I have a dirty secret.

Last year, I shelled out upward of $150 in parking fines – and that was just in Centennial Circle.

That’s not all. I’ve driven from Centennial A to Tri-Towers more times than I can count. I’ve also left classes to feed meters, tried the good old “But I had my hazard lights on!” excuse (to no avail), and even thought about making a counterfeit pass. Probably for my own good, I never had the guts to do the latter.

Yes, I admit it: I used to be as lazy as they come. (All my friends reading this are nodding and giggling at this harsh truth. C’mon guys, hear me out.)

Like I said, I used to be lazy. I still hate the parking situation at Kent State, but I’ve just learned to deal with it. I partially agree with the Stater’s editorial board’s March 5 opinion piece, “Parking problems just keep getting worse,” on the ridiculousness of parking around here, but I also feel that it’s evidence of students’ indolence.

Yes, there are more C passes distributed than there are spaces in the actual C lots, which of course makes those R lots that much more attractive after you’ve played parking shark in your own lot for half an hour.

Parking Services attempted to pacify the overcrowding situation by paving that beautiful tundra of cement over near First Year Experience. It’s called C-Science, and it’s usually empty. The lot is so deserted, Parking Services has offered up those spots to underclassmen as upgrades from the Stadium. Yes, that’s right, your precious C spots are given to freshmen and sophomores because most commuters would prefer not to walk a mile to class; end of story.

The irony is that the United States has the highest obesity percentage in the world. We also consume crude oil faster than any other country. I’m sure you get where I’m going with this. Americans in general are lazy. A little exercise never hurt anyone, especially college students.

I’m still lazy at heart, though. I will huff and cuss the whole way to class when I have to park further than I’d like. But you know what? I zip my coat, pull my scarf a little tighter, throw in my earbuds and get over it.

So the next time you’re about to circle that coveted C lot for the ninth time, at least consider eliminating some stress by parking elsewhere. Yeah . it kinda sucks parking a little farther, but look at it this way: You won’t waste gas by circling the lot 100 times, and you’ll get a little exercise. After almost four years of worrying about parking and paying some exorbitant fines, I realized that sometimes we have to give in to things we sometimes just don’t want to do. (Hmm . sounds a little familiar: maybe like, um . adulthood?)

Parking is one thing I won’t miss about Kent after this May. But until then . C-Science, anyone?

Christen Coppola is a senior marketing major and guest columnist for the Daily Kent Stater. Contact her at [email protected].