After making his last delivery, a Reading postman has hung up his postbag after 40 years of service.
Keith Paul, 66, started working as a postman in 1986, when he was 26 year's old, having joined after he was encouraged by a friend who he worked with previously.
The Spencers Wood resident was given the Winnersh Triangle delivery route, which he did for a period, before he was tasked with a round in Earley, which he continued for 35 years.
Today, June 10, was his last delivery round, where he posts to an area including 15 different closes down to The George pub in Loddon Bridge Road and the car garage in the town.
He told The Chronicle: "There are lots of closes there that weren't there when I first started doing it.
"But there are people still living there now who are living in the same house that I did 35 years ago.
"I've met quite a few people who I now see more on my round that I do my own family.
"Some of them I get to know them pretty well and know them on first name terms.
"There are probably between five and 10 people who are still living in the same house when I first started the round."
Over the years, Keith said he has seen many changes happen with the Royal Mail's operation.
He said: "We used to send out all sorts of things and we used to deliver all the bills.
"We used to have a sorting pigeon hole system so if you had 39 houses in a road, you would have 10 in a block and then 11-20 and so on, and then you would have to rearrange it in the right order when you were taking mail back out.
"Since 1997, when we moved to Sutton, the houses have individual slots so that became a lot easier to do.
"But with the parcel side where there used to be two items, we might see 20 items in a road now.
"That has really, really changed."
He recalled a time during the early 2000s when he said the flooding was so bad the postal staff could only manage a half delivery.
He said: "We have had a few horrendous weather days and a few really wet days, especially the summer where we had a mega rainstorm where all the roads flooded and that was in the early 2000s in 2005 and 2007.
"Trying to get back home, every single road was flooded.
"We have to do half a delivery and the next day we have to finish off because the roads were too bad."
As part of his send off, Keith has received more than a dozen cards and gifts which include golf balls so he can continue his hobby into retirement.
He said he will miss the residents he sees while out delivering six days a week, but not the strain it has put on his feet due to all the walking.
He said: "I don't get very emotional as my family say but when the last letter goes in and I say` goodbye to all the workers [and residents], it will be sad.
"I always see about 20 different dogs on my round, which come to see me and say hello, so it will be sad to not see them anymore.
"I've already had some retirement presents which has been very over generous."
A party is being held with residents to celebrate his retirement on Saturday, June 13, which he has organised as a farewell.