Yesterday morning at 9 am I was standing outside the FedEx depot door when it opened, (it is a hundred mile round trip.) I did all that was necessary to have it shipped, including paying with an arm and a leg. I handed my precious envelope to a surly lady behind the computer. Explained that this needed to go as fast as humanly possible (She grimaced at the screen not answering me).
I tried to make conversation with the man standing in line behind me but he reared his horsey head up at the sound of a foreign accent, exchanging a glance with the surly woman over my head saying – What? What? So I fell into silence and turned my eyes to the bright pictures of smiling spruced people bending with purpose, caught by the camera swiftly handing clean packages into polished planes and waited for her computer to start spitting out bloody paper.
Now look at that screen again. All that rushing and driving was for nothing. I paid for urgent overnight (which actually means 48 hours) and it sits in the office ALL day. Not even shipped.
On my return I farmed, and cleaned and sorted and heaved. I sat with the piglets training them to drink water from a spigot.
I let the sheep into the July field and told Daisy that the rubbish paddock was really not that bad and please don’t lean over the fences. Her udder is cool to a fast knuckle touch which is good. I mowed, weeded and picked dinner, though everything has slowed down with this cool weather, we have not been out of the low seventies in days. And I checked the fedEx tracking screen again and again waiting for movement. Maybe they just don’t update it in real time I thought.
Good morning. I checked the FedEx tracking screen this morning and our package finally moved and was sent to Indianapolis at 9pm last night. If it is going to London why was it on a truck to Indianapolis? By 3. am this morning it was back in transit to parts unknown.
Ah well. They have promised that it will be in London by lunchtime on Wednesday. I guess to fulfill this promise they have to drive it all over America for a day or so! Big breaths. It will be alright. Sometimes we are pushed in a direction we do not want to go in and our suitcases need to sit packed and forlorn a little longer waiting for the destination we had hoped for. The timing still might work if I aim to fly out Friday afternoon. What is very important now is that I make this time count. So today I am taking the tractor through to the yards and I am going to give it a good clean up. Sheila will be happy, she goes into the yards to hoover up mulberries and now that Daisy does not wait there every day to be milked it would be nice if it was cleaned as it will stay clean and the mulberries will be tastier.
Then I am going to get the long nails and my big hammer with the fat head because I am hopeless at hammering – Why are the heads of nails so small? – and I am going do repairs on the fences.
But first I shall pop into the FedEx screen again and see whether my package has moved. Tracking is hell.
Have a lovely day.
your impatient friend, celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
70 responses to “Tracking is Hell”
Still sending magic thoughts for a very speedy arrival and a very speedy stamp of approval and then an even speeder return to you!!!!
Linda
http://coloradofarmlife.wordpress.com
Cinders, like John said when you dropped off Charlotte to have a stay over with her boyfriend…step away from that donkey…I mean computer!! 🙂 It will all be ok, how could it not with the Farmy Fellowship all sending these good, speedy, vibes your way?? 🙂
The photo of lil piggy out in the garden calmed me right down after seeing the tracking slip! AAACCCKKK!!
The porch looks divine! You need to go sit there with a glass (bottle) of wine….aahh, that’s better!
If I knew you were coming I’d bake a cake…I live only 15 miles from Kankakee, and agree about the poster above who said that is life on the prairies. Not an excuse, just an explanation. If there is a next time, let me know ahead of time, and we’ll meet up at Barnes and Noble for some tea. I’m going to be positive and say you WILL be on that plane!
Oh Barnes and Noble for a cup of tea sounds just grand..How lovely. I shall let you know! c
I have done the same thing with inward.
Of course, the process is physically easier than the other kind I have done – following little marks in the dirt for long distances just for a sighting. Once I was so intent on the spoor that I got right into the centre of a resting herd of wildebeest without noticing. They seemed to think I was harmless.
You should definitely complain to FedEx if they haven’t met the delivery promise, that is so frustrating. I usually ship by Canada Post or USPS, I’ve found them to be quite inexpensive and dependable!
The photo of the pig is adorable, it’s as if she/he is posing. How was the wedding in Alberta?
