Greedy Parking

Published almost 4 years ago

I just read this hilarious post over at Ned Batchelder's blog about dealing with parking pigs. You know the type - the car owner who thinks that their love of their car (and their car itself) is so great that they deserve two parking spots to ensure that no harm comes to their vehicle while they are away.

Ned's situation is not unusual, but I was surprised to learn that his polite note was ignored, and that the parking hog keeps parking "in the good spot". I think anyone who cares enough for their car would eventually figure out that if they really want their car to remain unharmed, they have to park it in the worst spot available, far away from everyone else.

Not only is your car less likely to get "dinged", but its also less likely to get crashed into. Furthermore, car vandals are much more apt to vandalize a car which they know someone cares dearly enough to obnoxiously take up two spots than a car which is parked out of the way.

A lot of the suggestions on Ned's blog in response to his post are just plain bad ideas, like defecating on the hood of the offending car, but some of them are really funny.

All in all, I can relate to the car owner a little. Its nice to have a car that you love, but there's no way around it - the roads are a horrendous place to take your car. Especially in Massachusetts, where the roads are always under construction, covered in sand and salt, populated with aggressive drivers. I learned awhile back that warmer climates are kinder to cars, and if I wanted to continue my love affair with fine cars, I'd be better off in Florida, Arizona, or California.