Parcels of Knowledge

In this episode we discuss many undelivered mail cases, both wins and losses, to see what some have done right, and what was lacking in others. Lets get some more wins guys!

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The Nixie is back! In Episode 2 of this Parcels of Knowledge series, I take a look at one of those postal objects that makes almost no sense until you rebuild the job around it: the letter carrier’s handheld door knocker.

In “The Postman Always Knocked Twice: Door Knockers, Whistles, and the Long Wait at the Door,” we go back to the early days of free city delivery, when bringing the mail to someone’s house did not necessarily mean there was a mailbox waiting for it. Carriers knocked, rang bells, shouted, and eventually used whistles to announce their arrival, then stood there waiting for somebody to come to the door. We look at the little wooden knockers carriers used to save their knuckles, the double knock that became a recognizable postal signal, the whistles carriers used to save time, and just how much of the workday could disappear while waiting for customers to answer.

From there, the story gets bigger. We follow the gradual rise of household mailboxes and mail slots, the Post Office Department’s attempts to standardize them, the eventual requirement that customers provide somewhere for the mail to go, and how that simple change transformed the delivery point from a person standing behind a door into a piece of permanent infrastructure. We even take a short trip to London and Montreal, where postal workers were wrestling with many of the same problems.

Have an idea for a future Nixie, something weird sitting around your office that you have always wondered about, or an old postal term nobody seems to use anymore? Reach out to me at [email protected].

Here is also the companion research report for anyone interested in the sources, history, and additional information behind this episode: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ExZFN-ItVzBgSbzz6xUcMO8HMgj6XNHkc8Mlw7tBTag/edit?usp=sharing

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This week on The Last Loop, Jamie covers September 26–October 2, 2026, as new Arrow Key accountability language moves into the M-41 and an OIG audit offers a timely reminder that what the scanner says does not always match what is happening on the workroom floor.

We also look at NALC election replacement ballot deadlines, the Federal Retirement Fairness Act, the latest Postal Record and Postal Bulletin, OIG findings on delayed mail, rural delivery, USPS finances, and leased facilities, along with an administrative leave arbitration win and two delayed-mail cases worth another look. Plus, we check in on the rural craft, the other postal unions, labor activity outside USPS, new stamps, and another very crowded week in the postal podcast world.

Then we look ahead to the October 5 NALC election checkpoint and other developments to watch before heading to Lansing, Michigan, for this week’s Local Loop, where letter carrier Jack Grossman was honored for an incredible sixty years of service. Underneath it all is one lesson that keeps showing up this week: keep the record, because whether it is an Arrow Key, delayed mail, a grievance, or a route, the paperwork needs to tell the same story as what actually happened.

For this week’s companion report: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XdKmY5KqS-NM9X4bDdwiRhJQyWDpIc8TCNHoxDDUADQ/edit?usp=sharing

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On this episode we go over another Undelivered Mail Win!!!

If you want to join the wrecking crew follow the link below:

www.patreon.com/parcelsofknowledge

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What happens when somebody tells you, “The union has always taken this position,” or “That goes all the way back to the 1970 strike”? In the first episode of Footnotes, the Minion from the Old Dominion follows the trail to the Walter P. Reuther Library at Wayne State University, home of the official historical archives of the National Association of Letter Carriers.

We look at how the Reuther became one of North America’s major labor archives, how archival research actually works, and what NALC members can find inside its collections; presidential papers, City Delivery records, grievance and arbitration material, convention records, photographs, historic artifacts, and much more. Along the way, we talk finding aids, boxes and folders, what can be researched from home, what requires a trip to Detroit, and why primary sources still need to be questioned instead of treated as gospel.

This is the idea behind Footnotes: trust, but verify. A citation should not just be a number at the bottom of a page. It should be a trail somebody else can follow. Because the footnote is not where the boring stuff goes. It is where the receipts live.

For the companion report click here: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1keGvcJ6U5LTKMZU2SD0CoFfMnliOJkKlwYimmQlASso/edit?usp=sharing

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This week on The Last Loop, Jamie covers September 19–25, 2026, as USPS tests several changes that could affect the workroom floor, including afternoon Amazon delivery, deferred Marketing Mail, vehicle cameras, scanner updates, new package barcodes, and continued network changes.

We also look at the OIG’s report on counterfeit postage, an important workers’ compensation warning, NALC election ballot deadlines, updates from the other postal unions, labor solidarity, and highlights from the increasingly crowded postal podcast world.

Then we look ahead to the September 29 launch of the Amazon PM Delivery Pilot before heading to Sycamore, Pennsylvania, for this week’s Local Loop, where the loss of a Post Office lease shows how one small facility can make a big difference to the community it serves.

For this week's companion report: https://docs.google.com/document/d/18L7rpSaZ2ERDI2cNUPuwCDCE27WCKXasG1VtXfmTKuA/edit?usp=sharing

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In this episode we talk about mutual exchanges and transfers.

If you want to join our wrecking crew check the following link:

Parcels Of Knowledge — A podcast dedicated to delivering education to letter carriers | Patreon

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today we have Mike Brim on for his candidacy for Region 11 NBA. Does he have what it takes to get your vote? you decide.

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Vincent Sombrotto went from a rank-and-file letter carrier with no union office to president of the NALC in just eight years — but the road there was anything but simple.

In this episode of The Backstamp, Jamie Gregory looks at Sombrotto’s rise from the Great Postal Strike of 1970 through Branch 36, the National Rank-and-File Movement, bitter internal fights, election losses, democratic reforms, and his eventual victory in 1978. Along the way, we ask what really counts as leadership experience, whether union elections were any less contentious then than they are today, and what Sombrotto’s story can teach us about our own messy union democracy.

The episode closes with a personal reflection on fighting passionately for the candidates we believe in without forgetting that, when the election is over, we are still brothers and sisters who have to stand shoulder to shoulder — followed by a message submitted by Region 7 NBA candidate Elliot Simmons on accountability, competition, civility, and unity.

For those interested in the companion research report: https://docs.google.com/document/d/11liYKizQ4gOUeWVyBgIVeJkwzUsJEZOzIzRIB30Zzxs/edit?usp=sharing

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The Return of LEWWWWW!!! Drass: Investigative Interview Part II

Lew Drass returns to Parcels of Knowledge, and this time Jamie Gregory gets the chance to sit down with him for a longer conversation about his record, his campaign for NALC President, and what he believes needs to change inside the union.

We get into his years as a steward, Branch President, Region 8 National Business Agent, Director of City Delivery, and National Vice President; how he says he brought a divided Region 8 together; his role in the aftermath of the Das award and the creation of the CCA workforce; contract arbitration and bargaining transparency; the grievance backlog; M-01769 and management projections; route inspections; steward training; safety; member participation; and his ideas for rebuilding the grievance procedure and making more union resources available to the rank and file.

We also give Lew room to respond to criticism, explain what he believes he should and should not be held accountable for, and answer questions submitted by letter carriers. As usual, the goal is not to tell anyone how to vote. It is to give carriers a chance to hear the candidate explain his own record, priorities, and plans in his own words.

And yes — LEWWWWW!!! is back.

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