I’ve been cheating at school lately.
Not with my homework, but with my parking. It’s $50 a term to park in the school’s parking lot. I paid it for my first term because I wanted things to be simple while I learned the campus and the routine.
But it’s my second term, and I am feeling stingy. I am only on campus for a total of 5 hours per week, and I have to pay the same as someone going to class all day every day.
Adjacent to the school is a small but lovely park called Lesser Park. Probably named for nearby Lesser Road. The park is absolutely inviting, lush green, and filled with trails.
Although there are warnings online and on signs all around the school that say, “Don’t park in neighborhoods! You will be towed and fined!” I have been doing just that. I park at Lesser Park and do not pay a dime. It’s a 6-minute walk uphill to the door of my classroom.
My favourite flowers in the park are the trillium, which begin life bright white, and turn purple as they age.
I discovered two small parking spots for people who use the park. Each one can hold 3 vehicles. I park in both of them (breaking up my vehicle profile so I don’t irritate the neighbors, whom I’m sure have had to deal with students before). I have also purchased a day pass in the parking lot twice. My hope is that I can get through the whole term without buying the $50 parking pass, and without getting in trouble.
My rationale is that the parking areas are made for people going into the park, right? So far I have never seen another vehicle parked there. Yes, I’m cheating.
I have loved watching spring happen along the trails in Lesser Park. It’s a beautiful thing to have serendipitously arrived in my life merely because I am a cheapskate.
The shots above are from the school campus.
Conscious Engagement 
Very clever Crystal 👍🏼😁 A double bonus. Not paying to park and having a wonderland to explore while retrieving you car. Great photos
A double bonus indeed! Here’s the third bonus: I get some good exercise. Even though it’s a short walk, the uphill is significant enough (plus several sets of staircases at the building), that I’m winded by the time I get there. So…save money, see the forest, and exercise too!
Another bonus is things to take photos of as well
Certainly not a lesser park – more a clever one. We now have to pay to park in the New Forest car parks.
*Sigh* people seem to need to grab our money however they can. It is too bad you have to pay in New Forest car parks. Here, we have parks run by cities, the state, or the country – each one has a different pay system. For the most part, city parks remain free. The others always require a paid pass. I usually buy an annual pass for everything, then keep them in my car so I can remain spontaneous. :o)
It’s a beautiful park, Crystal, and you are using it as it should be used by enjoying the flowers. May you have continuing good luck! I suspect the towing has more to do with residents not being able to find a place to park at their homes. Even then, if it’s a public street…
I hope you are right about owners wanting to park in front of their own houses, Curt. If that is the main motivation, then I am safe because I am not in anyone’s way.
My hopes are with you, Crystal. Seems like there is always one… Still, not having space to park in front of your house guarantees a reaction. The odds for the park are better.
Crystal, what are you studying?????
Spanish!! AGAIN. I was dismayed in Guanajuato back in 2023 when I met Pedro’s family and could not understand a word they said even though I had been studying Spanish for a year. I was so embarrassed. I am determined to learn Spanish. :o)