So you kinda know your way around town now. You've driven up to the Griffith Observatory, found the Happy Days house, and even discovered just how small the Oscar walk is on Hollywood Boulevard. Boy, it would be nice to actually put your car somewhere, right?

PARKING
There was a time when I was happy to find a parking spot on the street. That has long since passed. After being stung a few times by the ticket nazis, I wised up quick. Here's what you need to know.

1. If there is room to park on the street, IMMEDIATELY QUESTION IT.
More than likely, you can't park there.

Either that side of the street is being cleaned
(signs read something like "Tuesdays 8am-10am Street Cleaning"),

or parking is not allowed due to traffic flow
("No Parking Between 4pm-6pm"),

or it's a loading zone, or only Kelsey Grammer can park there,
or any number of possibilities. This goes for city and residential
parking as well. Trust me, you'll get nailed. Drive around that spot,
look for the street parking signs, read them carefully, then make
your decision. If it's a long way off, well, the walk should help
you burn off that mocha-laca-latte you've been sipping.

2. Just because you paid the meter doesn't mean you won't
get a ticket.

There really is no rhyme or reason for this. It's just that once
in a while bad luck comes your way. And trust me, the low-wage,
completely uninterested (and not necessarily English speaking)
clerk at the nondescript citation office in Van Nuys couldn't care less.
There's no use haggling, no point in complaining. Simply consider it
"your turn" and move on.

3. Get used to paying for parking ALL THE TIME.

When you finally get a job, there's no guarantee you get to park in the company lot, so prepare. It's a good idea to have 10 bucks on you just for parking. Oh, and change for the meter too.

Other places cost between $2 and $5 to park (most of the time, that's the price WITH validation!) And for concerts and plays, it really is easier to just pay for Valet Parking (which costs more) than to sit underground on the sixth level waiting more than 45 minutes to get out.

4. Parking is, for the most part, free in The Valley.

LA is always selling tickets you have to buy, but if you live and work
in the area from North Hollywood to Pasadena, you can actually have a good chance of leaving your car somewhere without getting bit! Just remember to take your stereo faceplate and iPod with you.

5. Multi-task when you park.

For example, after I catch a matinee at Arclight Cinemas,
sometimes I wander across the street to Amoeba Music and
check out their embarrassingly large collection of used dvds
and laserdiscs. Or I might swing by the Bank of America
on the corner before heading over to start a protest rally
in front Baja Fresh. Then it's back to my parking spot at
Arclight and the whole trip only cost me $2 to park. Nice.

So there you have it. Next time I'll tell you how to save
some money when you go shopping for actual necessities
like, oh, I don't know... food. Later.