Countywide : Betting Against Time, Postal Users Find Waits Shorter Than Expected

The crowds were out in force at Costa Mesa post offices on Monday, heavily laden with packages and greetings cards on which the ink was still drying, ready to pay the price of postponement: a seemingly endless wait in line.

But depending on what time they arrived, they didn’t have it too bad, even if it was the busiest mailing day of the year. U.S. Postal Service officials at branches on Sunflower and Adams avenues said they didn’t get everyone through within the ideal five minutes, but they managed to keep the traffic flowing even at peak times.

“It’s been wall-to-wall people,” said Joseph Zapata, supervisor of customer service at the Adams branch. “We’ve been moving ‘em as quick as we can move ‘em. . . . You listen to people walking out and they’re saying ‘It wasn’t as painful as I thought.’ ”

Arthur O. Martinez, district manager for the Santa Ana postal district, said the crowds were expected and staff members were added to keep the waiting time down.

The day was so busy because most people figured there was still an outside chance of getting their gifts to loved ones by Christmas, without paying for rushed delivery.

“It’s just that over the weekend, people realized, ‘It’s getting late,’ ” Martinez said.

The crowds came prepared for delays, with thick books or stacks of Christmas cards that had yet to be addressed and stamped.

Teri Lacher, 45, of Santa Ana was surprised that she only got through a few pages of John Grisham’s lengthy tome “The Firm” before her number was called at the post office on Sunflower.

“It’s moving pretty well,” she marveled.

Karre Cloutier, 21, of San Clemente, who was waiting at the Sunflower branch to mail a gift to friends in Georgia, viewed the slight delay as a chance for a breather.

Cloutier, rattled by a day of crammed parking structures, “angry-looking” shoppers and rude drivers, said: “The post office is relaxing compared to the mall.”