Watch For These “Mystery” Envelopes In New York State

Time is running out for those who are trying to get Christmas cards shipped on time. The United States Postal Service says that December 16th is the deadline for the standard mail. You can pay a little more to have them get to your loved ones on time if you ship after that.

Getting the mail or retrieving the mail from the mailbox is a daily task that some are a little obsessed with. There are many homes where mom and dad are the only ones to get the mail or see it first and, in some cases, mom and dad might argue about who gets to it first. Around the Holidays there are more delightful surprises than the usual bills and bad news.

However, this year there may be more surprises than usual and some advertisers and advertising agencies have gotten very creative when it comes to sending out offers. For example, many in New York State have been receiving what looks like some sort of official government or legal parcels.

Have you received these yet? They are manila or brown and generally a full size letter envelope.

If this is the first time you have gotten one of these letters, there is a bit of panic and curiosity before you open it and reveal it is an advertisement.

These are the regular mail's version of "spam" or what some have referred to as "junk mail".

It seems that there is more "spam" in our emails these days and even more tele-scams as well. In fact, there is a scam that it circulating in New York State that claims to give customers 50% off their cable bill.

Going to the mailbox everyday is one of my favorite things to do each day. I realize that makes me come off as "old school" or showing my age. However, there is always hope as you walk to the mailbox that there will be a nice card, letter or even better, a check waiting inside! Fingers crossed, that happens soon.