Postal service in Chicago Loop picks up unintended consequence of Obama election

It has been an almost nightly ritual for me: Trying to get as much stuff done and copied and posted by 5:00 pm when the mail would be picked up at my Chicago office building. Some nights, particularly in the rush to Christmas, the letter carrier might be delayed until 5:20 or even 5:30 p.m.

But, says the Sun-Times this morning, my ritual has ended: The Postal Service, citing both budgetary and security concerns, has discontinued 5:00 p.m. mail pick-ups in Loop office buildings. Lisa Donovan's story quotes Chicago postal service spokesman Mark Reynolds as explaining that the late afternoon pick-ups were discontinued "in larger part out of security concerns, and then we took a broader look at overall efficiencies we could make." Reynolds told Donavan that the Secret Service asked the postal service to "make some adjustments at the Kluczyski Federal building where the transition office is, so we could comply with security" restrictions.

But -- writes Donovan -- there is good news: "Stand-alone blue boxes dotting the Loop will continue with regular pickups, including the final 5 p.m. timeslot."

This would be good news... if in fact there were any stand-alone blue boxes still left in the Loop. Most of these disappeared after 9/11.

If anyone reading this knows where a mailbox might be found on the street in the Loop, please leave a comment. Perhaps we can generate a list. If that won't violate some security protocol.