Bismarck Residents Share Shock Over Unusual Mailbox Find

Generally speaking, I don't even like it when mail shows up in my mailbox. I'm like, what is this? Paper?! Who uses that?

Mostly kidding, though I will say my mailman probably hates me because I almost never check my mailbox; paper mail is almost always junk, and I just tell myself I'll get it tomorrow. tomorrow turns into next month.

He left a plastic bag around my mailbox one day, as if to hint that I should clean it out. I did. My bad, Mr. Mailman.

Beyond that, checking the mail is something many of us don't enjoy, because it's mostly just bills. In any case, the next time you check your mail, you should look out for something that might have been left in the box, and it's not mail.

(Also Read: Fall Bug Invasion: Pests That Are Trying To Get Into North Dakota Homes)

If you're in Bismarck and you open your mailbox and happen to find a dryer sheet in there, leave it. I'm sure you will initially find it odd, and instinctually want to throw it away, but DON'T.

There's actually a perfectly reasonable explanation for a dryer sheet being placed in your mailbox.

Random Object In Your Mailbox

First off, the person who, in all likelihood, left the dryer sheet in your mailbox is the mailman.

Mail carriers do this from time to time to ward off pests, specifically wasps.

According to Taste of Home, dryer sheets are scented with things like citronella, eucalyptus, and cloves, which act as a repellent to wasps.

Terminix says that early fall is actually stinging season. Wasps are out in full force, and Bismarck mail carriers often encounter them on their routes.