At the moment i may not be able to make the wedding because the fed ex package is an urgent application for a passport as i discovered mine is expired. I have to send it to NZ house in London. How i let that happen i have no idea! And I have just discovered that the package is already in GB.. so far so good!!
That’s too bad, but I hope it all works out for you. Years ago my friend Kim was leaving the next day for a trip down south, she hadn’t realized that she too needed a passport, so we asked one of the partners who worked a lot with Ottawa (our capital) to expedite and low and behold he did, she had her valid passport by the same afternoon. It can be done! Fingers crossed for you.
Good news that it is in GB!
Hang in there and stay busy as you can because yes tracking your package of such importance is the worst. I used to haul US Mail in a semi 🙂 I would drive down to NYC/NJ line and swap trailers with a man who came up from MD with New England’s mail but I swear I DROVE FAST!!!! lol
I have noticed a few fast truckies in my time and now that one has my passport application in it I am happy for you all to zoom about.. c
🙂 I knew I could get you to smile 🙂 Nothing else you can do you hopefully found the error in time and can fly out soon or I could have a trucker smuggle you out of the country though usually hoards are smuggle IN 🙂
Smuggling has come up rather often in the comments today!! c
🙂
Good Day,
Your envelope went to Indy because FedEx has one of their national hubs there. The one in Memphis is a “super” hub and then they have a half dozen or so other hubs scattered around the US.The postal service has a huge mail hub there too or at least they did. My husband hauled mail to and from that hub for awhile. The Express office you went to had a scheduled pickup time by a van/truck for sending overnight packages. Your envelope was probably scheduled to hop a plane out of Chicago to Indianapolis then catch another to overseas. I think FedEx goes directly to the UK now from Indy, it use to be that the packages would go to Paris then out to Western Europe. Soon your package should just reverse the process. Be sure you watch for the out for delivery designation. I don’t know about Express but on the Ground side it would most likely be a direct signature required, meaning only you can sign for the delivery and receive the package, Thinking clear weather and fast thoughts for your passport.
In reading your post yesterday I kept thinking this so sounds like something I would have happen. I seem to have hit that age where my short term memory has gone on vacation or an extended holiday. Hopefully it will return nicely refreshed one day.
They have allowed me to send it to another address so that i can have it delivered in Chicago.. and i shall collect it on the way to my plane, that way it avoids a days worth of rural handling.. and i can travel UP on that day.. hope he can sign for it, they said he could and the good news is as you said it flies direct to the UK and is there right now! So lets see what happens next! Thanks for the info though.. much appreciated.. c
It’s like watching your pregnant animals…don’t look!
very true, trying not to look! Britain is asleep now though so nothing will happen until the early hours.. our early hours anyway.. c
Sigh. It’s like watching bread rise or waiting for water to boil, isn’t it? Sorry it’s so frustrating, Celi. Still have everything crossed that it will work out ok in the end! xx
here i am worring about someone that i will never meet in person
and i am on the edge of my seat, making every excuse to come back in house to check on updates on your paperwork
wish you the best
I truly hope everything comes through on time. Having a whole bunch of critters I know how much organizing it takes to be able to go away, therefore ANY trip is precious. As far as the nails – with the advent of rechargeable drills I’ve totally ditched using nails. I have a good collection of all different lengths of screws for outdoor use (deck screws) and I find repairs much easier than with nails. It’s also much easier when you find you have to disassemble something!
very good point, maybe someone will give me a drill for christmas… c
I hope the Brits are giving it their best, and Fedex come to the party for the return trip. It’s awful, nail biting stuff just waiting, having no control, hoping… all will be well etc 😉
How nerve-wracking all this is. What good advice you are getting. I’m amazed how much knowledge there is in the Fellowship. You are being held and supported. No matter what the outcome, we are all with you!
This feels like one of those old fashioned films where the heroine is tied to the tracks of the oncoming train, and as we agonise over will she be rescued in time, that episode ends, and we have to wait another week to see if the train stops or she is freed !
I actually have a feeling you’re going to make it Celi… so much energy from around the world going into this…thinking of you NOt watching the pot !!!!
Nice shot of the piglet. I didn’t know you have a screened porch. It does look inviting. Maybe a nice hammock…