It was a beautiful morning for duck hunting today here in South Carolina. Freezing rain and sleet would virtually guarantee that the ducks would be holding tight to the ponds. Unfortunately, the season opens tomorrow, when it's forecast to be clear and beautiful.

I've been looking forward to opening day for some time, and I bought two Federal duck stamps a few weeks back: one for me and one for my hunting buddy. I set them in a safe place, reminding myself to sign mine and stick it to my license before the season starts.

So as I was gathering my duck hunting gear today, I went to get my stamps, and they were nowhere to be found. I know exactly where I put them, but they were definitely gone. It was 4:40pm, so my only choice was to rush to the post office to get another one. I left the house in a panic, hating the thought of missing the opening day.

I got to the post office with 10 minutes to spare, and was dismayed to see that they were closed. How can they close 10 minutes early?!? How bad can my luck be? I knocked on the door and the postmaster answered.

"Man, I've got to have a duck stamp. Y'all haven't closed already have you?" I asked.

"Power is out all over town. Our registers are down," he responded. "I can sell you a stamp, but I need cash."

I dug in my wallet and found $14.00. A dollar short. I found another 75 cents in my pocket, and told the man that I was a quarter shy of the fifteen dollar price.

"Well," he said, "a man's got to be able to go duck hunting. I'll spot you the quarter."

So I got my duck stamp, then spent the next 30 minutes talking hunting with the postmaster. Turns out he leases the land right next to where I'll be duck hunting tomorrow, and we'll probably hook up to exchange hunts sometime soon.