One too many parking tickets prompts professor to take the bus

  I confess it; I did the crime. Over the past few years I parked my car in so many non-parking spots—little nooks and crannies, unmarked extra spaces, and secret hideaways—that I accrued quite a collection of those nasty white tickets.  I'm not proud of it and I'm confessing it to the world.

It always started the same way: I had to get to work and I needed to park my car.  It's a terrible addiction, but admitting it is the first step to recovery. The amount I've spent feeding the addiction is frightening: about $4500 since my hire at Wilkes! I paid my money faithfully, only to find that I was seldom able to find a parking spot within reasonable distance to carry my laptop, purse, books, notes, and class props without something falling out.  And with that many things to carry, managing an umbrella is just not an option. So I won't even tell you my reaction if it started to rain on my journey to work.

Oh, I was able to get pretty creative when I needed that parking spot fix.  I parked in unmarked spots behind walls, tucked in gravelly curves or cobblestoned corners.  Or worse: sometimes I even parked in a visitor's spot, out of sheer frustration in seeing so many un-ticketed non-Wilkes vehicles filling up all the paid-Wilkes spots. It became a terrible habit. In the end, they always found me, gave me the ticket, and painted a big NO PARKING sign on the spot.  I don't blame security. They didn't make the rules, but it's their job to enforce them. Alas, I fear that I alone am responsible for the many NO PARKING signs that have sprung up over the years in the most unusual spots.  And I'm sorry that I've ruined these spots for the rest of you, my friends.

There's more to this sad story, though: I paid my $30 a month even during summer when I wasn't even working here, because when I asked to opt out for the summer, I was told no! If you sign up for parking, you're hooked. Forever. And I paid that $30 a month all year round, year after year, even when my schedule changed to accommodate online, night, and weekend classes.  By the way, did you know that it doesn't matter if you have a pass after 4:30 p.m. anyway?  So, month after month, year after year, I paid for a spot that either wasn't within walking distance during the day, or was no longer reserved for paying customers at night. Let's face it; it's just not logical.  Addictions never are.

It finally caught up with me. "Do the crime, you pay the dime." Or, in my case, 2000 dimes.  Yep, I got a bill for $200 for all those little white tickets I have accrued since 2006. And I've already asked finance to take the money right out of my paycheck. No, I'm not mad at them either.  They've got a job to do, too. I'm just grateful to be able to pay my debts to Wilkes and to society, to come clean and make a fresh start.

Anyway, I'm free! I cancelled my parking pass and I have been taking the bus. I'm a new person, and, like many ex-addicts, I want to share my good news with the world.  You, too, might consider cancelling your parking pass and taking the bus!  Think about it while you read my list below.

The Top Ten Reasons to Take the Bus

10.  The new hybrid buses are environmentally correct and comfortable, too.

9.    You can read Dr. Anthony's students' poetry on the walls of the bus while enjoying the stress-free ride to campus.