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We got up early, on a mission, to get to the post office to mail our invitation parcels. This required us to actually get in our car (which we rarely do) to drive out to suburban Virginia. We went to the main processing facility in Merrifield, where the service is always great and everyone is… well… merry!
On a very serious mission
We were happily greeted by this guy…
And this guy…
The clerk was very helpful and nice. Thankfully he said our labels and packaging (that we sweated over) were good enough to go through the system. He started weighing our parcels to print out postage, but suggested (after noticing the large amount that we had) it might be more efficient if we just bought stamps and applied them ourselves.
He even said, “I have some pretty ones for you,” after he realized that they were for our wedding. Sweet, huh? (They were images of a frozen lake, which, though beautiful, had nothing to do with us or our wedding.) I was just happy that it was only $1.86 for First Class postage. Supposedly they’ll get to their destination in about two days. So we stepped into the lobby and went to work.
Then we went back to our buddy, and he and Mr. P hand-canceled and stamped “First Class” to each package.
Then the manager came over to join the fun, and decided to give us advice on the most picturesque parks in the area. Apparently he often suggests for couples to visit these for the best photo ops. He then proceeded to tell us jokes that I didn’t quite understand and mentioned that after he retires from the Postal Service, a career in wedding photography awaits him. Such a character! A sort of folksy(er) and friendly (young) Wilfred Brimley!
“Wilfred” explaining something to us
This is what each package looked like after the canceling and stamping. Very messy. I’m glad we didn’t pay for calligraphy just so it would be ruined by this….
For the invites heading abroad, we put them, as I previously mentioned, in equally ugly yellow envelopes.
But rather than paying $20 to send a parcel, we only had to pay $2 per envelope! So I guess I don’t mind that our overseas guests will not see the invitation boxes.
So happy to be done! We left in a very good mood… and I guess it was contagious, because as we got into our car, Wilfred showed up! He had followed us out… He offered/insisted that he take a picture of us (as he is a budding wedding photographer and all–and told us another story about how he took pictures at his cousin’s wedding)!
Happy to be done with the invites!
And as he waved goodbye, Wilfred reminded us to come back to the post office after the wedding to show him our pictures. I didn’t catch his real name…
Like I said, very merry at the Merrifield post office!
LOL! Wilfred sounds like such a character! I love that you were able to capture pictures of your, um, interesting invitation-mailing experience!
That sounds like the best post office experience EVAH!
Congrats on finishing your invites! And it sounds like you had quite the adventure at the post office 
What a nice guy, which they were that nice around here. Yay on your invites going out!
What a great postal experience! It’s always nice to be helped by friendly workers. I’ve had many not so nice encounters at my local post office. I also love the photo documentation of sending your invites.
I have to Merrifield all the time to mail pamphlets for work and they ARE very helpful Congrats on having your invites done and out!
lucky you! i’ve almost NEVER had a good experience at the merryfield PO. and i can’t believe it would have cost $20 to mail the pretty little boxes overseas!
What a fun experience. Your guests are going to be thrilled to get those in the mail.
Merrifield is my post office of choice as well… I don’t understand how the employees stay so jovial when they get SO much foot traffic every day! If I have something important to mail out, I always drive the 15 minutes to get there instead of going to the Courthouse post office!
That has got to be the most pleasant post office experience I have ever read about! Congrats on sending them off!!
It’s nice to hear about a good post office experience. My dad works at the post office, so it always makes me sad to read that people think they’re all jerks.
On the other hand, I think I may get preferential treatment because everyone at our local post office watched me grow up.
That sounds like a unique pleasant USPS experience! I think I’ll make the trip on 66 to Merrifield when it’s time to send out my invites too!
Wow, its wonderful that the end of your invite saga ended so easily…congrats on getting your invites sent!
LOL sounds like fun….at least Williard..I hope i have that much fun on my visit
you two are just too cute for al ittle post office errand, Miss P!
it’s good to hear a pleasant, wedding-related USPS story!
I mailed my invites at the Merrifield post office too and the staff was just as helpful and cheerful as you describe. They didn’t bat an eyelash when I asked if I could hand cancel the invites and said that they could do it instead. Two employees spilt them up and had them done in no time! I was sending quite a few invites abroad as well and they recommended some pretty postage for me. Tip for DC brides, this post office is open during off hours, so it can be a life saver - I mailed mine on a Saturday night.
I am definitely going to hand cancel my invites myself! I’m afraid they’ll ruin them!
For stamps I made my own with the USPS stamp maker program thing. I love that my stamps will match the invites!
You two are so cute! Lucky you to find a merry postal worker, too! I was lucky to get the guy to even make eye contact with me when I went in. & of course, he completely messed them up. grr.
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Mrs. Perfume, DC Age and Occupation: 36, Consultant (and Part-Time Professor) Fiance's Age and Occupation: 41, Consultant Engagement Date: May 13, 2008 Wedding Date: May, 2009 Venue: The Homestead, Hot Springs, Virginia About Me: I'd like to think that I'm a modern day Little Edie Beale. Only not as..."talented". More realistically, I'm a foodie who can't bake; a dancer and dilettente; an art collector with a penchant for the whimsical and subversive. I live in the city and adore the country, but not much in between. I like smart design, great craftmanship and good value. Most of all, I love the new vintage aesthetic: classic, sweet, delicate, bespoke. If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for a culinary arts degree rather than a PhD; but wouldn't trade Mr. P for the world.
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