The other day I was walking to school when I saw a big burly guy in uniform. At first I thought it was a traffic cop catching all the people who consistently ignore the turn signs posted in front of the school. These turn/no-turn restrictions were put in place so children can arrive at school safely.
“I’m glad you’re here,” I said.
As he turned to face me and I realized that he was actually an Ottawa bylaw officer. He was tall and silver-haired. He had a kind face. He reminded me of a friend of ours, and perhaps that’s why I stopped to chat.
“You know the weirdest thing just happened,” he said. There was awe in his voice. “Someone just came up to me and apologized.”
“Apologized?”
“He said he was sorry for calling me a prick yesterday, that he realized I was only doing my job.” He thought for a moment. “I don’t think anyone has ever apologized to me before.”
I can’t remember what else we chatted about, but eventually I wished him a good day and kept walking. I got to thinking about what this guy has to deal with every day, and all the rage out there… the special hatred some people nurture just for bylaw officers. I mean really. It’s not like bylaw officers are deliberately hurting people. They are just doing their jobs. Parking signs are usually put in place for a reason, and in this case, it’s to make way for school buses and to ensure children’s safety.
I get really annoyed at all the illegal parkers and stoppers around our school and I think that every one of those parents deserves a ticket. It is, inherently, a selfish act. There is no possible way that the parents can miss the no-parking signs day after day. I could not deliberately park in a no-parking zone. I just can’t do it. Whenever I see someone park illegally I just want to say Honestly people, take the extra minute and park a little farther away. What’s the big deal? I cannot understand what’s going on in their heads. And what kind of example is it setting for their kids?
Today I took a slightly different route home with Piper. I saw one parent – obviously parked illegally – just leaving his car. I don’t know why I did it, but I called across the street to him.
I pointed at his car. “The bylaw guy is here,” I shouted. “You ARE going to get a ticket.” He looked annoyed.
“He’s just around the corner,” I said. I pointed again.
He kissed his kids in the middle of the road and slumped back to his car. I should have let the bylaw guy get him, but then again, maybe dad would have been safe. After all, bylaw guy was busy ticketing people just down the street.
Edited to add: would you like to find out what kind of tickets Ottawa Bylaw officers hand out? And how many? Click on over here to offer comments to help shape a story I’ve filed with Open Ottawa.
