When a delivery man throws your hard drive like a bowling ball
An alleged USPS delivery man is caught on home surveillance cameras practicing his bowling with a valuable package.
It's most entertaining when they do it in front of you.
A delivery driver sees you standing on the doorstep. Then, instead of placing an eagerly-awaited package gently by your door, they toss it as if this was accepted procedure.
In my case, it was just another lingerie delivery. In the case of a video posted to YouTube and Reddit on Tuesday, it was allegedly a hard drive, perhaps not the best equipped parcel for a soft landing.
The video, captured on a home surveillance camera, claims to show a US Postal Service driver roll up toward the garage door. There is snow on the ground, which perhaps influenced him not to leave his car. Instead of placing a package near the house, the driver attempts to bowl a perfect 300 from inside his vehicle.
The box doesn't roll smoothly. Indeed, the video shows it hitting the garage door with a bump.
I contacted the USPS to ask whether this is, indeed, one of their drivers. Also, if true, would this driver himself be bowled out of the organization?
A spokeswoman told me: "The video you mention is upsetting to us here at the Postal Service. We are currently in the process of determining where the event took place and whether or not this is indeed one of our employees. It is difficult to tell from the video and the vehicle that the delivery person is in."
She added: "We certainly do not condone delivery in this manner. The majority of our employees are extremely hard-working and dedicated to providing the best customer service possible. If we determine this is indeed an employee, we will take appropriate action and will do all we can to provide a refund to the customer for any damages as well as replace the contents of the package."
Currently, the hashtag #amazingUSPS is trending on Twitter. While the USPS was hoping the hashtag would promote its new association with SpiderMan, it has instead been enveloped by humor and criticism.
It's not as if Spidey himself would deliver packages this way. Or would he?
This isn't the first time a delivery driver has been filmed offering less than charming service. Who could forget the FedEx courier who tossed a computer monitor over a fence? And then there was the UPS man who dropped an Android tablet helpfully into a trash can.
This happens, but now that we're all surveilling each other with constant glee, instances of drivers bowling along will become public more often.