From Alessandra in July. More postal questions

This is such a fun envelope. I'm not sue if there is a message. I like the cartouche (outline around the address. I like the penmanship. I especially like the red line with info below. Even though that space is where the bar code goes - I like having something written there. I need to research and find out if the barcode is printed with *magic* ink that is read by scanners. 

It doesn't make sense that people would need to read it. When am I going to get my postal questions answered? It seems like there are more and more questions popping up. If anyone knows of a place that tells us everything we need to know about the USPS - please share.

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During the conversation about why I get mail with no cancellation marks, my son suddenly remembered that he had heard (at the end of a recent shift) what the *count* was. The *count* is the amount of mail that had been processed on that shift. 70,000 pieces of mail. He did the math - 60-cents x 70,000 = $42,000. He was impressed - because that was just the letters. Some of that mail might have been bulk rate - I did not think to ask him. I think the bulk rate mail is processed somewhere else. I think the people who process bulk mail are the only ones who work normal hours - 8-5, five days a week. But, I could be wrong about that. 

The USPS makes a lot more on packages and express mail than they do on letters. While 60-cents per letter seems like a lot - we should all be happy that we can still send something for 60-cents. It's not like there is any other way that would happen. FedEx and UPS and even Amazon would never be able to get into the letter delivery business.