to buy all that postage. Enjoy your get-away!

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  32. I feel your pain and your happiness. Thanks for the heads up on allowing enough time and tape and stamps etc. Looking forward to the Tetris quilt along. Think I'll try something different and love that you are so open to different.

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  33. Oh my goodness! I never knew about the tape thing, well I would have never thought of it at least when trying to send so many packages. I am so sorry this happened and glad to hear everything worked out. I got my package today, so hooray! Everything was fine with that one!

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Thank you so much for your sweet comments. I just love hearing from you!!
Have a Happy Quilting Day :)

Melissa