Catty

I went to the library the other day to drop off a few books. The kids were in the car and I figured I'd drive to the book drop, park quick and run back to the car. 30 seconds to a minute tops. It's like 35 degrees. I'm NOT taking the kids out of the car just to drop off books. We had other errand to run and didn't have a library outing in our plans.

Well, I pull in and there is a new sign that says "No stopping". Okay, well, that means me and everyone else, so even though I'd love to stop anyway since it is "only 30 seconds" and no one will see me since it is pretty early and it looks like the library just opened, I pull into the lot and park.

I'm close enough that I can run to the drop with the kids still in the car and I can see them. I really really really hate leaving my kids in the car for any length of time; even when I am unloading groceries at home or bringing the shopping cart back or whatever, I can't stand that they are in the car by themselves. It's a thing. So anyway, I run, I drop the books off, I run back. It's inconvenient, but it's not the end of the world and really it's just inconvenient because I am used to the other way "pre-signage".

As I am running back to the car, a Lexus minivan pulls in and stops at the book drop. A woman is driving, and a teenage girl is in the front passenger seat. They chat for a minute, then the girl brings some books to the drop at a very leisurely pace. She gets back in the car, and there is more chatting. They are just sitting there, car idling, chatting it up. What the heck? Does the sign not apply to you? Do you have some kind of pass? And really, you are in a situation where is would be way easier to park and one of you go than I am. I cannot stand when people do this. It's like the folks who park on the curb in front of the dry cleaners. And the ones who take up two spots so their cars don't get dinged. And the ones who speed up to drive past the school bus when they see the lights start to flash but before the stop sign unfolds. And the ones who park in handicapped for "just a minute" because they are too damn lazy to walk 25 feet.

I remember as a teenager I had an argument with my mom about this. She left the car standing at the curb with me in it and told me to move it if a cop came. I didn't and she got a ticket at the shopping center where we used to grocery shop. She was so mad, but I was so adamant that it was wrong to do that. I'm sure part of it was that as a teen, of course I was right, but I still feel that way today. Are we all just so busy that parking the car and walking is completely out of the question? And more than that; those yellow lines and signs are all there for a reason and if we all felt we were above them there would be a lot of serious problems.

As I am pulling out of the library, I couldn't help it. I stopped the car next to the Lexus. She rolled down her window, and I sweetly (OK, maybe not so much) pointed out the sign. She said she had seen it with an annoyed look. The teen, who I am assuming was her daughter, looked at me helplessly, her face saying "yeah - I told her!".