Violated by the USPS.

Sometimes I get irritated by Facebook. I frequently defy the urge to log on because I don't want to be one of those people who needs to. I'll admit, however, that sometimes it's both entertaining and convenient, and facilitates the occasional pseudo-reunion with a long-lost friend (or pseudo-friend).

But last week Facebook teamed up with the supposedly trustworthy U.S. Postal Service to do something that I thought was sort of supposed to stay in the realm of stalkers, debt collectors, and telemarketers.

Before I moved to Utah, I went to my local post office and changed my address so I'd get my mail forwarded to me. Well, after two weeks of staring at an empty mail box and concerned that my mail was lost in cyberspace...or...real space, I guess...I went to the post office to figure out what the problem was. I walked up to Man A at the counter, explained my dilemma, and this guy in the back, Man B goes, "What's your address?" I answered, and he said to Man A at the counter, "I know that area. I can help her" and waved me over to another register.

Perfect, I thought. Someone who can help.

So Man B proceeds to explain that, oddly enough, your new postal carrier can actually decide of their own accord to personally hold your forwarded mail until you show up in person to claim it. I didn't quite get the whole story, but he muttered something like "something something... if you were living in an abandoned house....something something....fraudulent mail." After assuring him that the house was indeed occupied and flashing some photo ID, he went to the back and reclaimed my mail for me (oh blessed Netflix. How I had longed for you!). I expressed some mild-to-medium concern that no one waits at your mailbox to inform you that your mail isn't actually coming despite your efforts to properly indicate your new forwarding address, and Man B handed me a bright yellow card that excitedly explains, "We've moved in!" at the top with a box below where you fill in all the names of the people moving into the new house. "You leave it in your new mail box," he said, "and then the mail carrier knows you're there." So I filled it out with my name, and the names of my two new roommates, Cari and Kristina.

This is where it gets all creepy/violating:

He told me to just give the card to him instead of taking it home and putting it in my mailbox, and he'd personally stick it in my postal carrier's cubby so that they'd get it right away. "Perfect, Man B," I said. "Thanks for your help." Clutching my Netflix and AAA rebate check, I headed home.

I didn't think anything else about it, until that afternoon when Cari, Kristina, and I all received identical emails asking to add some stranger as a friend on facebook. I didn't recognize the name, but when I looked at the picture, it was MAN B!!!! Please note that Cari and Kristina were not even at the post office with me. He has never seen them, and I really don't think our 5 minute exchange qualified he and I as friends....plus I'm pretty sure that stealing customer names off that yellow card, writing them down, taking them home, and adding them all as friends on FACEBOOK is somehow a federal violation of some USPS Privacy Act or something.

Part of me feels like I should report him. The other part of me just feels like this is a really great story that you are all welcome to pass around.