The last handicapped parking spot

A few minutes ago, feeling a bit guilty about taking the second-to-last handicapped parking space (I'm under a knee specialist's orders not to do any unnecessary walking, because he thinks I am too young for the knee replacement he says I need, and he doesn't want the new one to wear out before I do. He has also told me to use a walker, which I refuse to do choosing instead, to use my shopping cart as a sort of rolling crutch.). I was feeling guilty because I took the spot closest to the store, when I know there are other people who have more difficulty than I do. Just then, as I was getting out of the car, another vehicle pulled into the last handicapped spot, and yet somehow the driver, who was the only person in the vehicle, RAN across the parking lot before I had fully finished getting out of my car. Angry, I checked to see whether the vehicle had a disabled driver lanyard or a disability license plate. It had neither, but it did have a PBS television station advertisement on the side of the vehicle. Angry, I got out my cell phone with the intention of taking a photo of the vehicle in the handicapped parking spot, with a view of both the license plate, and a view of where the lanyard would be, if there had been one. It was my intention to also take a panoramic shot of all the empty "regular" parking spaces in the parking lot, but in the bright sunlight, I couldn't see the screen to make that selection. Then, when I got home, I accidently deleted the photo of the van with it's non-disability plate, parked in the disabled-only parking space. The last thing I remembered seeing as I pressed the delete button instead of the share button that was right next to it, was admiring how the blue paint of the reserved parking space stood out so well for the purpose of my photo. I recently turned off the "trash bin" feature on my phone because I never use it, and my free space on the phone is limited, and I deleted it too soon for my auto-backup software to copy it. I decided it must have been providential that I accidently deleted the photo.

After all, it only seems fair to warn people of my intentions before I do it. In addition, this is Blueberry Festival time, when parking spaces are hard to find, and people park illegally all over town (although there were plenty of empty parking spaces where I was.)

So, all of you illegal handicapped parking space stealers, I'm onto you, and the next time I catch you taking a handicapped parking space, expect to see a time-stamped photo of your car, with the blue paint on the pavement, and the handicapped parking sign, along with your license plate number published on my blog, and on Google+, and on Facebook, where everyone can see it. If there are other spaces available that you COULD have taken instead, expect to see a second panoramic photo showing those options you could have chosen instead! It's not libel if its factual. You have been warned.

Image adapted from:

Not handicapped. N.d. Photograph. n.p. Web. 31 Aug 2014. http://www.jeffpearlman.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/not_handicapped.jpg