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// Prompt #454-A Typical Day 
// Story: Ponywatching 
// by ThunderTempest 
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Ditzy Doo was only one part of the mighty machine that was the Royal Mail Service in Ponyville. She was just one of about ten actual delivery ponies in the small town, and as such, was one of the few residents who could really claim to know the town back to front and inside out, and who could navigate the town’s confusing, radial layout without getting lost. Many ponies found this to be a bit of a dichotomy, as Ditzy was also usually the one to go and retrieve the southern birds when the Winter to Spring Season Turning came around, and consistantly got lost on that task. Apparently, delivering mail did not translate to retrieving birds.

Ditzy Doo’s day started well before most ponies’. She was up nearly a full two hours before the sun was, and was at work in the post office an hour later. There, she would, with some difficulty thanks to her permanent wall eyes, do the final sort of the mail according to her route, finishing just after Celestia raised the sun. From there, she would strap on the fully loaded, specially-reinforced saddlebags that all delivery ponies were issued, and fly to the start of her usual mail route. Her route started at the western edge of the small town, wiggled through the northern section of the town, past the Golden Oak library, and finished up at Fluttershy’s cottage, near the border of the Everfree Forest. As such, Ditzy was, if not friends with, at least aquaintances with two of the six Elements of Harmony. After her mail deliveries were finished for the day, Ditzy would fly back into Ponyville from Fluttershy’s cottage with empty bags and an empty stomach.

The usual procedure at this point, around ten in the morning, was for Ditzy was to head for either Bon Bon’s for some candy, or stop by Sugarcube Corner for whatever special they had on that day to give her a bit of energy. Somehow, whenever she chose Sugarcube Corner, a triple-chocolate muffin would find its way into her order, often without her even asking for one. Ditzy suspected Pinkie Pie. After her refreshment break, Ditzy would be back at the post office, pulling in all the outgoing mail and helping get the place ready for the afternoon shift. Once that was done, usually by one in the afternoon, Ditzy Doo was free for the day. She would hang her Official Mailpony Hat up on its hook in the post office, place her saddlebags underneath it, and would be out the door as fast as she could.

Ditzy Doo knew that most ponies took her job forgranted. She knew that most ponies barely noticed who delivered their mail. Indeed, out of her entire mail route, Ditzy could only name four ponies who actually thanked her on a daily basis for doing her job (Colgate, Twilight Sparkle, Caramel and Fluttershy).

[Time]

But Ditzy didn’t take the mail pony job for thanks, or accolades, though they were nice when they came. No, the reason she took the mail pony job would come barrelling through the door at exactly three twenty eight pm, with a joyous cry of ‘Mama!’

And as Ditzy and Dinky hugged and greeted each other for the first time in the day, all was right with the world.