A couple of weeks ago, we came home from the park to find a letter in our mailbox informing us that we had an overdue parking ticket, and that as a result, our parking fine had doubled from $100 to $200. I was shocked, not only by the exorbitant price, but because I was completely unaware that we had a parking ticket in the first place. Soon enough, though, Kay and I realized what had happened.

At the end of July, we had decided to go to the Zoo on a Monday afternoon that I had off of work. The zoo is free, but parking costs $20, so we decided to park on the street. As we finished up at the zoo, I realized that it was close to 4:00. Since many of the streets in D.C. do not allow parking during rush hour (4 – 6:30 pm), I went ahead with Oliver to make sure we made it in time. When I got close enough to see our car, I realized that a parking enforcement car had just pulled up behind it. (It was about 3 minutes after 4:00.) I sprinted with Oliver, shouting out something like, “Wait, Hold on! I’m here; I’ll move my car!” The official stopped and turned to watch me approach the car. “Is it too late?” I asked. She didn’t answer me; instead, she turned and walked away. I frantically checked my car, but there wasn’t a ticket so I decided that we must have made it just in time.

Well, that was until I received this letter. Kay and I were understandably upset, so we spent my Monday off traveling to the D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles to fight the ticket. We waited in a long line, and then were sent to a room of about 8 other people as they administered the oath to us. Since Oliver was being noisy, the justice asked us if we would wait out in the lobby until it was our turn. After about half an hour, she called us into the room. She asked me if I admitted or denied the ticket; I responded that I denied. Without asking for further clarification, she proceeded to tell us that since the ticket was issued so near 4:00, she was letting us go with a warning.

This is me, in front of the DMV, with the letter nullifying our ticket.

Funny, but I thought I would feel happy not to have to pay the fine–instead, I was left feeling quite unsatisfied. I guess it wasn’t only the money that bothered me, but the unfairness of the situation–and they didn’t even give me a chance to explain that!

Oliver fell in love with this scottish terrier at the FDR memorial next to the tidal basin. I wonder what Roosevelt named him. I think Oliver probably named him something because he jabbered with a serious look on his face for nearly 5 minutes. Pat pat…jabber jabber…pat pat..pat jabber jabber jabber.

A lady walked by with her daughter and offered to take our photo. That was nice. That’s FDR’s food on the right. I love taking the jogging stroller (more walking, less jogging these days) to the tidal basin. It’s a long walk and really pretty. This month I’ve seen a record low in tourists (like 5) and a record high in low-flying helicopters (8 I think) around the Jefferson. I like the giant olive green ones with the two propellers (big one in front and small one in back). They’re SO huge.

Oliver, in his own way, started school last week. First he rode the bus for the better part of an hour. A trip made all the better with the fact that he was the sole driver with (count ’em) TWO steering wheels! Buckets of fun. And I’m afraid Jason was sweating buckets in that sun. It was hot.

Oli’s chosen major turned out to be RAINBOW DOLPHIN RIDING!! Don’t be fooled by his short legs that don’t reach the stirrups. He rocks away like a pro.

This is a picture of the park we were at. It’s called Cemyjontri, it’s free, it’s HUGE, and it ranks pretty high on Oliver’s list of cool places. It has a walk through maze and a giant swing shaped like a ship and kazillions of steering wheels everywhere. I like it, but it’s a little far to drive (15 min) and when it’s nice out, it’s pretty crowded.