Parking in the Loading Zone

Really, people?  Do you have to park in the Loading Zone

At some point, every year, we have to go through an arduous paperwork process.  Everyone needs a re-certification of this or a re-authorization of that, as if the skies have opened, the angels have sung, and miraculously Savannah is is no longer blind, quadriplegic, epileptic, non-verbal, etc., etc., etc. Considering her issues will continue unchanged for the remainder of her life, one would think we could simply re-certify that she is still alive. Oh, if I could only write a note each year that read:

"Dear State of Texas, I wish to inform you that my child is not dead yet. Though this news may come as a bit of disappointment to you, we are happy to see her smile brighten another year."

It was under these circumstances that Savannah and I ended up in the pediatrician's office, not because she was ill, but because we needed a doctor to certify that, indeed, the angels had not sung and she remained disabled.

The appointment went smoothly.  Her pediatrician is wonderful. I just get tired of these useless hassles.  I had let myself believe all was going fine until we emerged from the doctor's office to find that someone had parked in the van loading zone. What was more upsetting was the fact that the offender had a perfectly good parking space, but decided not to park in it, but rather just approximate its location.

Because this sort of thing happens with great frequency, I'd like to use this opportunity to inform the public on the purpose of van accessible spots and their accompanying loading zones. The lift that sprouts from the side door of my van requires a lot of clearance.  The lift can only be entered from the front, so there must be at least one wheelchair's worth of space in front of the lift, when it is fully extended, in order to load the passenger.  In the photo here, I might be able to deploy the lift, but would not be able to actually load the passenger.

I parked Savannah on the sidewalk.  Pulled the van into the middle of the parking lot, blocking the flow of traffic for some time while I executed the process for loading and securing Savannah in the van.

Nice work, jerk in the SUV.


#JerkInAnSUV #disability #DisabledParking #VanAccessible #SpecialNeeds #parenting #paperwork