u/Patient_Candidate_90

Hi all! First I have to give some appreciation to this sub, I feel like this is my camping group chat. I love seeing everyone’s posts and appreciate that whenever i post something I always get some great advice and things feel so supportive in this community.

Next week I’m going camping in the mountains, it’s gonna be a slightly higher elevation than what I’m used to camping in and with that… pretty chilly. 53 at the highest during the day, 40 at night. I just have very basic gear, I’ve probably done like 6 solo trips at this point but this will be the chilliest. Any tips for staying warm during the day and still enjoying myself? I’ll probably do a small hike both days I’m there, like to read by the fire or in the tent. I’m planning to attempt my first tarp overhang to help insulate the area a bit more. Happy to hear any advice or stories that might help me feel a bit more confident.

Hey all, I’m mostly venting but would love some advice or just validation or help with understanding the other person’s perspective because this issue is really bothering me.

My neighbor recently left a note on my car asking me to park in a very specific area on the street instead of directly in front of the building we rent in, where I’ve been parking for literally 5 years. Now a bit about our street, it’s mostly businesses, so when you walk out the front door there are literally at least 50 spots within less than a couple minute walk, about 20-25 are permit approved but also pay to park okay. The street is lined with pull in parking on one side, parallel parking on the other. They want me to park in a specific several spots that are pay only because I don’t have a permit. While as you can guess I’m not the only one in the building without one, also, we live in an area where often times if the street is full, it’s people that don’t live here. We are the only residential building and there are only 4 of us currently.

The reason I don’t want to do this is because often when I get home at night, the street is empty aside from our 4 cars… why should I park farther away? Sometimes when I get home there are sometimes odd ppl walking on the street that make me uncomfortable, a couple times I’ve had ppl lurk and like wait for me to get out of my car or approach my car and try to harass me. So safety is a concern. I’ve also had hubcaps stolen, seen other cars messed with, so I like being able to see my car from my windows. Lastly I’m disabled and deal with a lot of chronic pain, after a long shift those few extra feet can hurt and feel unsafe. Not to mention also severe anxiety and depression.

I’m only home two days a week during the daytime when parking is enforced and getting a permit is complicated due to some issues with having an ex spouse on my title from my last car and now I’m kinda just in a spot where it’s better to just pay out of pocket when I’m home. I’d love to get monthly permit but it’s just not financially an option currently.

I do make an effort now that I know about limited permit parking, during the days I’m home if I’m home mid day I’ll park on the other side of the street, but 95% of the time there is plenty of parking right in front. Well apparently this neighbor is so annoyed they’ve now sent in emails to the parking enforcement office and told them I never move my car, that I don’t pay, and an officer told me that because of this they may open a case on my car making my car more targeted for audits and potential towing. Parking for a full day is like $16 and you have to pay every 3 hours. Sometimes I don’t have $16 and am deciding between gas, food or paying, sometimes food or gas wins and I accept I’ll have to pay the $25 ticket later. Also just a note, when I first moved in parking for the day was only $1 if that, I also was able to get a permit for my first year but when I renewed and changed my state registration they took it away.

It feels really targeted as the only bipoc and disabled person in the building. For now I’m parking on the other side but it’s shitty to feel backed into a corner when the officer said there’s nothing I’m doing wrong but if that neighbor is so frustrated the office would want to find a solution for them. It’s frustrating that what this person should really be asking is for all the parking spots on the street to be eligible for permit parking or for permit only parking in front of the building, but instead they’ve zoomed in on me. The parking person just told me to park where the person asked would be the easiest solution.

Should I involve my landlord to mediate, should I just knock on their door or should I just park on the other side and just eat it till I move? I want this to be a none issue because to me I really don’t see how I’m directly limiting them. I’m literally looking right now at the 3/15 spots directly in front the house that are filled the rest empty and here I am parking across the street.

TLDR: my neighbor wants me to park in a very specific no permit area away from my building, even though there are typically atleast 12 spots directly in front of the building that are open to permit or pay parking when I get home at night.

I have a trip planned for later this week and looks like it’s gonna be rainy and colder than anticipated. I haven’t camped in the rain yet but I really want to give it a go, I’m just on a tighter budget. Any tips for making it enjoyable? I plan to get a tarp or two for coverage from the rain, luckily it’s a heavily wooded area so that’ll help too.

Edit to add setup: it’s an overnighter, work is hairy so trying to make the best of two days off in a row. Just have a small two person tent and then usually my camp chair and a cooler and a single burner stove.