We were driving to the village, Will and I, with three different parking options. The first, pay $5 and park at the village. The second option, picking a third person up at Stilson and then parking for free at the village, we tried (three peeps park free). Third, park the car at Stilson, wait twenty minutes for the bus, and then ride it to the village, fifteen minutes away. Nobody was at the Stilson station when I went in, so we decided to eat the five bucks and drive to the village to park there.
Will's Jeep's radio probably wasn't working, one of its notable features, and I don't really remember the ride to the village other than that, until Will comes up with the brilliant idea to make a third person out of our gear in the back.
"You should totally put your ski helmet on those poles and make it look like a third person," Will says glancing into the back seat and then at me.
"Fuck yeah," I reply, turning around to see what our prospects look like.
Parking fees fleece your average ski bum, so I took up the task of fashioning our third carpooler with relish.
A body consisting of two backpacks and four ski boots, haphazardly strewn about, a head and neck of helmet, goggles and ski poles. To give him some semblance of humanity, he was wrapped in the half-frozen hoodie found in the back seat.
A few rough turns later, we arrive at the Ranch Lot. I see the big red shuttle driving past the pay station some twenty yards ahead, I tell Will to speed up so we cruise up hot to the window, close behind the bus. Will barely looks at the guy, arm out the window, fingers slapping for the ticket. The guy goes straight for the FREE ticket, does a double take at our friend in the back, hands Will the ticket, and we pull away. Bam, free parking
I'm sure this trick will be pulled more in the future. Last time we was in LA, I put the first parking ticket they gave me under my wiper every time I parked the car anywhere for the next week or so. Only got one other ticket and didn't pay for a parking the rest of the trip. It worked almost every time. The county of Los Angeles has already sent me like three letters here in Jackson about the tickets. Sorry, Los Angeles, save your monies and save the mail.
It seems like parking is one of those things every one (who drives) must do, one of those humbling human things drivers go through. You have to park your car somewhere, and they're going to try to separate you from your 401k for it; might as well give them a run for the money!
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