Metropol

I don't post many letters these days. The only time seems to be forms from companies which require a proper signature, for which they usually supply a "postage paid" envelope. I used to keep stamps in my wallet at one time, but they seem to be redundant now.

I used the post box (a bog standard "E II R" one) at the top of the road last week. Normally I would've just taken it into work and placed it in the "out tray". But I had a week off and was out walking the mutt on a nice summer afternoon.

My postman is quite nice, he drops a christmas card through everyone's door each year - so I know his name is David. If he is early and I happen to pass him on the way to the bus at 07:20 he will happily hand me my letters as he knows who I am, although I suppose it's wrong to do that and he would get in trouble if the Post Office knew.

StuartPlymouth wrote:I used to keep stamps in my wallet at one time, but they seem to be redundant now.

I've just looked in my drawer, here, and I've still got almost fifty, orange, first class stamps from my last bulk buy, which must have been in either 1999 or 2000, just before I got the hang of internet banking and suddenly almost stopped using the things.

I'm doing quite well, because I would have bought them at whatever the going rate was at the time and they continue to be valid because they just say "1st" on them. I doubt I'll ever have to buy any more firsts in my lifetime.

It's seconds we still have to buy each year, for the dreaded Christmas cards.

The stamps are next to my cheque book, which I see the bank printed in January 2001. The last cheque I wrote was in February this year, before that it was one in 2006, one in 2005 and a whole three in 2004.

The regular cheque was always for Car Tax at the Post Office, but even that's gone online now.

The times they are a changin'.

Nick Harvey wrote:The stamps are next to my cheque book, which I see the bank printed in January 2001. The last cheque I wrote was in February this year, before that it was one in 2006, one in 2005 and a whole three in 2004.
The regular cheque was always for Car Tax at the Post Office, but even that's gone online now.

I too had a quite an ancient cheque book, issued in 2000. I had to ask for another one in 2004 because I couldn't find it. It transpired I had only issued 3 cheques during that time. Even though I only used one cheque from the latest book they sent me another one this year after Woolwich finally moved my account to their parent company Barclays in May 2007. I don't intend to use them.

I notice that Sainsburys have become to latest retail outlet to stop taking cheques now. M&S and a few other big names stopped a while ago.

Esso has just stopped taking cheques too.

StuartPlymouth wrote:M&S and a few other big names stopped a while ago.

M&S still take them. Remember their clientèle is stuffy old women who like such annoyances and therefore they might hang on to them a bit longer.

I keep five first-class letter-size stamps in my wallet.

Hymagumba wrote:

StuartPlymouth wrote:M&S and a few other big names stopped a while ago.

M&S still take them. Remember their clientèle is stuffy old women who like such annoyances and therefore they might hang on to them a bit longer.

Hyma, I have to admit that you are correct.

I was relying on my rather scant recollection of the Business News bulletin on Friday morning's BBC Breakfast.
Asda, Boots, WH Smith, Next, Shell, Currys and PC World have now stopped taking cheques. M&S still do indeed take cheques, even from stuffy old women who oddly don't smell of urine like all others of that age.