The Tale of a Closer Parking Space and a Lost Opportunity

Being that I live in a huge city, I rely on walking, biking or public transportation to get around. That's why the following episode—which occurred earlier this week when I was in Florida—may seem a little more inane to me than to those who live in the suburbs and rural communities.

I had just shopped at a Whole Foods and was leaving the parking lot in my rental car. Unfortunately, my exit was blocked by a car whose driver was waiting for another car to vacate a parking space that was very close to the store. I looked to my left (away from the store) and saw, starting just 10 yards away, a small sea of open spaces.

The driver had begun to wait when the exiting shopper—with bags in hand—had just approached his parked car. All in, counting loading, seat belt fastening and backing out time, I was idling for roughly five minutes behind a driver who could have easily managed three sets of 20 push-ups and a handful of sprints in the time saved by parking just a short distance away.

Actually, in retrospect, I'm the fool; I should have done the workout while I was waiting!