Living in a rural area, daily newspaper delivery is less than a sure thing. It's sort of like the U.S. Postal Service creed in reverse: "Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds." Except for the gloom of night, those other conditions can mean no paper at the end of the driveway. And about that driveway: It's quite long, and slightly inclined like the bunny hill at a ski resort, making it treacherous in winter if you head out without ski poles, crampons and lots of prayer. And there at the very front of it lies the paper, like the guy couldn't toss it just a little closer to the house so I won't break my neck trying to reach it? Would it kill him?
Anyway, each December we receive a Christmas card from the carrier tucked inside the paper, wishing us happy holidays and including his mailing address should we need it for anything, like maybe a tip which is what you are supposed to do to be nice. And each year I dutifully send back a check inside a folded piece of white paper inside a business envelope with no message, which is my way of saying, "Thanks for nothing, asshole, especially on Sundays when we don't get our New York Times which costs likes seven bucks and we can't even do the crossword puzzle, one of the few things I live for!"
But this year, having had a heart attack two months earlier and still feeling grateful for every breath I take and every sunrise and flower and the birds and the bees and all that other crap, instead I bought a Christmas card at the CVS and sent the guy a bigger tip than usual, adding the message, "Thanks for the great service!" Ever since then our newspaper is at the front door on most days! Tire tracks in the snow are evidence to his having pulled his car up the driveway to get it there. And recently, the day after a blizzard and no paper in sight, we got a note from our carrier apologizing and saying the distributor had not brought any papers to deliver.
So whenever you can, be nice. It helps.
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| JORDAN KIM |
But this year, having had a heart attack two months earlier and still feeling grateful for every breath I take and every sunrise and flower and the birds and the bees and all that other crap, instead I bought a Christmas card at the CVS and sent the guy a bigger tip than usual, adding the message, "Thanks for the great service!" Ever since then our newspaper is at the front door on most days! Tire tracks in the snow are evidence to his having pulled his car up the driveway to get it there. And recently, the day after a blizzard and no paper in sight, we got a note from our carrier apologizing and saying the distributor had not brought any papers to deliver.
So whenever you can, be nice. It helps.
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