Thursday, January 29, 2009

I fought the law (again). This time the law towed my car.

So I'm fighting the man again, over a parking ticket again. A couple years ago, I went to DC for a concert and wound up with a bs $100 parking ticket for parking in an "emergency zone". I wrote a pissy letter, backed up with photographic proof of my innocence, and actually got the thing dismissed. I still have the dismissal letter from the DC DMV posted on my fridge, I'm so damn proud of it.

Well, here I go again: Wednesday night I went to the Norva, parked on Granby a block up from Baxters (where it's all torn up with construction), went to the show, came back and had a total "Dude, where's my car?" moment. I saw the handicapped sign earlier, but it was attached to the sign that says that 2 hour parking is from 9am - 6pm, so I thought that time frame applied to the handicapped zone too. It does not. So whatever minion Satan put in charge of Norfolk parking decided to not only ticket me, but also have me immediately towed (seriously, the times on the ticket and the towing sheet are like 20 minutes apart). Cuz, you know, it's 10pm and some crippled person must have been desperately trying to get to the federal court house.
Fast forward to the impound lot near Janaf - now that place is a treat. First off, I drive a newer model Toyota convertible. The guard who escorted me to my car took me all the way through the lot and up to this, like 1970s Oldsmobile hoopdie. Apparently oblivious to the look of incredulity on my face, he asked me "is this it?" Um, no.

So we eventually found it. Bonus fun: my registration was expired, so technically I didn't have a current registration to prove I own the damn thing. Fortunately, the lady at the counter accepted my expired registration, probably because she didn't feel like dealing with this shit at midnight on a Wednesday any more than I did.

So I have my car back, but it cost me $135 to get it out of impound, PLUS I have a $250 - yes, you read that right, $250 - parking ticket that the city of Norfolk apparently thinks I'm actually going to pay. Ha! Even if I had $250, I wouldn't be sending it to the city of Norfolk. So I've written another pissy letter, with photographic evidence, detailing why not only am I not sending them $250, but I would also like them to give back the $135 I've already paid. Oh yeah, I'm going for all of it.

Because here's the kicker: the guard at the impound lot mentioned, as we were searching for my car, that people get towed from that spot all the time because no one realizes it's a handicapped zone. This is a total sham! The city knows the sign is confusing and they don't care; it's just a money making racket. When I mentioned I worked for The Pilot, he asked if we were going to do a story on it. I was going to make this just a personal vendetta, but perhaps I will suggest it as a story. Because apparently it's my purpose in life to overhaul the parking system in the DC and Norfolk area. Wish me luck.

- v -

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

The deep sadness of the swastika octopus

I have an art dilemma and I need input. Back in October, I went to the Look Alive project at Granby Theater - awesome time had by all, btw. One of the artists with work on display there had all these pictures that featured swastikas really, really heavily. Now, I took a world religions class; I know that in several eastern religions (most notably Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism), the swastika is a symbol of everything from good luck to eternity to the balance of opposites, but it's always a good thing. Obviously, that's not what most people on this side of the globe think of when they see one.
So I said to the artist, "Those are symbol-of-life swastikas, not Nazi swastikas, right?" He was totally thrilled - "You're like the first person who's actually gotten that!" he said. So long story short, he wound up giving me a little 5x7 painting:



That part on the bottom is what's painted around the edges of the canvas. So, you know, it's not exactly subtle.
So here's my dilemma: should I hang this in my house? Since October, I've had it sitting around, but haven't actually hung it. See, I know it's not a hate symbol in this context, but I'm worried that other people (all 3 or 4 people who come into my house in a year's time) will think I'm some kind of Neo-Nazi, plus it has become a symbol of so much pain and sorrow for so many people. Then again, I feel like I should display it because (1) it was a gift from the artist and he seemed genuinely happy that someone understood what he was going for, (2) apart from the swastika, I think the painting is cute, and (3) I don't think a group of hateful, murderous bigots should be able to own a millennia-old symbol of good. Which makes me wonder: can we take back the swastika? Or is it too marred by decades of evil from the third reich to the Aryan brotherhood? Oh art, you're so controversial.
By the way - if anyone knows the name of the artist, would you please post it in the comments? I can't remember, and the piece isn't signed, but I'd like to give the guy credit for his work.
- v -

Friday, January 9, 2009

Who drinks a beer and thinks, "hmm, needs clam"?

WTF moment last night at the Harris Teeter:



It's beer with Clamato in it. Why? What marketing genius at Budweiser said "hey, our product already pretty much tastes like piss; let's make it taste like clam-y, tomato-y piss"?
Or am I missing out on something? Is this some sort of beverage trend that's sweeping the nation? Has anyone tried this? Would anyone be willing to try it and let us know how it is?
- v -