We made a shopping trip this morning to Sam’s and experienced another of the pet peeves that we have.  Well, actually, it is a situation that only sets one of us off while the other tries to remain calm.  (Hint: the one going ballistic is always me, KJ).

We found a handicap parking space close to the door that was open and it had the yellow hash lines on what would be the right side of our vehicle.  That is the side where the ramp deploys.  You would be surprised how many times we go out and can’t find a handicap space.  Or we find one and it has the yellow hash lines on the wrong side, necessitating turning the van so it can be backed in.  That may sound easy but turning a big van in a parking lot aisle with shoppers and cars all around is a challenge.  But I digress.

Today’s issue is that the handicap space we found was far from perfect because the car in the adjacent space was in my space. Both passenger side wheels were completely over their yellow line, in my space.  I tried to pull in but could not create enough space to be sure the ramp would deploy so we had to move on to look for another spot.  The car that caused the problem was also in a handicapped space but it was truly a car, not a van or any other type of vehicle that would be difficult to park.  I also looked on the driver’s side of the car and there was a huge space between the driver’s side of the car and the next vehicle.  I wasn’t calm enough to think about talking a photo to show you exactly what I am talking about.  However, I did have a similar situation on a different day and I took a photo of this one.  

I know what you are thinking, “well it was a handicap driver so maybe I am being too harsh on their driving skills”.  Perhaps but that wasn’t the case.  When we returned to the van after shopping, the driver was standing behind her car talking to a friend.  This was a woman much younger than we are and in apparent good health with no obvious handicap condition.  I observed her standing and talking to her friend without any aids for quite a few minutes before I left.  (This opens up a whole other can of worms but I will defer that discussion for a different Blog entry in the future.)

My educated opinion after careful observation is that this person was more than capable of parking her car within the lines. She was irresponsible and lazy in pulling in the way she did, causing problems for people who needed a full, van-accessible space.  It is the entitlement mentality that permeates our society and dictates the daily actions of so many.   A person with a handicap permit should understand the need for keeping handicap spaces as unimpeded as possible.  They should identify with this need more than the average person.  Unless, they are not really handicapped and shouldn’t have the permit in the first place.  But there I go again trying to launch into that other topic.

For now, I will just say this “If you park in a handicap space or adjacent to one, PARK BETWEEN THE LINES!!”