Thursday, March 28, 2024

Delivery problems challenge reader

I enjoyed the article in The State News (“Driving pizzas proves to be an adventure,” SN 9/22) by Jennifer Meese, about delivering pizzas in a college town. I learned a little something about a pizza dude’s world.

Delivered food is a wonderful option for parents of small children, so I am a big fan of all the pizza dudes out there. But let’s expose one small flaw in his character, an inability to take down directions. The last place I lived, a small town, had two streets with the same name. They had nothing to do with each other, two different roads in two different subdivisions. I had the misfortune of living on the lesser known of the two. Does pizza dude want to listen to directions? No, of course not - he’s a dude, remember?

To make matters worse, the houses in my subdivision were numbered consecutively, not odds on one side, evens on the other. I lived at 87, my next door neighbor was 86. The neighbor on the other side of me was 45. It made no sense. So, should I wait by the phone to receive his call when he can’t find my subdivision, or wait on the porch to wave him down when he can’t find my house?

Moving to East Lansing was my big opportunity to finally enjoy quick and easy deliveries. But I managed to move into an even more obscure residence - no wonder it was empty for months. My street is much better known as a busy highway. Drivers buzzing down my street rarely notice the two set-back houses wedged between a large insurance company and an entrance to a subdivision. Can I expect more from the highly educated Big Ten pizza dude? Not so far. You can’t turn left into my driveway - sigh. My two options are to either wait on the side of the highway with my active toddler or wait inside to receive phone calls. At least East Lansing pizza dudes have cell phones - in my experience - and can call from their cars.

My suggestions to others who share my curse: Train a pizza joint and stick with them, try to find a pizza dudette who might be more open to taking directions, or there’s always take-out.

Kathleen Weessies
East Lansing resident

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