While on assignment in City Heights this afternoon, I noticed piles and piles of newspapers in the back of a red Nissan. A couple guys were milling about in a driveway next to the car so I stopped and chatted with Lon You, who owns the car.
Turns out that You is a newspaper deliveryman for the San Diego Union-Tribune. He gets to the company’s printing facilities at about 1:30 a.m., seven days a week to deliver papers to newsstands throughout Pacific Beach.
How many newspapers he delivers fluctuates based on the news of the day.
“Every time the Chargers win, I take out 200 extras,” he said.
When he picks up the remaining newspapers that don’t get sold, they pile up in the trunk of his Nissan. He waits until it’s full and then takes them to get recycled. It’s not just the Union-Tribune he delivers, either. In the trunk were copies of the Wall Street Journal, USA Today and the Los Angeles Times.
You didn’t want me to snap a photo of him, but was more than happy to let me share this image of the back of his car.
— SAM HODGSON