Never a dull moment for The Pony on the job. He sent me a text Thursday before noon.
"In today's weird story... SIDEWALK MEAT!"
"So random! Left for somebody expecting it, maybe?"
You never know when people might be planning a weekend BBQ, and somebody contributes some meat. Perhaps for low-and-slow smoking. And maybe the homeowner had just dashed out for a minute, or was in the shower. Otherwise, nobody would leave MEAT on the steps, accessible to free-roaming dogs. Or temperatures in the low 60s.
Of course I used the standard Reddit response from postal workers who encounter items too good to be true, in a mailbox, or on their route, seemingly without explanation:
"NOT TODAY, POSTAL INSPECTOR!"
You never know when a quarter on the floor of the post office, or a pile of meat on a sidewalk, might be a temptation testing the integrity of a carrier!
That's weird seeing meat out on the steps like that. Hopefully it didn't spoil and the people it was meant for got it.
ReplyDeleteIt's a lot of meat, and it has the store label. So not from somebody sharing a recently-butchered animal they had processed from their farm. Also, I just noticed the liquid underneath. I'm guessing it was frozen, as why they felt comfortable to leave it out. Only meat. So probably not a grocery order somebody wanted delivered. I'm still guessing it was expected, and the home occupant was preoccupied with something else before fetching it off the porch.
DeleteI hope the Pony did the right thing and rang the bell or knocked on the door to alert the absent-minded homeowner.
ReplyDeleteI don't think they're allowed to do that, unless they fear for somebody's safety. Like if the mail hasn't been picked up for a day or two, when it always has been before, and they think the resident might be in need of medical attention. So they might knock, and/or notify authorities for a wellness check.
DeleteTime is of the essence, and they're not paid to help residents with their food storage. Their scanner reports when they are stationary for too long.
I think I might have rung the doorbell and alerted someone. Can he do that?
ReplyDeleteI'll have to ask The Pony. I don't think they're supposed to get involved with something like this. Customers might complain that it's none of their business, and in the very least, it's taking time away from the route that is supposed to be done in 8 hours.
DeleteThe moisture underneath indicates it might have been frozen meat and perhaps was put there to thaw in the sun. I've been known to peg bags of frozen meat on the clothes line to thaw on a sunny day. I hope no dogs came sniffing around that lot.
ReplyDeleteI agree that it was frozen meat. The Pony said all packages were about 20 lbs each, and one had a date from 2023. So they would take a long time to thaw. I never thought about the resident putting them out on purpose for thawing. The Pony said they remained out while he delivered to the rest of the neighborhood, but were gone the next day.
DeleteThe Pony also said that there's no rule against him knocking to inform the resident, but he didn't want to ask why they had three 20-lb butts on their porch! That's the cut, a Boston butt, or pork butt.
The Pony added that one time he wanted to tell somebody their car tire was leaking air, since he heard it hissing when he walked by. But it was an apartment complex, and he had no idea who the car belonged to, and couldn't knock on every door.
Okay, this is just plain weird! And, if The Pony did knock on the door, the person might have wanted to engage in a very long explanation. Still, it is strange to put meat on the steps!
ReplyDeleteIndeed! So random. Perhaps best not to notify or inquire.
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