Introduction.

[Retired Old Postman]

I came across this site quite by accident but thought it worth a look. I retired fromRoyal Mail nearly 4 years ago but still have an interest in what goes on. I was chatting to a postman friend of mine the other day and he said that processing where he is had to work the Monday bank holiday night from midnight. I thought if you were on a five night week you had the bank holiday night off. I know I did.

Well I am not sorry to be out of it but I might put my pennyworth in at times.

Retired Old Postman

[ROCKY]

GOOD TO HAVE THE OLD GUARD ON BOARD,AND DONT BE SUPRISED AT ANYTHING YOU HEAR NOW ITS PROBABLY TRUE

S.N.A.F.U

[L Tommo]

Good to have you on here Sir.. Where did you serve your time?

Im glad you did happen to find this site, and as you say "put your pennysworth in" .

As for the 5 ngt week, RM took the pee out of us in my MC. like at Easter and the friday!
Hope you find this site a good laugh as well as informitive!!

OUT

DONT LET THE BOREDOM GRIND YA DOWN!!

[johnnyp]

Hello to you retired old postman, hope you are enjoying yourself and not getting up to early

[L Tommo]

Nice to see you on here bluey ... ENJOY!!

OUT

DONT LET THE BASTARDS GRIND YA DOWN!

[Retired Old Postman]

Well my thnaks for your good wishes.

I spent all my at Croydon, now don't all shout, that out of the bag.
I spent time on deliveries but mostly on nights.
I finished at the mail centre on nights.

Bored I'm not got plenty to do, and believe it not I do sometimes get up early, about 05:40 to make tea and take my wife to work when she has an early at the hospital.

My postman is new to the job, the last one got the sack for too much time off. He is very good but I never see my mail until about 11am, and I wonder why I don't usually get any mail on a Saturday??

I am going to the Nene Valley Railway for the Rail Mail weekend, with Postie Bob. Check out the site for details, http://www.nvr.org.uk/timetable/railmail.php I hope to be there all day on the Saturday and may be Sunday morning.
Loved the TPO's.

BTW any one else from Croydon area?

[POSTMAN]

Hello ROP you lucky bleeder got out in time by the sounds of it.

Anyways you get extra points if you manage to get in your posts...
'During the war','When i was a lad',and 'They don't make 'em like that anymore'

[KawasakiKid]

Glad it's the Retired Old Postman and not the Retired Old Tart. Love the Railway site, looks like it's a good day out.------------KWACK

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Jump in ROP it will be good for us newbies to get your point of view on how it was in "the good old days".

[Retired Old Postman]

What was it like in the old days. This may have to be a multi part thing.

Firstly deliveries.
Although I did my training, laugh at that if you will, in the old MLO, I decided I wanted to get to know what went on else where so I went on deliveries for a while. My first walk was a doddle, about 300 or so drops, yes it was easy, I could usually get it all in one pouch. Out on the bus by about 7am and done with the 'A' by about 8.30. into cafe for breakfast then back to office for cuppa. Back on sorting for 'B' then out about 11am. Never much on 'B' so sometimes we did double 'B' and the other chap went home.

Rebates, what you now call Mail Sort went on the 'B' but often took it on the 'A' so made more time.
Sometimes put rebates together with rebates from next door frames in a bag to con the PE, that is now JV, to give us overtime to deliver it all. Then put it back on the next frames. Talk about fun.

Later I had a walk that I lived on, so went home by 9am to watch TV and breakfast then back to the office for 'B'.

What fun, I know things have gone downhill now, saw some of it when I was on nights in delivery. That was fun, could pick up a walk on docket and split it with a friend. O/T was nice.

Remember one walk I split with a mate was a bit of sod, got lost as to which road I was in. Delivering nicely then found that the numbers did not make sense, found I was in the wrong road, it was a road my mate had the mail for.

Next night he said not to worry, he had picked up all or most of my missdelivered mail and done it for me. Lucky no one complained so that was all OK. I more careful after that, especially on deliveries I did not know.

The six nights were a pain with midnight start on Sunday night. Once I went over to the mail centre it was five nights. A nice break espeially on bank holidays.

Right that it for now may be another part later if I find time.

[TrueBlueTerrier]

Now crying through jealousy.