Matt;

I feel your pain. Several years ago the U.S. post office lost a guitar I had mailed and for several months I went through trial by bureaucracy. Just as the post office was about to pay, the guitar was found and returned. I sweat bullets on that mailing and suspect you're doing the same with yours.

I can imagine some lady down in Kentucky, sitting on her front porch, receiving a surprise Christmas present. She may not play guitar, but she could re-gift the instrument and make her guitar-playing cousin a happy man. And when approached by the UPS folks she can demand to know why her Christmas cookies haven't shown up.

Hopefully you had the shipment insured.