The United States Post Office has released their list of the 3,700 locations nationwide they are considering closing in order to stave off further revenue loss. Already prepping the public to lose Saturday delivery, and citing a marked increase in online communication, the USPS has been steadily losing money in recent years, and it's not getting better. more ›

Knocking over mailboxes, according at least to cinema, seems to be a rite of passage for teens in small towns and rural areas. But a new "trend" in the L.A. area is the theft of large mailboxes--the ones belonging to the U.S. Post Office. Four of them, at 200 pounds apiece, have been swiped lately from post offices in Glendale, Burbank and Pacoima. more ›

In Venice, a historic post office on Windward Circle is preparing to close down and consolidate operations nearby at the Grand Avenue annex. If a post office moves, who forwards their mail? Inside the building, a mural of Venice founder Abbot Kinney was discovered after being "covered and forgotten for many years," notes ABC Local. more ›

It's Tax Day in the U.S.A. Eight post offices in Los Angeles and Orange Counties will be open late tonight to accommodate those procrastinators who have waited until the very last minute to postmark their 2010 taxes. All eight of the post offices offering extended hours will have mail collection until midnight, the deadline for filing today, though retail services will conclude at different times among the locations. more ›

The first ever postage stamp to showcase neon art was designed by L.A. artist Michael Flechtner, and the Museum of Neon Art is practically beaming with the news. The theme of the stamp is "Celebrate!" and "features a brilliantly colored design crafted out of neon and glass that adds a spark to greeting cards, invitations, and gift-bearing envelopes and packages," says the USPS. Flechtner's work includes his landmark “neon aquarium” at Olympic and Sawtelle Boulevards in West L.A. The "Celebrate!" stamp will be released March 25. more ›

Unlike tax forms, a postmark date on or by election day on an absentee ballot in California does not mean it's eligible. The United States Post Office today encouraged voters to not just voter early (and often), but to also "mail early." And if for some reason you cannot get the ballot into the mailbox on time, voters can hand-deliver their completed ballot in the official envelope to any polling location on November 2nd before 8 p.m. Luckily, there'll be a lot more of those than post offices. more ›

This is for the procrastinators. According to the United States Post Office, a select handful of locations will be "extending service" tonight to "accommodate last-minute filers who want the safety and security of sending personal information contained on tax returns through the U.S. Mail. In Los Angeles and Orange Counties." There's not that many, but here's the list is below. more ›

As the United States Post Office seeks way to save money and "weather this storm," today a list of 677 branches were given to congress for review as possible closures. Only 200 are expected to close and a number are listed in the Los Angeles area, but none within the city limits, according to the LA Times. more ›

Starting today it's going to cost you more to snail mail your letters, cards, postcards and bills, KTLA.com reminds mailers. Today "the price of a first-class stamp will increase two cents to 44-cents. Forever stamps can still be used without an additional 2-cent stamp, regardless of when they were purchased." Other changes include a bump of postcard stamps from "1 cent to 28 cents, the first ounce of a large envelope will increase 5 cents to 88 cents and the first ounce of a parcel will increase 5 cents to $1.22." The rate increases are meant to help the Post Office cope with rising operational costs, and "are in line with the amount of inflation," according to Postmaster General John Potter. more ›

It's a day of reckoning, a day of doom, and, for a lucky few with refunds due, a day of joy. Be it what it may, today is Tax Day, and if you are a procrastinator, you might be just putting the finishing touches on your 1040 and getting ready to sign that payment check. If you aren't submitting your taxes online, rest assured there are a few post offices in the area who are ready to handle your last-minute (and we mean last minute!) tax-mailing needs. The USPS is keeping a handful of locations open until midnight so they can collect and postmark your taxes, including Airport Station near LAX, the Pasadena Main Post Office, and the Van Nuys Main Post Office. You can call 1-800-ASK-USPS to find out about the hours of your nearest Post Office, or check a complete listing of extended hours and service limits online here. Happy Tax Day! more ›

One way to avoid being out in the rain today: Stand in line at your local post office with everyone else. Today just happens to be the busiest mailing day of the year, as folks flock to their favorite USPS outpost to send off cards and packages in hopes they'll reach their destinations in time for the holidays. According to cbs2.com, "about 1.5 billion cards, letters and packages are expected to be processed today alone, which is nearly double the average daily volume of traffic." Your letter carrier will experience their heaviest load of the year come Wednesday. Headed to the Post Office today? If you've got a favorite one that's less crowded than most (I do, and I'm not telling you which one!) maybe you'd best go the Scrooge route and keep it to yourself. Happy mailing! more ›

Not many details are coming out, but preliminary information suggests that no one was seriously hurt this afternoon when a vehicle crashed into a post office at 18039 Chatsworth Street in Granada Hills (at Zelzah Ave). KCAL9 was first on scene to capture this image. more ›

At least two people were injured when a car crashed into a Burbank post office today at noon near Hollywood Way and Empire Avenue reported KCBS. Both victims were taken to a hospital. more ›

Ahhh, Christmas, carols fill the air along with the aroma of baking cookies. hearts are filled with joy, and Santa sends out obscene mail to good little girls and boys. Here are some stories of holidays gone bad, including some from holidays past. Ho ho ho!!!

