My Parking Mojo

I decided that I had lived long enough without the new Benny Friedman CD and set off early this evening to the local Jewish bookstore on Fairfax Avenue to buy one. Here in Los Angeles, Fairfax, as the street is known, has a long history of Jewish affiliation. But like most places Jewish, non-Jewish and "alternative-lifestyle" people tend to feel right at home on the block. So right next door to the kosher butcher is a nightclub, and across the street from the Jewish food market is a tattoo parlor and a hip-hop clothing store.

Needless to say, the parking was non-existent when I got there. Oh no, I thought, don't do this to me. Don't make me drive around the block. Then my parking mojo kicked in. I first learned about parking mojo from Lisa, who had it big time. Didn't matter if there was a Hollywood premier next door, Lisa found parking right in front of where she needed to be.

Well, call me Lisa. Just as I drove up to the store, a car pulled out. Parking mojo big time. The only problem is, Los Angeles used to be a city that let you off the meter hook after 6 pm as well as Shabbos and Sunday. No more. And they kept the change a big secret. Didn't have a friend who wasn't ticketed. So I parted with 15 cents (all I could rummage out in the dark), ran into the store, parted with even more money, and ran out satisfied: CD in hand, parking in front, pizza for dinner. So far, G-d's plan seems to be working.