Thinking about doing something a little different with my blog.

In an effort to keep this blog new and interesting, I am thinking about using my blog to post an advice column. Yeah, like Dear Abby. But with my own unique twist on it. People can leave me a message here or e-mail me and I will post their question and give my advice on the situation. Of course everything will be anonymous.

A sample of how this would go would be as follows. Pretending that it is the middle of the winter that is.

Dear Sweezey,

I live in an apartment complex in Northern Virginia where there is an unspoken rule that if you shovel the ice and snow out of a parking space, the space is your until the snow and ice melts. Everyone in the complex seems to obey this rule except for some of the guest of one of this one guy. They park, for days at a time sometimes, in any spot they want. This wouldn’t be a big deal if parking wasn’t very limited in our complex. How can I and the other tenants get the message across that they are violating the parking space rule?

Thanks,

Pissed off on the Potomac.

Dear Pissed off,

I can completely understand your frustration. There are several methods that you could use to convey that unspoken and understood rule that the people who actually pay rent in the complex have among each other. You could speak to your leasing office to see if there is some way to distinguish “tenant” parking and “guest” parking, or you could leave a note under the windshield wiper briefly explaining the situation or if you would so bold you could leave a not on the door of the neighbor and ask them to relay the message to their guest.

But if you really want to make a statement, let Mother Nature help you! Since it is the middle of the winter and you said that they sometimes park there for days at a time, go get a pitcher like an iced tea pitcher and fill with cold water and simply pour it along the perimeter of the cars doors. So pour it all around the driver side and passenger side doors. A few hours later repeat the previous process over and over again. Assuming that the temperature is or will be below freezing, this will make getting into their car somewhat tricky.

Of course if you had no regard for the law, and I am sure that you are a law abiding citizen, you could use hot water and go for the windshield. Which would make it look like a spider made house all over the windshield. But that would be bad.

Pleasant parking,

Sweezey