Outside of my apartment building, in the front (the prime parking area), there are 8 parking spots. If those are full you have to go all the way around the side (which is all of 30 seconds further away). In the prime parking area, one of the spots is twice as long as the other spots – allowing you to park two cars in it. The person who holds this parking spot is guaranteed room for an extra car, plus the assigned parking spot that comes with your rent.
For the past 6 weeks or so, that spot has been held by the same trio of cars. For the first 4 weeks, it was a mini-SUV parked there that never moved, while a silver car that was always unlocked and a pale green car rotated parking behind it. This irked me, as I thought that it was greedy. Also, the fact that they have three cars, all with parking permits, means that there’s no way they live in a 1-bedroom apartment, and all of the apartments in our building (all 6 of them) are 1-bedrooms. Also, I sort of know everyone in our building (5 occupied units and 1 unoccupied) and I’m 98% sure that that trio of cars doesn’t belong to anyone in Bldg K.
One night, the complex’s security people came around and tagged all the cars without permits, warning them that they would be towed. They do this every so often. The mini SUV and the silver unlocked car were okay, but the pale green car had an orange sticker on the driver’s side window. Delighted, I read the sticker (nosey!). The car had a permit, but the registration was expired!
The next day I noticed that the SUV was gone, and the pale green car was now parked in the front of the spot, reversed in, and pulled all the way up to the fence. No one will spot its expired registration now! That day I burst in the door after work, saying, “The mystery deepens!” I googled the car’s license plate and nothing came up. (I was secretly hoping I would find out that they were villains, and then I wouldn’t have any problems reporting them to the office.)
The pale green car hasn’t moved. The silver car comes and goes. The registration remains expired.
I lay awake at night sometimes (only rarely!) going back and forth: Who cares about these cars? I think. Then I think, They can’t just sit in the Big Spot like that, it’s selfish and not sharing. Then I think, Their registration is expired, that’s against the law. Then I think, What if they’re a poor single mother who is just trying to make enough money to feed their children? Then I think, They have three cars, they can’t be that poor. Then I think, Seriously, I need to get a life. Then Drew says, “Parking can’t rule my life. I can’t live like that.”
Then Molly was supposed to come hang out with me on Friday, but she called and said she didn’t want to drive too far because she hadn’t put her new registration on her car yet. I wondered if that was a sign to Do The Right Thing and leave this pale green car alone.
When I realized the registration scam that was being run, I sternly told Drew I was giving them an ultimatum – if there wasn’t an updated registration by Jan 1, I was tattling. Then I thought, Surely they won’t still be sitting in that spot in 3 weeks. But now chances are looking good that that’s exactly what will be going on.
Right at this second, I’m on the “Who cares?” end of the pendulum swing…but I know that can change. I’m just curious…WWYD?
Update 12/14: Well, thanks for your votes, guys, I’m glad I know I can trust you to tell me the truth.
On that note, Drew got home before me today and he called to tell me the good news. “I’m parked somewhere that will make you very happy.” I shrieked with joy (in the middle of Target) and we gleefully debated whether the pale green car had been towed, without any anonymous note from me. Hence, no bad karma! (Or should I say carma? I couldn’t resist.)
The Cameraphone Diaries 
