Permit
machines cause frustration
No
Me Calles
Julie Guevara
This
is probably one of the last things I would
write about.
After
being here for three years, complaining
about the whole situation is hardly conducive
because there is not much which can be done
about it. Problematic parking at Cal State
Long Beach is just as inevitable as a hot
day in July.
Last
Thursday, it just really got to me. "Me
enoje mucho," I got really mad! I had
spent my last four dollars on an overpriced
mocha frappuccino. I still had $1.75 in
quarters for my daily parking permit. It
was bad enough that there was traffic on
the 405 and worse I got to school only to
spend 45 minutes trying to find a parking
spot. I walked to the nearest permit machine,
which was still pretty far, and proceeded
to insert the quarters that I had scrounged
up earlier that morning.
Clunk,
was the noise I heard after dropping the
last quarter waiting to hear the permit
being released. The only thing I heard was
cars circling the parking lot to find a
spot. I pushed the coin release. I was only
given back $1.40. Just my luck. It shorted
me 35 cents!
I
really didn't want to walk all the way back
to my car for the money and to be quite
honest, I wasn't sure that I'd be able to
find another 35 cents. These girls came
up to use the machine behind me.
I
let them know not to put their money in
the machine. They thanked me and walked
off to the next "change stealer."
I figured since the dumb machine had already
taken my change, I didn't have much to lose.
"Ladies.
I hate to bother you," I said. "But
would either of you happen to have an extra
35 cents so that I don't have to walk all
the way back to my car?" The nice girls
spotted me the money. Not only is this my
way to complain about the horrible parking
and lousy permit machines, but I guess it's
also my way of saying thanks to the girls
in lot 14.
Why
bother getting the daily permit? The truth
is that I just haven't been able to afford
the $63 parking permit after the tuition
hike and so on. Even if I did dish out the
$63, I'm not guaranteed a parking spot.
I still have to drive around the lot to
chasing down some student who just got out
of class to see where they parked.
After
I've stalked the poor student, I usually
thank him or her for leaving and run to
class. By the time I get back, I've forgotten
where I parked. So I run around aimlessly
searching for my little green Toyota Tercel
all while another student tries to decipher
where I've parked. "Y asi continua
el siguente dia y todos los dias depues."
And that's how it continues the next day
and everyday after that.
Julie
Guevara is a communications major and a
student at Cal State Long Beach and can
be reached at MissJewels212@aol.com.
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