We went to Vero Beach last night to hear my friend Pat’s Porch Poets read, and to have dinner with Pat, her husband Tom, my friend Susan and her husband Bob, and Pat’s marvelous daughter Meredith, who works in Baghdad (!) as a paramedic. After the reading, we had dinner at a pub, and then went back to the parking lot to retrieve Big Brown. Sadly, Big Brown had been towed away.

Y’all would have been proud of old Erik & me.

We didn’t panic, figured out who had taken BB and where, called Pat who graciously took us to the ATM to get cash (another !) and then to the impound lot, where $118 dollars later, we had him back and on our way back to Jupiter.

Now the lesson for everyone reading this is: 1) Just because it has a big P sign in the lot, doesn’t mean you can park there for free. It sure looked inviting, but that was the hook..we weren’t the only ones towed away that night. Apparently, this is a cash cow for Charlie’s Towing, who likely kicks back to the owner of the lot. It stinks and Vero should be ashamed to tolerate this scam. But the lesson for Erik and me? Don’t park there next time…find someplace else where BB will be safe and still there when we return. I like Pat too much to say we won’t go back to Vero…but I’d be willing to bet a lot of other people who had their cars towed are saying that. So much for downtown development on a Friday night! That is all.