Author of nasty letters from Santa sought more ›

We've been looking forward to the "big day" for a long time. Tomorrow was going to be a "big day" because the Cultural Heritage Commission was going to decide whether or not to declare Buk's De Longpre residence a historic landmark. Why should such a residence be declared a landmark? It's where he wrote Post Office & Factotum and was the very residence that plays a central role in Women. more ›

Bukowski in LA, LA in Bukowski. The man was quintessential LA and our fair city informed every word, every rant, every foul-mouthed rush of brilliance that he created. In honor of Bukowski's birthday, Nobody Reads in LA will be reading from his novel Post Office. The ranting kicks-off at Charlie O's Bar in the Alexandria Hotel tonight @ 7pm. In true Buk style, drinks are served until 2am. more ›

Monday Moonday poetry reading 7:30pm @ Village Books Tuesday David Lynch signs Inland Empire 7pm @ Borders, Westwood Elaine Dundy presents The Dud Avocado 7pm @ Book Soup Warren Mar presents Descanso 7pm @ Vroman's Kiara Brinkman signs High Up in the Trees 7pm @ Dutton's Wednesday Adrienne Barbeau presents There Are Worse Things I Could Do 7pm @ Book Soup Nobody Reads in LA presents Charles Bukowski's Post Office (it's his birthday!) 7pm... more ›

Next time, don't go to Yosemite and bitch about the crowds. Consider a secret little place my family's been vacationing in for years now: Three Rivers. A tiny town in the foothills of the Sequoias, Three Rivers is a pretty idyllic little spot, and home to many families, artists, and musicians. In short, it has a lot of character. Highway 198 runs right through the middle of it, up to Kings Canyon, a 462,901 acre national park; Lake Kaweah yields three forks of the Kaweah River that give the town its name and splits it up into sections known as "North Fork" and "South Fork". more ›

We at the Gothamist network would like to express our heartfelt wishes to the people of Minnesota in the days after their tragic bridge collapse. We're not trying to discount the severity of the accident by making note of it in opposition to our usual -Ist lightheartedness - we just wanted to take a moment and recognize those affected last week. more ›

Arguably the finest writer Los Angeles has ever known, Charles Bukowski typed away volumes of poetry, short stories, and novels in Hollywood. One of his best works, Post Office, about the ups-and-downs of a heavy drinking mail carrier was written by Bukowski at 5124 De Longpre Ave in 1969 and published two years later. more ›

As Guest Day Editor, Siel, a.k.a Green LA Girl, will be joining LAist with a few posts throughout today. Read her interview here and check out her site. Drinking and driving isn't cool -- Which is why I made the logical decision to ditch the car a few months ago. Now, not only can I drink all I want most nights, I also have a few hundred extra bucks for my drink budget each month.... more ›

- Are you a racist? Are you sure? Take this quiz and find out - Harvard.edu more ›

I live in East Hollywood. I get my mail at the Los Feliz post office. The neighborhood sign near my apartment says Little Armenia. My zip code says 90027. You'd think a magazine called Los Angeles would know which part of the LA I lived in. But perhaps the publication is outsourcing its subscription-hustling duties to the same guys covering the Pasadena city council meetings because not only did Los Angeles mail me an... more ›

The US Postal Service this week implemented their newly inflated rates, again. And to distract us from the fact that the government agency is sticking it to us despite continuing making hundreds of millions of dollars in profit, they rolled out the new Forever Stamp. The Forever Stamp allows you to buy a 41-cent stamp today and use it for a regular letter, like, say, a nice card to your favorite city-based blog with... more ›

The Meat Puppets are back with a vengeance! Last night the Troubadour hosted the Los Angeles performance of the Meat Puppets’ reunion mini-tour. Brothers Curt and Cris Kirkwood have not shared a stage since the debacle that was supposed to be their tour opening for REM back in 1996. Since then, Cris’ personal struggles have been no secret to anyone, reaching their crescendo when he was shot by a post office security guard in 2003. The reunited brothers are about to release their first CD together since 1995’s No Joke. The new CD, Rise to Your Knees, was recorded with drummer Ted Marcus. This time, drummer Derrick Bostrom is not on on board. He is rumored to have quit music entirely. more ›

We know you love your momma. She knows you love her. But today the post office needs to know. more ›

You know that nagging feeling that maybe that online tax filing software didn't fully do the trick? I'm nearly certain I filed my taxes weeks early (which felt weird in itself) only to continually receive e-mails from TurboTax with subjects screaming "TIME IS RUNNING OUT!" and "12 Days Left, User ID enclosed." I'm pretty sure these are the result of the "free version" I sampled at TurboTax online before biting the bullet and installing... more ›

LAist just cruised by our local post office in Los Feliz and we were pleasantly surprised by how short the lines were there. Far better than a normal Tuesday - probably because all of the counters were open for business - imagine that!. For those of you who like to live on the edge, as long as your envelopes to the IRS are postmarked by today you're cool. The following Nine post offices are... more ›

Although you don't need to have your taxes postmarked until tomorrow (thanks again, Honest Abe!), those of you who feel the need to haul 200 baby shower invites into the post office oughtta think again - this is stand in line to mail off your taxes time, and unless you are some sadist intent on being glared at by a bunch of your neighbors, come back on Wednesday with your colorful envelopes. Good Los... more ›

It seems like, all across the network, folks were up to no good. Maybe it was all the green beer from last weekend... more ›