Hrm... there was a lot there but it wasn't like other lots I had seen for ZIPCARS. It was open and no locks on the gates - there was a hybrid but it wasn't a Honda Hrm... I walked down the street and came to the gorgeous 132 street block community garden!! But no other car lot.. while I was walking back I called the customer support line and said I was at the lot but I didn't see the car. I figured that it just might not be back yet from the previous renter... The polite person on the other end told me to hold and within 30 seconds told me to listen while she honked the horn on the car. I said I didn't see the car in the lot and she said it was in a parking garage. Ah! I said thanks that clears things up and said a nice goodbye. I walked into the garage waved my card at the window sensor and the attendant pulled the car out for me and told me where to park it when I returned. I climbed in and whirred out of the garage.
My compatriot texted me she was out of the subway and I saw her at the corner. My phone plugged into the 1/8" plug and ELO's "Evil Woman" blared out. I couldnt find a way to pair the phone with the car. But hey - I had a copilot and we rolled to our first beatup lot. The car parked like a dream and we rolled to the second spot then past the stadium then to the third spot, then got on the highway to ride through the rain. The tolls were paid at the gate automatically. We arrived in south brooklyn on the shore near my old job at the garden center. We parked quickly under the store becasue of the rain and jumped inside, creeping through the back in to the self service area. She found her items super fast got in the check out line and I got hotdogs and chips and felt ashamed- I never get hotdogs and chips. We chomped our lunch feeling psyched that we found everything quickly and efficiently. We talked about budget cuts and layoffs and adolescent behavioral management. We finished our 2$ dogs and the stuff went into the back of the vehicle like it was made to do. The seats folded down and the hatch closed over her bookcase. Perfect!
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| ZIPCAR pitched in for the ride to help write this article, wasn't that nice? |
The toll being automatically paid for on the drive back to the UES was a bit surreal. Maybe it was because we realized the speedometer was digital in the tunnel. It's odd not seeing a needle. I pushed the green econ button for fun to see what might happen, but it didn't make a perceptible difference in the performance of the vehicle. We chatted about what the meters might mean as I noticed the charging meter increased when I was braking. We unloaded the bookcase, well not exactly, we carried the bookcase up the three flight walk up, and I said my goodbyes. I returned the vehicle parking it and locking it with my card with the sensor on the front right windshield. I always double check that its locked... Leaving keys in those cars always makes me nervous. Ok yeah a pretty green day : ).
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