How The Post Office Will Survive

In Connecticut: Post office charges family postage for block party invites.

The Sickles, of East Hampton, thought nothing of slipping notes in the neighbors' mailboxes about an upcoming Halloween block party, until the U.S. Postal service stepped in.

The couple had no idea it's against postal code regulations to leave notices in  residential mailboxes unless they have postage.

The U.S. Postal service charged the Sickles 44 cents for postage for all 80 invites they placed around their Royal Oak neighborhood.

"One Monday I had a note it is illegal to put these in mailboxes.  Day 2 I had a bill for assumed 80 in the box, times 44 cents for the stamp," said Jeff Sickle. "I haven't paid it yet. I'm trying to have the conversation that no one is willing to have."

That's $35.20 the Post Office wouldn't have earned. It probably cost them $350 to investigate it and do the billing, but that's how things work at the Post Office.