Oh, *&%@&! Technology Hits Again!

Boston has stubbed my toe with some of their hi-tech equimpment on numerous occasions. Today's subject spotlights their self-parking garage pay machines.
I have, in the past in Ohio, been in a situation where I had to use the annoying "no attendant so pay with exact change over there" lot...

"Over there" consists of a 6'x3'metal stand that has tiny pay-slots whose numbers coincide with the 3 digits lightly painted under where your car is parked. If you are in a hurry (and who isn't when parking downtown?), you probaby didn't notice the worn bits of chipped white paint as you parked. Now you have to run back, start your car, back up and get out to try to figure out if your number is 132 or 182 ~ then re-park and return to the "PAY-ME OR NEVER SE YOUR VEHICLE AGAIN" metal money grabber. The slots to aim your "exact change" of $8.95 are so miniscule, it takes 20 minutes just to crease and fold your dollar bills to try to jam in the tiny mouth that is surely laughing its aluminum head off.

So, enough about the "old way" of collecting money for your car to sit for 45 minutes...(Heaven knows we have enough people in this country who need work, couldn't a few be change makers at a parking garage?)

In Boston, they have these sharp, educated whipper-snappers who invented a machine to use a credit card or dollar bills for your parking lot bill. Parking costs are so outrageous in downtown Bean-town that to park one's vehicle for 60 minutes it will lighten your purse by $30.00.

I was running late to board a "free" boat ride around the Boston Harbor..I couldn't find any where to park. The garage across the street was closed for construction. The Hotels within a mile all require that you are a guest to use their valet parking. So, after spending 3 gallons of gas and 48 minutes looking within 7 blocks of the boat docks for a inexpensive place to park, I whipped my rental car into this garage that spit out a ticket before I had a chance to read the hourly rates. Heck, I was going to miss my "free" boat ride!
Anyway, I found a spot and made it to the boat with seconds to spare. After enjoying a nice 2 hours sitting in the harbor in th same spot looking at the same skyline and hearing 120 minutes of history, I headed back to my car. As I entered the parking garage, I noticed a machine about the same size as a soda vending machine. It was a nice shiny silver and had words painted on it like "PAY HERE"..
I never noticed this machine when hurrying out of the garage after running down 8 flights of stairs because the elevator wasn't working.
The machine informed informed me in smaller print that I had to have my ticket to insert in this machine and then I could use cash or a credit card.
Of course, guess where my ticket was...yup..8 flights up. So, I checked the elevators that still were wearing their signs, "OUT OF ORDER" (I swear, when judgment day comes and I approach the Pearly Gates, it better not have those words greeting me)
So, I hiked up the stairs..retrieved the ticket, and walked (crawled) down the stairs. I waited for the other 4 people to pay for their parking fee to finish and I stuck my ticket in...fed my Discover card in the credit card slot..and waited..and waited...and after 12 minutes (I was still recovring from the stair master), I noticed the credit card emblems that they had glued on the machine did not include Discover. Hmmmm.....the unit had eaten my card. I immediately started to glisten..(perspire)...and panicked...I thrust another card in to retrieve the Discover card. Now both cards are being ingested by BIG "PAY-ME" BULLY. I had figured that the machine couldn't handle two cards so it would release both of them..like a high school wrestler trying to "make weight".

Ok, so I got lucky. A woman who was sweeping the garage came by and had a nail file and with a flick of the wrist, she recovered both of my cards. She suggested that I pay cash and I did just that. Whew...I got my receipt from paying my $30.00 snd headed up the stairs, glad that this fiasco was over. As I was gasping for air on the 5th floor I realized that the nice, helpful garage employee never gave me back the two credit cards! I raced back down, and spent 2 hours looking for Ms. Wonderful. I never found her..and now I had parked more than the 15 minute grace period they allow you to get your car out of the garage..and I have no more cards..and no more cash.

The only end to this story comes by my saying my sales experience helped me out of this one. When I finally found a security guard, I just burst into tears and grabbed his leg and sobbed.

If I ever go back, I'll take the subway...and I'll have exact change.