[time-nuts] Be aware of test equipment seller

[gary]

USPS Priority uses FEDEX jets in off hours. That is, FEDEX does the 
overnight, but their jets are used during the day for the post office. 
Checking the wiki, the contract runs until 2013.

Given a choice, I always go USPS to my PO Box. It is fast and cheap. The 
PO Box takes a day or two off the delivery and one less carrier to ruin 
the shipment.

It is well known that Fedex Air can be sent to their offices for pickup. 
[Commonly used for the field service business.] Not quite as well known, 
but UPS will allow customer pickups as well. The procedure is pretty 
simple. Have the package shipped to

YOUR NAME
UPS CUSTOMER CENTER ADDRESS
Hold for pick up.
YOUR PHONE NUMBER

If you don't indicate "Hold for pick up", there is a chance they might 
think it is a package for UPS itself, like a Dell computer or some other 
bit of office equipment. I suppose leaving your phone number is 
optional, but they phone me, which saves the effort of having to go to 
the tracking website.

It has to be a staffed UPS customer center, not some vendor that does 
UPS. The addresses are on their website. The advantage is again, one 
less person in the chain to damage the package, plus you and UPS get to 
view the package together.

The UPS tracking system will flag that the package is being held. You 
have a week to pick it up else it gets returned to the sender.

Make really sure nobody on the senders end does something stupid like 
send the package via FEDEX to UPS. Yep, it has happened.