I sort of have an idea what it was (they were scheduled only to be delivered next week!!) and since they were pretty important documents, we decided to go pick it up from the FedEx office after dinner. I called the 1-800 number and asked when we could go pick it up(the door tag said anytime until 9pm). He said to go only after 8pm, so ok, 8pm it is then. We had to drive to Dowd Avenue in Elizabeth to pick it up. It's actually very close to the port where Kevin works. It was a pretty big facility and there wasn't really any signs to show us where to go.
So, we drove up to the guard house, hoping to ask the security guard to point us to the correct direction or to let us in. She just totally ignored us! She refused to even look at us, just pretending that there wasn't anybody there! Very very weird. Anyway, we thought that maybe it was the wrong entrance, so we turned around and tried to look for another entrance. The whole facility looked like a prison camp, with barb wires all over the chain link fence. At last when we were certain that there were no other entrances, so we headed back to the first one that we went to.
We parked outside and walked towards the guard house. By then, it was already around 8:30pm. There was a lady there, using a phone in front of the guard house. She asked us if we were trying to pick up a package too and we said yeah. It seems that we are supposed to use that phone, call a certain number and give them our tracking or door tag number. Then, we would be able to get in. Anyway, this poor lady was having some problems, nobody was picking up the phone and she was holding on for the longest time. Meanwhile, the evil mean old lady security guard was screaming at her, saying that she is holding up the line. The security guard tried to call from her guard house and she managed to get through. She then screamed at the top of her lungs at the poor lady, asking why she is lying to her, that she managed to get through, so why isn't the lady able to get through? Like doh! You think the lady likes standing there in the cold and pretend to have problems getting through? Why would she lie to you? The security guard is so mean and dumb. She acts like this is some maximum security prison or something like that. Anyway, that lady got through in the end and so did we. The voice on the other line told us to go back to our cars and wait for further instructions. Like whoaaa...okay.
We sat in the car waiting for like another 15 minutes or so. By then, there was a whole bunch of other people, just sitting in their cars, waiting for further instructions. Soon after, evil old woman security guard and another guy told everybody to get in line and we had to show them some sort of identification before they allowed us to drive into the FedEx lot. We were also given strict instructions on where to park and stuff like that.
Beyond that point, I didn't dare take out my camera anymore. Evil old woman security guard might throw it on the floor or stomp on my beautiful camera :P Anyway, we were lead to a warehouse and there was a cart/table at the door. A lady was there with all our stuff and we had to show our door tags and id's before we could sign for our stuff. At last, we got our envelopes/packages!!
Phhewwwww...all this just to collect one envelope. I mean, it's just FedEx...but they made it feel like I was going into a maximum security prison to visit my axe murderer friend who is on death row or something like that. Anywayssss...here is the envelope that I got after all that hassle. Wanna know what's inside? Well, you have to wait for the next post! :P
gosh, that sound like a pain! I bet the most convenient way to receive DHL deliveries (at least work very well for me) is to send it to office whereby receptionist always sit and watch the door 40 hour a week. She can't possibly missed it!
ReplyDeleteman..even crossing the Canadian-US Border and getting called into the US Immigration was easy and not-as-scary! =P
ReplyDeleteYeah...crazy. It's like being treated like a prisoner or something. It's just picking up a package, for god's sake.
ReplyDeleteJ.H - Yeah good idea. Might just use Kevin's office address the next time.
ReplyDeleteJune: Hey! You are back? How's the trip with your parents? Have they gone back to Malaysia yet?
HI: Yeah, tell me about it. It was crazy! I wonder if it's just that FedEx facility or it's the same everywhere?
I'm a courier for Fed Ex. Occasionally, I hear stories about how my coworkers were rude and/or unhelpful. It makes me very angry. I always instruct customers to immediately file a complaint, whenever they have a run-in with a POS employee. God knows I despise them. That security guard should be sitting at home, waiting on her Obama checks. I don't want people like her at Fed Ex.
ReplyDeleteAs for the barbed-wire, that is to prevent burglary. It happens... believe me.