--- description: The Cement Is in the Mail title: SHIPPING: The Cement Is in the Mail image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [U.S.](/section/us/) # SHIPPING: The Cement Is in the Mail by [TIME](/author/time/) Jul 4, 1988 4:00 AM CUT by [TIME](/author/time/) Jul 4, 1988 4:00 AM CUT What is the cheapest way to get 6,000 concrete blocks and 4,600 bags of cement to a remote Eskimo village? Answer: mail them. Sam Krogstad, a construction supplier in Anchorage, is sending the individually addressed blocks (postage: $4.33 each) and bags ($4.27) about 700 miles north to Wainwright, where they will be used to build a small harbor on the Arctic Ocean. Krogstad’s bill for stamps will be about $45,000, less than what other shippers would charge. The Postal Service is not pleased about the shipment, which will cost about $180,000 to deliver by truck and plane. But the agency can find nothing illegal about Krogstad’s parcels, which weigh a few pounds less than the 70- lb. maximum for regular mail. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/archive/6712646/shipping-the-cement-is-in-the-mail/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/archive/6712646/shipping-the-cement-is-in-the-mail/"},"headline":"SHIPPING: The Cement Is in the Mail","datePublished":"1988-07-04T04:00:00.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-27T20:30:58.559Z","description":"The Cement Is in the Mail","url":"https://time.com/archive/6712646/shipping-the-cement-is-in-the-mail/","keywords":[],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"TIME","url":"https://time.com/author/time/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/archive/6712646/shipping-the-cement-is-in-the-mail/","name":"SHIPPING: The Cement Is in the Mail"}}]}] ```