"Cleaning Up"

It isn't even December, yet our doorbell has begun a-ringin'... la saison des étrennes à commencer! It started with the Garbagemen (Les Éboueurs) tonight, to be followed by the street sweepers (Les Balayeurs), who just happen to share the same card. The card's design never changes- apparently not since the 1960's. In a week or so the the Postman/Lady (Facteur) usually comes around to collect; for our donation we will no doubt receive a fluffy kitten calendar. Some years a rogue trash man comes around with a few leftover cards, trying to blackmail us with his innuendos of service interruption and stray banana peels. If we produce this ubiquitous card as proof of payment, that usually gets rid of them.