I just thought I could knock this one out really quickly before shutting down for the night - you could potentially find it sad, amusing, and inspiring all at the same time.
Christmas Eve we were in the mood for ice cream and we didn't have any. We had seen a Ben and Jerry's on the main drag in Gatlinburg earlier that day so I told my wife "I'll run down into town, grab a pint, and come right back."
Got downtown and there was no parking spot to be found. I ended up finding what I thought was a timed lot (mind you it did have a sign that said $5/all day) - so I pulled in, got my ticket stub, found a spot, and ran three blocks to Ben and Jerry's.
The store was locked. It was 5:05. They closed at 5. Crap. I had however on my jaunt down the road seen a Baskin Robbins - so I popped in there, got some ice cream, and went back to the car. Drove to the attendant booth, gave him my ticket stub, and here's where it gets interesting.
Me: How much?
Attendant: Five dollars.
Me: You're kidding, right?
Attendant: No, five dollars.
Me: I'm not paying you five dollars. I was only parked for thirty minutes
Attendant: Five dollars
Do you see where this is going yet?
Me: OK. The sign says five dollars per day. It does not say five dollars period. If that's what you intend it to say, then you need to go rewrite it because as it stands that is false advertising. So if you figure you have probably 12 hours in the day when people use your lot at a $5/day rate, that's approximately 40-some-odd cents an hour and 20-some-odd cents for a half hour. So I will give you 50 cents and you'll let me out of the lot, or I will sit here all evening long and block you gate so nobody else can get out.
Attendant: No you won't. You'll pay me five dollars.
Can you guess what happens next?
Me: See, there comes someone up behind me right now.
Attendant: You need to pay me five dollars.
Me: No I don't.
Attendant: Yes you do.
**HONNNNNNKKKK**
Me: Ready to take 50 cents yet?
Attendant: No.
**HONNNNNNKKKK**
Attendant: OK, three dollars.
**HONNNNNNKKKK**
Me: One dollar.
Attendant: Two dollars.
**HONNNNNNKKKK**
Me: One dollar.
**HONNNNNNKKKK**
Attendant: OK, one dollar.
So I pay the price gouger and leave.
The next evening, Christmas Day, as my wife and I are looking for a place to park to go to the restaurant we had planned on eating at, we cannot find a spot. Downtown has exploded with people. It's nuts.
We decided to grin and bear it and pull into the closest lot to the restaurant and break down and have to pay the $10 parking fee on the big sign pointing toward the lot.
But then we make the turn into the lot and see that the gate arms on both sides are wide open. There is no attendant.
WOW. That was really shocking.
We park, go eat, come back, and still no attendant. Hey, free parking. I guess some people do have a heart.
It's people like that who really embody the true spirit of Christmas. Yes, as a business operator they could have chosen to give in to their desire for more profit, but they decided to give into their heart and provide many someones a heartfelt Christmas gift. They decided to give back.
That's what Christmas is truly about. It shouldn't be about buying an expensive gift for someone. It shouldn't be about expecting certain gifts from someone. It's certainly not about trying to get as much profit as you can, nor is it about starting arguments with a parking lot attendant. It's about giving from the heart - even it's something a simple and easy as opening up your gates and not charging parking fees for the day.
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