I will chime in for this. UPS does not suck at least in my area. My gf works in a trucking company and UPS does have an office there. UPS trying to have everything perfect (try a phone call in every 15 min) to make sure everything as scheduled.
The problem is the UPS driver! I am lucky that the drive for my route is a very nice guy. He does not complaint or beg for tips everytime he is here. Well, he is here 3-4 times a week. In average 50-100 lbs of stuff. He knows I work at home and will be out of here around 4pm. whenever I hear "HONK HONK", I know he is here. And he is here earlier than I expected. He will drop of my packages as soon as possible, sometimes here is here 10 in the morning (morning call for me). If I am not going to be home, I will let him know so he will leave the packages on the front door instead of hauling them into the management office, which is not a good thing consider the weight of those packages.
Here is my thought. Talk to the UPS guy (be nice). Tell him your situation. Tip him if that helps. I really don't mind tipping if he works with me. As for USPS, the postman is giving me an attitude problem. However, all my mails still got here on time.
DHL is another best choice! Although, I had some problem with drop off location while ago but it has been taken care of. I have yet try FedEx, but I heard if you ship alot, you can actually apply for discount (15% be to exact). Still, there is problem. The only drop off location around my area is Kinko's. Kinko does not accept drop off for FedEx ground! Again, if you ship a lot you could pay for the daily pick up. They will be here no matter what. Also, DHL and UPS offer the daily pickup service as well.
As for me, I am not worry about UPS, DHL, or FedEx. Take a :chillpill and relax. If the package got lost, call them and it will be taken care of.
Lastly... HeartBreak you order is not that big

: . Try 3 grand all the time.