Today while running errands, we came out from a store to find a lady had parked 1/2 over into the wheelchair lines beside our parking space. Had it been just 1/4 of the way over, I would have tried to lift Bobby's chair up over the edge of the ramp. My neck and head (which have hurt the last 2 days) were thankful that was not an option today. This place is fairly busy and has a lot of teen drivers, so it's not one of those parking lots where I feel comfortable stooping over and attempting to correctly use the van's hand controls to back the van out and pulling the lift down. I headed inside to Customer Service with the make and tag number and a request to page the owner. Would you believe the girl didn't want to do it? "We only use the paging system for missing children and elderly." I responded (a little but huffily) "You have a customer in a wheelchair who cannot leave because someone has illegally parked." The manager came up about that time, and she gladly paged the person. The lady was nice about it, moved her Tahoe without speaking to Bobby, then got out and said "I'm in a hurry."
I understand being in a hurry. I really and truly do. But she obviously has NO CLUE how many times we've been forced to wait (and usually in inclement weather) because people are always in a hurry and park inappropriately. They have NO IDEA what it's like for everything in life, even the simple act of getting in a van, to take longer than normal because of a wheelchair. They are clueless that getting up in the morning, or eating, or shopping, always takes longer with a wheelchair and paralysis. We have even less available time than the average person. So when an able-bodied person tells us "I'm in a hurry", I want to throw something at them.
It's a very good thing that God did not put me in charge of earthly punishments. Being the vindictive person that I am, I would punish every idiot who has ever parked illegally in a handicap spot or zone with two months of paralysis. I'd like for them to see how important and necessary those spots, and especially those striped "wasted spaces" truly are.
And that's my soap box for today.
I understand being in a hurry. I really and truly do. But she obviously has NO CLUE how many times we've been forced to wait (and usually in inclement weather) because people are always in a hurry and park inappropriately. They have NO IDEA what it's like for everything in life, even the simple act of getting in a van, to take longer than normal because of a wheelchair. They are clueless that getting up in the morning, or eating, or shopping, always takes longer with a wheelchair and paralysis. We have even less available time than the average person. So when an able-bodied person tells us "I'm in a hurry", I want to throw something at them.
It's a very good thing that God did not put me in charge of earthly punishments. Being the vindictive person that I am, I would punish every idiot who has ever parked illegally in a handicap spot or zone with two months of paralysis. I'd like for them to see how important and necessary those spots, and especially those striped "wasted spaces" truly are.
And that's my soap box for today.
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