The first time I encountered The Entitled was when I pulled in behind a car leaving the side of Shettleston Road, as I was headed for my insurance broker’s office to pay a premium.
The space was in front of Cross’s butcher’s shop, and as I locked the door a guy wearing a white coat and butcher’s apron came running out of the shops and shouted at me, “MOVE YOUR CAR, YOU CAN’T PARK THERE, THAT’S FOR OUR CUSTOMERS”!
I was, frankly, taken aback once I realised he was shouting at me, and it was me he was telling me to get my car away from the space in front of his shop.
I think I just told him to take it easy, and he’d have his space back in a few minutes as I was just dropping a cheque off to the broker, almost next door.
He was NOT a happy little butcher, and didn’t seem to be able to understand why I had not immediately jumped back in my car and cleared HIS space for HIS customers in response to his orders.
Had I not been at work, my car would have sat there for the rest of the day (but in those days, parking was restricted, and they DID materialise a random Parking Warden!).
It should go without saying that other than the right to use the public road within the constraints of whatever laws, local by laws, rules, regulation etc apply, NOBODY has exclusive rights to any particular part they take a liking to. This is, of course, quite different from any private land or space they may own, and generally have the right to control.
That includes the road outside your house too, although some homeowners think otherwise. You may have come across them, such as this one I found in Ayr.
Let me take you in closer.
Recently, closer to home
I came across another one recently, closer to home this time.
I thought some poor sod had broken down, and left a note on their car.
It may not be obvious in the dark but, while it’s not exactly the middle of nowhere, this road is almost nowhere, and NOT in front of anyone’s house. It’s actually near a railway station, near a motorway slip road, and an apparently derelict shop, which used to serve snacks, but I haven’t seen the shutters raised in months/years, and is a mess.
What I’m really saying is that there’s nobody twitching at curtains, waiting to pounce on a parked car on THEIR piece of road. In fact, other than passing train passengers, there’s nobody.
And the note?
Of course, whoever left did not identify themselves, or give their authority for issuing a parking instruction on a piece of public road, or details of what rules are in force (other than their ‘ENTITLEMENT’).
Secret Scotland 