November 2022

Mailmanarchist

The local mailman is a somewhat wild-looking guy: heavily tattooed, long beard, hair buzzed on the sides and long on the top, which he’s pulled into a ponytail. I’ve never talked to him, I just see him around town. He apparently keeps his lunch in the large, green mailbox-shaped cabinet outside my building (I thought these were used to store mail, but my landlord, who thinks it’s unsightly, was complaining once that the mail guy just stores personal items in it).

I’ve always wondered about this guy: clearly a nonconformist, but he’s working one of the most regimented, straight-laced jobs there is. What’s his deal? Does he play in a punk band on weekends? Working his way through art school? Recovering from something?