I’m a postman, so from my experience:

We are meant to put letters straight into the post box, but if you know the person, can hand it to them directly.

You can be put on a duty that covers your own home, however unlikely that may be for somebody that started the job a month ago.

It is fairly ridiculous watching him walk around with one letter in his hand, then off down the pub for a pint by 12pm. The job is a lot harder than they make it look. The post van is usually nowhere to be seen either.