Letterboxes I Love

I was out this sunny afternoon taking a break from my desk, delivering health surveys in the Stonebridge ward by-election in Brent. The patch I was covering was made up of neat streets of terraced houses of the sort I love: tiny front gardens, no steps and letterboxes that are at a sensible height from the ground and wide enough to take a C5 envelope. No vicious springs, or draught-excluders with brushes that trap your hand. On the whole round, I only encountered two dogs, who flung themselves at the door when they heard me arrive. But I can cope with that. It’s the ones that lurk sneakily, silently, behind the front door and then nip when they see something come through the letterbox that I hate.

Actually, I really enjoy delivering in such circumstances. You get to see how others live, chat to a few people, and I manage to mix a bit of healthy exercise with ‘time out’ from the computer, so I can compose things in my head.