Delivery story 248 KJM writes: I just sat down and read ever single delivery driver story on this website and have been inspired to share a couple of mine! I have worked for over four years at a Round Table Pizza in a small town in the Salinas Valley of California. All of my co-workers are very laid back high school/college kids and really make the job more enjoyable. It also helps to have a manager that respects you and considers you a friend instead of just another employee. I have a couple stories I'd like to submit. One night I was delivering to the north part of town around 10:30 pm. The address was to a house across the street from a Catholic church. Unfortunately, there was no parking except for right in front of the church in a red zone. Since I figured the delivery would take less than a minute, I parked in the red zone and turned on my hazard lights. As I stepped out of my car, I noticed a gentleman sprawled out on the steps of the church. This was a normal sight for me, as it was Sunday and all of the field laborers spent the day getting drunk and attending rodeos. I figured this guy had partied too hard that day and on his drunken journey home, passed out on the church steps. I made the delivery and headed back to the store. The next morning, I was watching the local AM news and there was a story about a priest finding a dead man on the steps of his church that morning. Turns out it was the church I had delivered to the night before and it was the guy I had mistaken as a passed out drunk. Being a small town (less than 10,000 people) we had a lot of regulars. There was one guy in particular named Richard who would order delivery 3-4 times a week and it was always the same order: small ham and pineapple, little bit of extra cheese, and a large coke. Richard looked like Doc from the Back to the Future movies, but talked like Dracula. The other delivery driver loved this guy because he would tip at least $10. Thing was, he'd only tip the other delivery driver $10. He would tip me $4 at the most (which still wasn't bad compared to most customers.) Also, Richard would never talk to me, no matter how nice I was. I would ask him how his day was or how he was doing. He would just look at me, give me the cash, take his food, and shut the door. I relayed this to the other driver, Scotty, who didn't believe me. He said Richard was one of the nicest guys, even inviting him in to check out his place or to chat. I didn't believe Scott either, so the next night, Richard ordered and I rode along with the other driver to take Richard's order. I sat in the passenger seat and watched as Scott walked up to Richard's door and knocked. Richard answered the door with a big grin on his face, asked the driver how he was doing, asked what he did that weekend, then handed him a big wad of cash and said, "Have a great night you fine young man." My fellow driver got into his car and counted out the wad of cash. There was enough there to cover the pizza, then a $15 tip! Scott and I had no idea why I would get tipped 3-4 dollars while he would get tipped $10-15. I asked if he did anything special for Richard and he said no and that he barely even talked, just replying to Richard's questions with one word replies. What was I doing wrong? Well, about two weeks later, we are getting slammed at work, so I help out the kitchen staff by answering phones. I answer one call to find out it is Richard calling to make an order. I take down his order quickly and he starts telling me that it is his birthday today. I ask him if he did anything to celebrate it and he replies with "no." I tell him I am sorry to hear that and wish him a happy birthday. He thanks me and we end the call. When I took Richard's order and he answered the door, I handed him the pizza and soda, said Happy Birthday and that the pizza was on me, and walked off. He stood there with a stunned look on his face, then called for me to come back. With a big smile on his face, he handed me a $5 and said thank you. After that day, Richard always tipped me at least $10. Sometimes you just have to spend a little to make a whole lot more! I have a bunch more stories to share, but I'll do that later. I could type for hours. return to top