mail delivery horrors (and what to do about it)

there's already been a lot of bitching on this board about erratic mail delivery in 11238, but if anything it seems to have gotten worse. i can't tell you the amount of mail in my box that's for neighbors or for the same house number on another street (note to usps: park and prospect are different streets!), nor the mail i know has been sent but never arrives.

because anyone who lives here is going to be on both sides of this equation (the recipient of other people's mail as well as the loser or his or her own), it makes sense for all of us to take the extra minute to redirect misdelivered mail.

a few suggestions:

1. discard any mail that's not first class. (apologies to lovers of catalogs and credit card solicitations.) note that metered mail can still be first class (it frequently says "presorted first class"). mail that is stamped "presorted standard" is junk.

2. write on the envelope "delivered to wrong address--please redeliver" or something like that. that tells the letter carrier why a piece of canceled mail is waiting to be picked up, and alerts both the carrier and the recipient that the usps got it wrong the first time.

3. place the mail wherever the carrier picks up your mail or drop in a street pickup box.

writing or calling the postmaster is probably also a good idea (postmaster, 11238, or 718-783-2444), although they tend to be rude and unhelpful.

if anyone has any other suggestions, please tell. mainly, i just want to get my mail.

(and if anyone sees a wedding invitation sent to me a couple of weeks ago, would you please resend it?)

thanks.