We can always tell when our regular mail carrier isn’t working. We have had the same mail carrier for over 7 years now and he always does a great job getting the right mail to the right person and in the right mailboxes. So when we start getting other people’s mail in our mailbox we can bet our bottom dollar that, for what ever reason, there is a substitute carrier on the job.
I wouldn’t want the job of being a mail carrier these days for a variety of reasons. It must be a real drag to have to get up early and go to work in the rain, hail, snow, sleet or what ever the weather is because we all know that no matter what the weather brings us the mail will be delivered unless of course we have a hurricane or a an earthquake of a large magnitude that brings everything to a dead stop.
Mail carriers are still driving their personal cars out here in the boonies, which means that they have to drive while sitting in the middle of their front seat and stretch all the way over in order to get the mail in and out of all of the mail boxes, which must be a real pain in the neck (and various other body parts as well) but better than getting in and out of the vehicle at every stop. That in itself would keep me from getting a job as a country mail carrier, while the city ones are using the vehicles specifically made with the steering wheel and pedals on the right side instead of on the left.