I have been surprised since moving house to see how many people now use residential mailboxes instead of leaving the postman and paper boy to put everything through the letterbox. Of course I have seen offices and business premises using lockable commercial mailboxes but up till now I thought the use of mailboxes at home was only something that happened in films. You know what I am talking about - the delivery boy cycles along the road, lobbing newspapers at all the little mailboxes arranged at the end of the pathsOne of the neighbours a few doors away has installed a smart wall mounted black mailbox and it really looks quite smart. Strange how these things stick in the mind, because the next day I noticed that the hardware shop has a big display of mailboxes in all shapes and sizes. It is a neat way of keeping all the post together until you are ready to sort it out, I suppose. That must be the reason - surely all these people do not have fierce dogs that chew the post up?

You can order a wider selection of mailboxes online, of course, so you get a far wider choice to make your selection. I think the discreet black ones are the best kind, like the one in the photo. And remember, if you are considering mailboxes for you home: the poor postie prefers them but place them at a reasonable level so the he does not need a ladder to reach it.