I’ve started thinking about my next car. I am hoping it will be my last car because, when it dies, I will be retired and hope to rely on public transport.
I’m thinking t will be a small car, a Mini Cooper or Fiat. Maybe a Honda Fit. I want my next car to fit into small parking spaces. And what I witnessed yesterday reaffirmed my commitment to a smaller car.
I had just exited Trader Joe’s and was walking through the parking lot to my car. I had parked at the far end of the parking lot, in the shade of a tree. (In case you hadn’t heard, we are having a heat wave).
It was already hot and I was thinking happy thoughts about blasting the AC. As I crossed the road in front of the store, a big, white SUV pulled into the same row my car was parked in. I turned down the row and stopped. The SUV driver was having a little trouble turning into a spot. The driver pulled forward, then backed up and cranked the steering wheel. The driver pulled forward some more and still didn’t fit, so s/he backed up again And then turned the tires the wrong way.
I was feeling impatient – it was a hot morning after all – but suddenly I had a feeling I was in for a show. Again the driver pulled forward and did not fit. Sheesh! They backed out again. Again they turned the tires the wrong way. They pulled forward some more and I think that was when the driver realized it was never going to work.
This must have been the moment they realized that, only one car away, were two empty spots side by side. An easy park! They backed up once more, but it was once too often.
I saw the collision coming before it happened. I think I might even have called out, but I don’t think the driver heard me over the crunch. They pulled forward and it only took two tries to fit in the new spot.
By then, I’d walked to my car. I passed the victim vehicle, a van that was hardly marked. I didn’t see the SUV driver get out. Didn’t see if they left a note on the van or not. Surely they felt the collision and would do the right thing.
As I drove out of the lot I passed the shiny new SUV that did the damage. There was a football sized dent on driver side bumper.
booksandbassets 