Parking Dilemma–15 minute story

Set the timer–

It has been a week since I found the note from LL on my door.  He had dropped it in the mailbox of the wrong apartment, as if he was ashamed, or didn’t want me to see it, really, for some reason, Cowardly, Nefarious, Idiotic.

Steve’s truck and Lynn’s Mustang 1997

He had dropped it in the mailbox of #1–the site of our contentious 15-week battle–now Amy’s apartment, Steve’s old place for 35 years, where we lived together for 22 years, anyway.  THE NOTE WAS IN ALL CAPS, WHICH LOOKS LIKE YELLING, particularly in that the address and salutation were in Normal Writing.  He had signed it “Manager”, and threatened me with towing if I park in the driveway (at my expense) and stated that I was told before moving in to Apartment #2 that there was no parking provided on the property, and I should “REFRAME” from parking there.  After I read it (and freaked out!) on that Thursday night I sealed it back up and put it back in the (wrong) mailbox.  The next day Amy left it for me, standing up on my doorknob, against the door frame.

I have been parking in the driveway since at least 1995, before we parked my 1957 VW van there.   .

My first move was to write a long, long, frantic, angry reply in longhand.  Then I typed up a WARNING PRIVATE PROPERTY THIS VEHICLE IS LEGALLY PARKED DO NOT TOW WITHOUT EXPRESS WRITTEN PERMISSION OF VEHICLE OWNER  with my name, signature, cell phone number, printed and taped to the inside front and back windows of the Westfalia.

My VW van Betsy and Steve’s Datsun 1995

Then I wrote a simple reply to the LL and edited it, printed it out, edited it further, further, printed it out, and emailed a copy of the original yelling NOTE and a copy of the reply to my “Lawyer”  Jeffrey.  Then I took the van on vacation for a few days, to chill, relax, “reframe”.

Meanwhile, Amy is cool, frantically apologizing, wants to park so everyone is happy–but she is paying extra for the space.

It’s terribly stressful coming home to a sense of attack and dilemma, wondering where to park, listening for a tow truck, and not knowing what to do, or what YELLING letter of weirdness will pop up next.

No Clear resolution.

DING!