Coins may or may not serve a purpose
The city comes with its own dangers. Too many to be counted here (I admit to not knowing all of them, personally, but I have a great imagination). Among those that should be feared are the hungry parking meters. Hiding along the side of city streets, coloured in drabs beige or charcoal tones, the bottomless pocket is ready to accept all your legal coin tender. Only in the dark of night (after moondown), can one let down their guard in the presence of the city’s version of a slot machine.
Now, those of us with a minimum of experience in the ways of the metropolis never venture into the city centre without pockets full of quarters and loonies (anything less serves only to frustrate the spirit). After carefully parking near the hungry meter, and assuring that you aren’t caught in the protected areas of two at a time, you drop coins into the slot, mutter imprecations and walk away after carefully noting the time. After all, meters have accomplices; travelling in small, barely marked cars, there are the agents who issue contraventions. A polite term for what my good friend Milner (in American Graffiti) called sh*t papers.
The final injustice comes when the meter is broken. Think out of order. Think flashing as if all was well, but then eating the coins and giving nothing in return. I know, that’s normal behaviour as well; think worse. Think that after swallowing several coins (because you hate to think that you put in only one coin, and still got a parking ticket), nothing has changed and you still have a car to deal with. Here’s the city’s take on the situation.
- Ne vous garez pas devant un parcomètre défectueux ou recouvert. Vous pourriez vous mériter une contravention. Si vous avez constaté le bris du parcomètre qu’après y avoir introduit de la monnaie, vous pouvez demander un remboursement en communiquant avec le personnel du bureau de La Cité.
- Don’t park in front of a broken parking meter. You could receive a ticket. If you notice that the meter is broken after having inserted your money, you may request a reimbursement by communicating with the staff of the city.
Let me paraphrase the above. You WILL receive a ticket. Trust me, I speak from personal experience. You could ask for money back, but only if you are willing to admit to having put more than 5 cents into the meter before noticing that all was not in order. You probably won’t take the time for a session of public ridicule, so simply suck it up, pay the bill and try to remember how good the food in the restaurant tasted because the next time you return it will be by city bus.
And imagine that the ticket money goes to your city coffers, so be proud that you are doing your part to keep things running smoothly. Apart from parking meters.
