On Parking Sharks....

I went to Wal-Mart during lunch today hoping to get in and out quickly but as nearly always happens I fell victim to a Parking Shark.  A Parking Shark is one of those extremely annoying people who cruise parking lots for the best spot, then block traffic while they wait for someone to stow their groceries and leave.  This particularly Parking Shark was sitting in the middle of the row, and I do mean the middle of the row, preventing anyone from going around her.  Luckily I had some MRE's with me because I sat there for like 3 days.

I don't really have an issue with anyone stopping for a car pulling out so that they can get the spot, but etiquette has to be observed.  If, during your wait, a car pulls up behind you though you need to move on and take the loss.  This woman didn't do that though, walking the extra ten feet was unacceptable and having 6 cars behind her waiting for her to move didn't bother her in the least; that's just lazy. 

If it's raining I tend to overlook Parking Shark because I turn into one myself in a downpour, but it was a solid 60 degrees and sunny so the Parking Shark behavior was not necessary.  It's a darned good think that I haven't experimented on myself with gamma radiation because if I had I would have ruined a shirt and a good pair of pants and thrown Parking Shark's car into the next time zone.

I don't like the Parking Shark when I'm the shopper either.  I've had people pull up behind me while I'm still putting my groceries in the back so that they can get my spot and that isn't any less annoying.  When people do that I tend to go all James Dean on them and take my time; I'll be damned if I'll let peer pressure and the presence of a Parking Shark make me rush.  Sometimes I even sit there for a minute and just stare at the steering wheel until the Parking Shark pulls away in frustration, it's my way of thumbing my nose at them.

As to the person that the parking shark was waiting on, she wasn't a whole lot better, she was a Parking Lot Polly.  Or perhaps she was just doing what I do and not bowing to the pressure of the Parking Shark, but the signs certainly pointed to her being a Polly.