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Do you know all the Vancouver parking by-laws? Cause I sure as hell don't.

It's 4:30pm, time to wrap up this work day and head home.  I grab my purse, lunch bag and laptop bag and head out the door, cheerily saying 'goodbye - have a good weekend' to my coworkers.  I start to walk up the street to my car and as I glance up.  The space in which I parked my car at 7:45am is now EMPTY.

Don't panic, I tell myself.  maybe I didn't park there.  I work in a res/comm mix neighbourhood which offers free parking (if you get there early enough), res only parking, 1 hr, metered parking and no parking.  Most directed by signs.  In this case.  NOT.

Back into the the office I go to use my laptop to find out where the hell my car has been relocated to.  Google – City of Vancouver tow.

 http://vancouver.ca/engsvcs/parking/enf/fines.htm

My car is about 4 blocks away and this lovely adventure is going to cost me a whopping $70.18 + GST.  Great.  The digital frame I’m selling at 5:30 will pay for that (instead of much needed groceries).  Remember, I just returned to work after 2.5  months of unemployment.  Money is a wee bit tight right now and not to be spent on retarded parking violations.

My lovely co-worker Chad drops me off at the impound lot.  A nice guy opens the door for me, we give each other consoling eyes.  I want to ask, “What are you in for?” but just want to get the hell out of this money grab.  All the cashiers are located at the back of this weirdly designed office.  I wonder if the wickets are surrounded by bullet proof glass.  This cannot be a desirable place to work, unless they are paying them $50/hr.

I give the girl my license plate # and scan the lot for my poor car.  I’m sure it’s wondering where the hell it is.  Lots of hells in this blog.  I’m angry. 

She tells me the amount is $94.25.  Huh? What happened to $70.18.  Oh, the tax and the tax on top of that tax and the other tow tax fee thingie.  Right.  I try not to get angry at her, she’s just doing her job.

Oh, btw, you just paid your towing fine.  You still owe for your parking TICKET.

So I ask why exactly my car was towed.  She explains that you have to be 1.5 meters away from a driveway.

 

First time I’ve heard of it.  I think I should forward this fine to Comox Valley Driving School as I am pretty sure that this was not told to me EVER.  Did you know?

Lovely.

My Visa covers my butt and she gives me a token which resembles a toonie and tells me to go get my car out of stall 11.  I hit the unlock button and my car angrily beeps.  It does that after you set the alarm and the car alarm gets tripped.  The corolla is angry. 

I go to the exit and place the token in the box so the arm thingie goes up so I can leave.  I move my car forward and the door doesn’t move.  HELLO – get me the f&ck out of here.  NOW.  The door doesn’t budge.  I move forward a bit more.  Nothing.  Finally I see a sensor RIGHT in front of the door.  I guess my bumper has to kiss the door for it to move.  I imagine I’d get another FINE for that too.

Door goes up.  As I drive down the street (as luck would have it, a dead end…) I see a zillion cars that are parked LESS than 1.5 meters from driveways.  BASTARDS.

BASTARDS = BUSTER’S TOWING.

Now looking at the receipt.  I still owe another $50.00 if paid by April 1st.  $100 by April 22 and a whopping $150 after April 22 (plus a surcharge for being broke – or not caring).

I am now learned that I broke bylaw 2849 section 17.2 (D) Stop near crossing.

Where the hell is a crossing?

Here is the guide if you care to read it.  http://vancouver.ca/bylaws/2849c.PDF

Annnnnd to top it off the Craigslist guy is ½ hr late.  I love how inconsiderate people are (that’s another blog rant).  I postpone my errand after work so I can be here for 5:30pm because that’s when he’s going to be here and then he tells me he had something to do and forgot to write down my #.  HELLO, in the age of iPhones and Androids, surely you can get back onto Hotmail.com and get my fricken#.  Normally I’d let it go but I have tried to sell this stupid frame for over a year and I just want to get rid of it!!

Anyhow, that’s the end of this post.  The City of Vancouver got me for $144.25 not to mention the $35.00 parking fine last month (which would have cost .49 cents if I had gotten to the meter 2 mins previously). How bout the City get busy FINING people who still drive with a cell phone in their hand.  Or the millions of people not riding with bike helmets.  Instead of towing poor redheads who try to find a spot near work that isn't blocking or harming ANYONE.  They could have just fined me, did they have to TOW me too!?

Guess that’s the cost of living in the city.  Vancouver Island, when I can move back to you?

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