Pennsylvania Man Really Loves Forever Stamps

You might think I’m a little odd for writing about the Forever Stamp oh so much, and that’s fine. (I just really love bureaucracies, alright?) You might think I’d be done with the post office, but no. To quote Goodtimes, I really think this is the thing that’s going to get me into stamp collecting.

Plus, I knew one day some idiot would buy a whole bunch of stamps, giving me an easy post on a morning when I’m working on other things.

And here we go: Some dude in Camp Hill, Pa., bought $8,000 worth of the new forever stamps. That’s 19,512 stamps (and change), and now this all this man has to do is hope postage rates go up to $20 for a first-class letter.

Man pays $8,000 to stick with today’s stamp price [The Patriot-News]

No, Really: Postal Rate Increase Causes Confusion, Anger

Turns out I was wrong; the post office apparently can’t handle a little postal rate increase without mass chaos and looting after all!

Today is the official day of the long-awaited move to a 41-cent stamp. (For philatelists across the country, this is their Christmas. Uh, I guess.) That move is expected to be rather simple besides a few returns to sender. But for pretty much everything else, it’s going to be a disaster.

The post office is changing rates based on not just the weight of an item but also the shape. And they’re pissing off junk mailers¹, which means you know it’s a good idea.

The Direct Marketing Association in New York is “very, very unhappy,” said spokeswoman Stephanie Hendricks. “The rates go into effect on Monday under protest.”

If the protest is upheld by the commissioner, the game will restart in the sixth inning with the score tied at 3 and two men on for the Direct Marketing Association.

But just because the new regulations are kind of confusing doesn’t mean you can’t have fun with it, according to Postal Service spokesman Dave Partenheimer:

“Before, thickness didn’t matter,” he said. Now, “thickness does come into play. If it gets too thick you create a new shape.”

See, it’s just like we’re kids again: We get to work with shapes!

Size matters, so does shape under new postal rates [AP/CNN.com]
May 11: Postal Rate Increase To Cause Confusion, Panic

¹ The Post Office used to have this hilarious website where it responded to every last knock on the United States Postal Service with a snippy letter. It seems to be gone now, but one I can remember asked the paper to refer to junk mail as “commercial mail.”

Postal Rate Increase To Cause Confusion, Panic

Today is one of the last days you will be able to mail a stamp for simply 39 cents: On Monday the cost of mailing a first-class letter will go up to 41 cents.

For those of you not smart enough to purchase the Forever Stamp, you will have to pay a full 41 cents for a first-class letter. If this somehow confuses you, that’s okay:

If a customer has any questions, [USPS spokeswoman Cathy] Yarosky says, postal clerks will be able to easily explain the new guidelines starting Monday.

I’d suggest if you have problems figuring out a two-cent postal rate increase, you best just stay home.

Starting Monday, You’ll Need 41 Cents to Mail a Letter [KYW 1060]

Company Spends $24K On New Stamp

And you thought you were excited about the new Forever Stamp! Jetmaker Dassault Falcon Jet has purchased $24,000 on the stamp for use in a junk mail campaign.

The stamps, a spokesman says, caught the eye of the company because their corporate jets are built to last, though they don’t necessarily last for an indefinite amount of time. They do, though, cost up to $40 million, so clearly buying 58,536 stamps isn’t really a big expense.

“When the ‘forever’ stamp was launched, we saw a natural tie with the long-term value of our Falcon business jets,” a spokestool told the Inquirer.

Meanwhile, 84-year-old Harry Kaplan doesn’t have the Internet or whatever, so he went down to get a stamp for his collection. He bought seven sheets and 40 commemorative envelopes to trade with other philatelists. (Nearly every writer uses this word in stories about stamps, even though it’s never used in everyday life and isn’t technically correct — collecting stamps is different than philately — and I like to moo along with the rest of the herd.)

Kaplan is a collector of a autographs on stamped envelopes, sort of a fetish for the stamp collecting world. His best one?

“I got a Connie Mack autograph on a letter that was sent to his funeral director thanking him for burying his wife,” he said.

Connie’s original plans were, of course, to trade his late wife to the Phillies, who were really short at third base that year.

‘Forever’ stamp debuts here; jetmaker buys 24,000 [Inquirer]
Archives: Forever Stamp

New Stamp Mania Spreads Across Philadelphia

The greatest day of our lives is finally here. Today, the forever stamp goes on sale.

The Inquirer’s Peter Mucha is all over America’s newest stamp today, which will sell for 41 cents and be able to mail a first-class letter no matter what the rate is. He writes at 7:30 the USPS officials “speechified about their latest first-class stamp” at the Liberty Bell at 7:30, is on the actual stamp.

The stamp bears the Liberty Bell because the stamps are giving people the liberty to no longer buy 1- or 2-cent stamps, and also because it gives them the liberty to give the post office a ton of money right away so they can horde stamps. Then they can lose the stamps, and the post office gets all that cash without having to send any letters.

It’s genius, I tell you. This “Forever” stamp is even more clever than we all originally thought.

‘Forever’ stamp has national kickoff at Liberty Bell this morning [Inquirer]
Yesterday: New Stamp To Make Life Worthwhile

New Stamp To Make Life Worthwhile

We are only one day away from the official on-sale date of the U.S. Post Office’s “Forever” stamp, which will be good for mailing one (1) first class letter even if the post office jacks up rates to $500 a letter.

This is ending the apparently tedious practice of having to go buy 1- or 2-cent stamps whenever the post offices raises the cost of sending a letter. For me, by the time they actually raise postal rates I’ve lost whatever book of stamps I had purchased a year before. Also, who sends letters?

Even better, the new “forever” stamp features our very own Liberty Bell! And, tomorrow, the post office is even celebrating the new stamp’s arrival:

Postal Service spokeswoman Cathy Yarosky says a special ceremony at the Liberty Bell pavilion will mark the occasion, and a center city post office will serve as a central distribution point:

“We’re going to have a special booth and retail table set up Thursday morning, beginning about 8am, at the William Penn Annex post office, which is located at 9th and Market Streets in downtown Philadelphia.”

Finally, something to get excited about in this city. Well, more excited about than a peace rally turning violent, at least.

New Liberty Bell ”Forever” Stamp Goes On Sale Thursday [KYW 1060]
Peace Rally Turns Violent in West Philadelphia [KYW 1060]

Liberty Bell To Receive Nation’s Greatest Honor

Yes, my friends, the rumors are true: The Liberty Bell will finally make an appearance on a stamp. Or possibly will again make an appearance on a stamp. Or possibly will make its umpteenth appearance on a stamp.

But, anyway, yes, the Liberty Bell will join such luminaries as Skinny Elvis, John Muir and possibly Beetle Bailey on a new stamp. It was unveiled today at the National Postal Forum, a gathering of companies in the mailing industry. I mention this because, well, no matter how much you hate your job today, at least you weren’t at the National Postal Forum for the unveiling of a new Liberty Bell stamp.

The stamp will not carry a price, even though it will cost 41 cents when it goes on sale April 12. It will simply say “FOREVER,” and will work to mail a U.S. letter, uh, forever. No more two-cent stamps! I’m going to stockpile these stamps and sell ‘em in 2050 and be rich, I tells ya. Rich!

Philly Site Chosen For Scene Of ‘Forever’ Stamp [AP/NBC 10]