News from the Tin Warehouse – 10/7/09

We thought some of you might like to see how we prepare your orders for shipping and get them to the post office. 

After we’ve finished with all the paperwork and processing, we collect the items to be shipped and I do what we call “pre-packing”:

One of my happiest jobs

This photo was taken yesterday after a shipment of addi Clicks had arrived.  We have now retired all Click backorders through September 21!!!  Did we ever celebrate!

I should mention that the Newport Bag you see hanging on the slat board is the original one that was knit by our friend Witt Pratt.  Witt left his body this past spring while sleeping beside the Shenandoah River near his home in Virginia.  We keep his bag where we can see it and think of him often.

After your yarn, books, needles and more are prepackaged, they move into the shipping room where Bob wraps them up for travel.

Bon Voyage!

On any given day, Bob will shout out several times from this very room, “Wow! You’ve got to come see this! Someone must be making something amazing with these colors!” Or words to that effect.  Needless to say, Bob likes this part of his job a lot.

Below is the posting room where I create the shipping labels, customs forms and whatever else the post office needs to get your orders right to your door and into your hands:

Just imagine me in the seat with a mountain of packages awaiting attention

This flacid pile of orange magically puffs up with all your packages and turns into postal bags bursting with wonderful things.

And now the real fun begins!

Just about ready to roll!

We load your bags onto our bike carts and head off to the post office down the road.

Heading to the post office

Rolling happily on!

A word about our beloved bikes – they are not just one of the more fun parts of our business, they are our main form of transport, not just for packages to and from the Tin Warehouse, but for Bob and myself also.  Bicycling is very well supported in our area, with lots of bike paths along main thoroughfares as well as through scenic parks.  We estimate that our bikes pay for themselves every 9 months in saved gasoline, mileage, and other upkeep we would otherwise be “spending” were we to use our car instead.  What can’t be counted in dollars and cents is how much we enjoy riding them and how beautifully they have rescued us from a sedentary life.  We truly do feel better in body and soul as a result of riding our bikes most of the places we used to drive the car.

Team Wonder Bike

Bob & Nancy’s Services has joined Team Wonder Bike where we and thousands of other members can log all the miles we ride each month where we would have otherwise driven our car.  It is sponsored by New Belgium Brewing Company who devote a fair amount of their donation dollars to promoting bicycle use, in this instance by providing a place where anyone can look and discover the literally millions of miles being travelled by folks who choose to bike instead of drive. We were inspired by New Belgium’s approach and decided that our business should lend a hand toward their bicycle outreach. 

Not to mention that they make a tasty brew that we’ve been known to enjoy on our off hours.