Author's fair, parking meters

In general, I like living close enough to Iowa (I live in Galesburg IL) that I can run up there in a day, or go to some event. I enjoy going back and renewing old friendships etc. We get Iowa weather and Iowa news all the time, and I read it like I used to, keep up on what's going on.

Recently they announced a City of Literature event that included a local author book fair, and I called them up and left a message. But they never called back. What's up with that? I'm not local enough for them? I'm not "author" enough for them? More likely it's inept secretarialism, like hospitals and universities are notorious for. But whatever it is, it left a bad taste so to speak.

And while I'm venting, here's something that really makes me mad. Recently I went back and wanted to park in the near-north side, somewhere around the old Mercy Hospital, and couldn't. I had to drive about half a mile away before various spots opened up that I could use. It occurred to me that all through downtown, a square mile or two, parking is very tight and very expensive, like you have to use the garages or forget it.

Now this actually triggered me and I remembered the old days, fifty years ago, when I'd park two miles from campus and walk, both ways every day, in all kinds of weather. I don't remember exactly why I was so mad at them - was it because it took them a minute and a half to find someone just parked for a minute? Was it because they actually towed, quickly, all these people (I don't remember their actually towing me)...was it because their signs are completely indecipherable and require you to move your car regularly for no other reason than to move it? Whatever my reasons I was still mad fifty years later, mad enough to refuse to give them a dime, and park way over by the Black Angel just to avoid plugging a meter.

Another thing I learned was that my venomous attitude had obviously trickled down to the next generation, as my daughter's friend shared those harsh feelings and it seemed like general hostility to the City of Iowa City was rampant.

I come home to find out that all the parking meters are going pay-by-phone-only. Now I hit the roof, last straw. I don't pay for. anything by phone because I deal with teenagers who are much more shrewd about such things and would gladly empty my account by phone if I ever left it unattended. But it seems to me I have a right to not pay for things by phone if I so choose, and since I have a car, I should have the right to park even if I choose to not exercise it. I'm ok with it if they make you carry quarters, which I never do, but I consider that my fault, and if I lived in the city I coold surely find some and carry them around. But I am not about to open up my phone to attack, just because I want to park in the near north end. Sorry!

I share the younger generation's open and vitriolic hatred for the City of Iowa City's parking nightmare. The city would be better off just eliminating the meters altogether, thus giving future generations the possibility of considering the city a nice place to be. Whatever money they're making hassling people, towing, ticketing, etc. is not worth the hostility they've generated, I guarantee that. They could as a compromise keep the garages and make money off them, but remove the meters and let the city streets be an open battle of a million cars for a few free spots.

I always felt like the the parking meters were like soldiers of an invading army: cold, metal, unmoving, standing in obvious places, you make one wrong move and they beat you up and throw you in the clink. We are polite to them in public but behind closed doors we despise them and can't wait for the day that they get booted out of the country in favor of a more democratic, people-oriented society. I guess they need their MONEY though don't they, so I'll be parking out by the Black Angel until the sun goes down.