Your Sins Will Find You Out

 Missing my Dad today. 

And remembering a couple of things he used to say when we were growing up. 

"Him who knows to do right, but does it not, to him it is sin." 

"Be sure. Your sins will find you out." 

As a youngster, I don't think I knew if it was just a fatherly warning similar to mom convincing us she had eyes in the back of her head, or if he was quoting the King James Bible. 

I googled it today to verify. Yup. It was the bible. 

****

Last week I had my annual (for EIGHTEEN years now) breast cancer survivor check-up with my family doctor. 

At the medical clinic I tried a couple of times to tap my credit card at the parking pay station but the machine wouldn't respond. As I was about to insert the card into the slot the woman behind me said, "Don't worry about it, the tap isn't working. I'm here to fix the machine." 

I responded, "Oh, I can insert it."

"No. Seriously you are good. No one is patrolling the lot." 

Historically that particular medical building was known to never issue tickets if you didn't have a parking pass. And I rarely bought one.  Not because I was trying to "get away with saving 50 cents." But more because in this age of technology, they still used a slot machine, similar to old laundromat machines, where you had to insert 2 quarters so the machine would spit out a ticket that you then had to walk back to your car to place on the dash. Old school. And inconvenient. And who has quarters anymore. 

A year or two ago they updated to electronic machines that take cards and there's no need to put a ticket on the dash. You don't even have to stand in line at the machine - you can scan the QR code and pay on your phone. 

And honestly, I don't even mind paying the upgraded-to-a-dollar price for parking. It's convenient now, and cheap compared to big city parking. 

Today when I arrived at the medical building to get routine blood testing done at the lab there was a bit of a line up at the parking meter. 

I stopped for a moment. Then remembered the technician last week telling me the lot wasn't being patrolled. 

Hmmpft. I shrugged. I have an appointment so I shouldn't be more than 10 minutes. And I deserve free parking. 

And off to the lab I headed. 

Appointment schmointment.  It still took over half an hour by the time the packed waiting room and my tiny little arm veins gave up a wee vial of blood. It's always a struggle and they often have to resort to a baby butterfly needle in the back of my hand to get blood from me. 

Too bad they couldn't take it from a varicose vein in my leg- they could probably access one of those suckers with a maple syrup tap. 

Short story long, I arrived to a parking ticket on my windshield. 

And my Daddy's words rang loud and clear.  I knew I should buy a parking ticket. But I did not.  "To him it is sin."    

*Guilty* 

And I was found out. 

But I saved the one dollar ticket today. And another one last week. 

So my parking fine is really only 78 dollars, not the eighty stated on the ticket. 

Yeah, you heard that right.  EIGHTY dollars for a parking ticket. 

Just buy the ticket folks.