The cost of a postage stamp....

....has gone through the roof!

I payed a visit to the post office today to show my original birth certificate, which will enable my twenty-seven year old daughter to obtain a passport. Apparently, my birth certificate proves her to be an Australian citizen, as she was born after 1986....my son, born 1985, in the same hospital as my daughter, needed no such proof from me. Go figure.....

Any-whom....whilst standing at the counter, the lady next to me asked for some five-cent stamps to make up the short-fall on the sixty-five cent stamps she had bought, and remained unused, for Christmas card postage, at which point, being reminded that I too had unused Christmas stamps,  I chimed in to my sales person, asking him for some also....

But apparently, I needed thirty-five cents worth of stamps, as the cost of sending a letter has jumped this year from seventy cents to one dollar! 

Who knew??!!

I'm at a loss to understand what Australia Post are on about, saying they are losing custom due to the ease of sending emails. Doesn't the massive jump in on-line shopping make up for the short-fall? (That's a hypothetical question, mid rave. No need to answer it.)

Being a life long philatelist who also continues to enjoy snail-mail, nice stationary, cards, pens and paper, I will continue to buy stamps, regardless of the cost, although I have to wonder how this hefty price rise will sit with those reluctant to use mail services to begin with.

It's all about the money today on another front too, as the pledge/donation tally continues to rise. Every day I am feeling more confident that blip will be saved, and our platform for having a rant sharing our days will remain. :)