Oh, SLU.

I have a beef with SLU (SLU = Saint Louis University, where I go to college).

I actually have more than one, but today I am going to concentrate on the one that has been bothering me a LOT lately - parking.

Parking wasn't really a huge problem for me until this semester. The first three years of my education at SLU, I lived on campus. I didn't even have a car freshmen or sophomore year. I just bummed rides off of Pete and other friends.

Junior year I was able to have me and my sister's car on campus. I lived in a residence hall/apartment building with a parking lot right behind it. There were almost always spaces for me to park in, all hours of the day. So, that was fine, too.

But now I commute. There is a huge garage on the East side of campus - Olive-Compton - where it is suggested that most commuter students park. It's also the garage that people park in for any events on campus - graduations, sporting crap, concerts - and it's pretty big. Four levels. Lots of space.

Last semester was okay. I didn't have classes on Mondays, Wednesdays, or Fridays (with a few exceptions) and so on Tuesdays and Thursdays I would park at Olive-Compton by 9:30 and scoot to my class in the next major building, close to Olive-Compton. My next class was across campus, but my third class was back on the East side, right next to Olive-Compton. Easy easy lemon squeezy.

But NOW. Oh, now. I have one class, all semester long, on the East side of campus. ONE. The rest are on the West side. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, I have class across from Humphrey's (a gross college bar that apparently doesn't card. I haven't been there and it is my personal goal to not go during my college career), which is on the West side of campus. And that's my one class for those days. So why park approximately four city blocks away for one 50-minute class? I park on the street. And I ALWAYS bring change to put in the darn parking meters, but I always run out. Like moments before a meter-maid comes. For example - Wednesday I got to my car three minutes after the meter expired. I had a ticket, that was marked as being issued one minute (ONE MINUTE) after my meter ran out.

Grrrrrrrrrrrr.

Tuesdays and Thursdays are a pain, too. I'm just going to use SLU names for the St. Louisians/SLU people that read this...

I have my first class in McGannon Hall at 9:30 AM. This is almost the Western-most lecture building on campus. And where is the only place I can find a parking space? Olive-Compton. Which, oh, hey! Is LITERALLY as East as you can go on campus. It's a long walk.

So. I have a decision to make most Tuesday/Thursday mornings. Do I park right outside my building and risk (probably) getting a ticket? Because even if I'm only a MINUTE late, I'll still get one? Or do I park in a place that I've already paid for, and be 10-15 minutes late to class?

I know what you're thinking. You're thinking, "just leave home earlier."

I HAVE. I leave my apartment at 8:50 every morning. I only live 10-ish minutes away, and that leaves a half hour to walk to class. Somehow I am ALWAYS late. And I walk campus fast. I mean, the next step up for my walking is trotting, like a horse. And I'm not going to trot.

I think I know why I'm late, too. There's another "commuter" parking lot near McGannon, and for some reason I am always hopeful I will find a space there. It's teeny - probably only 100 spaces or so - but it's so CLOSE and I am just so damn hopeful. And I have yet to find a space here.

Oh well. The rest of my Tuesday-Thursday classes are spaced out ridiculously as well. By the end of the day, I'm almost back to where my first class is - which means that I have a 15 minute walk JUST to get to my car to go home.

Okay. I'm done being cynical and angry about this. The parking at SLU is not ideal. I get a lot of exercise so I can't really complain. I just hate walking into class late.