*Poof* goes the driveway fairy

Since moving into our new house - E and I have enjoyed a small amount of magic.

Every morning, our morning paper appeared on our front step.

Yes- that's hardly magic. But here's the thing: It's right up against our house. Getting the paper is as simple as open door, reach down, grab. Again, small thing - but it's every day. Rain or shine, I don't have to put a foot out the door to get my paper. It rocks.

Now, a paper carrier might have a practiced throwing arm, but Nolan Ryan couldn't be this precise every day.

Plus, there's this little bit:

I look around the street, and every other house has a newspaper in the driveway. Down by the sidewalk, no less.

Being me, I start to imagine reasons why this would be: the former residents were big tippers, or people of respect, or crime lords who killed the last delivery boy for hitting a window.
I start to wonder what's going to happen when the delivery person figures out that somebody new is in the house. Schmucks, no less.

How will they react? Paper in the gutter? The street?

I've been cursed with a wildly active imagination, so I entertain thoughts of calling the paper, asking our neighbors - eventually ending up with getting up early to spy on our front door, buy a webcam, or hire a PI.

Yeah, I know - wake up early... hah!

Insanity aside - I could just ...do nothing (I can do that!) and enjoy it.

Except there's this other thing: every week we put our garbage cans down on the curb in the morning and in the afternoon our garbage cans are up by our house. Tucked in where I usually leave them.

Okay, that's not the paper carrier. That's like... the Driveway Fairy.

So after yet another week of easy access newspapers, I change the location of where I put the garbage cans. No biggie - just move them off the driveway more and put the recycle can in back this time. Trash day comes, I put them out on the curb and -

Yeah, they're back next to the house, partly on the grass with the recyc bin in the back. Once again - I should just sit back and enjoy this. Somebody's doing something nice for us, two things actually. Before 7am each day, and after 9am on trash day.

Presto! Thank you, mysterious Driveway Fairy!

So, last weekend we're going out the door, and a neighbor lady is walking by and starts chatting up E while I'm loading baby E in the car. I miss most of the conversation - except I hear 'newspaper' and E saying 'Thanks!'

-And right then, I can feel the magic going away. I look up and this lady owns up to the whole thing and I know with absolute certainly that this is it. "Thank you," I say - but what I really want to do is rewind the morning about 5 minutes so we can never meet this person. She smiles and says her goodbyes - but she is now a known quantity.

And known quantities don't do magic.

The next day, I open the door, reach down and - nothing. I'm groggy, so I try again a few times before it dawns on me.

I have to stand up to look out the door's window - but there's absolutely no point. As sure as a sunrise - my paper is sitting in my driveway. By the sidewalk, no less.

Damn. I'm going to miss that.