We have had our "regular" mail carrier for years. She is wonderful. Never an issue. Our house is about 150 feet from the road, so she always drives in if she has a package for us...but doesn't leave the mail at the door with the package unless there is a car in the driveway. Nothing is ever left out if it's raining. That being said....she does take a vacation now and then, and thaerein lies our problem. The substitute carriers are either very poorly trained, incompetent, or just plain lazy. We have had all our mail left in our neighbor's mailbox....including a package which I was notified had been delivered. It was...just not to us. Today was the worst. After a 25 day hold, our accumulated mail was to have been delivered today. We made sure we were home. Our regular carrier would have had all the mail in a USPS box, and brought it to the door.. That didn't happen. 25 days of mail, including 2 packages in plastic, multiple magazines, catalogs, and town newspapers were crammed in our (normal sized) mailbox, along with the regular assortment of important and non-important mail. The papers were folded in quarters, and had numerous tears in them. It was obvious that the mail had been shoved in in 3 installments, so to speak...there were 3 separate large piles....so tightly packed in that it was an effort to get them out. The carrier really had to work at getting everything in the box...anyone with any sense would have realized that it would have been faster, easier, and less damaging to our mail, to simply bring it to the house. Which is exactly what I told the EA Postmaster when I called to complain. I was told the substitute carrier (no surprise there) would be talked to about my complaint. Too bad she wasn't talked to...trained...before she set out on a route. read more