Parking spots | TheaterFire

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sfdsquid@reddit

This is a major upside to driving a 37-year-old Volvo 240.

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Lower_Classroom835@reddit

I park in a large parking lot or at a large garage at work. Since I need to do this daily, I learned to take a mental note where I left my car. It's practice, and now it is on autopilot.

As soon as I exit my car, my mind immediately pains a picture where I parked.

Since I started this 8 years ago, I don't have a problem any more.

We can do this, it's all just practice even if we are directionally challenged.

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oboingadoing@reddit

I don't have a black, white or gray vehicle so it sticks out easily.

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breadit8@reddit

I bought my car specifically for that reason!

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NvGable@reddit

Park in a pattern. Always park in the same area. I always park in the way back, away from everyone, (if possible).

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More_Law6245@reddit

You have problem within parking, I've found out that I'm now always meeting new people regardless of how many times I've already met the before.

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LazyDramaLlama68@reddit

I've been directionally challenged my entire life. I take photos of the markers in a parking lot/garage. Surrounding buildings. I even write notes to self

Of course that could be part of my late diagnosed ADHD at the fabulous age of 57

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Also directionally challenged - to the point where it's embarrassing. Getting lost in the hallways at doctor's offices, struggle with finding my way back if I take an off-ramp, using GPS in the city I live in... there's a whole lotta screenshots in my phone

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3catlove@reddit

My vehicle is tied to my maps app so I can usually find it there worst case scenario. Places I go to often I try to park in the same area each time. I just had to park at the University Hospital in the parking garage so I took pics of the floor and bay, what elevator I was near, etc. I also just went to Orlando with my family and we took note of their markers to help you remember where you are parked.

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Kristylane@reddit

“Remember kids, we’re parked in the Itchy lot”

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BortWard@reddit

My mom wouldn’t buy me a license plate

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Grand_Taste_8737@reddit

If at a large parking lot, such as an airport, I'll take a picture to help remember where I parked.

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alinroc@reddit

I set a reminder with the ID of the parking lot section and have it notify me about 5 minutes after my scheduled landing time.

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Im_the_Rhymenocerous@reddit

Hell, I'll younger Gen X and I'm terrible at it.

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BerryLanky@reddit

I never forget where I park. But I’ve started parking on the line or rained I didn’t pull all the way in. I park, get out, look at my shirt parking, get back in and fix it.

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KimBrrr1975@reddit

our car is uniquely colored and pretty easy to find as long as I have a vague idea. But also my map app remebers where I parked and my phone app can find my car for me 😂

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travelinmatt76@reddit

Back when I had a truck and large cb antennas I used to take one of those flashing led jogger lights and clip it to the top of the antenna, makes it real easy to find.

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shawshank1969@reddit

If it’s a big parking lot, I park under a tree or next to a cart corral.

In a garage, I take a pic of the floor number and anything else that’ll help me find my car.

And locking the remote works.

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TwistedMemories@reddit

I've forgotten was I parked at times for decades. Pre-keyless remote panic alarm fund your car. Nothing new.

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Overall_Lobster823@reddit

I take pictures in garages. Level and spot number.

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2ndChanceAtLife@reddit

I park in the same row every time now when grocery shopping. It became a coping mechanism after losing my car at Walmart. I do keep an eye out for elderly lost people too. I try to help when I can.

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New_Sun6390@reddit

If it's a place I go to often, I try to park in roughly the same place each time.

If it's a new place, I am probably screwed, lol. If I think if it, I will take a photo with some reference point (maybe a sign or something). Or pull up Google maps and drop a pin.

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rockpaperscissors67@reddit

I had a roof rack on my prior car and that made it easy to find. In the fall, I got a black Kia Soul and I love my little car, but damn, it can hide in a parking lot. My kids are usually with me and they're good at remembering where I parked. I want to install a CB and apparently need a 4 ft antenna so that should help.

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tandem_kayak@reddit

People still use CBs?!

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rockpaperscissors67@reddit

They do! I have a mobile ham radio, too, but they're not quite as active.

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Impressive_Star_3454@reddit

I have a nondescript silver SUV. I may have, on occasion, hit the button to open the doors and realized this silver SUV was not mine but one or two spots over.

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Tokogogoloshe@reddit

I too have a nondescript SUV. When I see one like mine in the parking lot I park next to it for funsies.

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Mental-Artist-6157@reddit

My ability to park has gone to complete hell over the years. Then I started losing my car in the parking lot. Almost 56f, covid + peri turned my brain to burnt PUDDING.

I'm on MHT, including a low dose of test, which I just started in March. I can park again & I don't lose my car in parking lots anymore. Oncoming headlights are still a menace, I got yellow driving glasses for that.

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Mededitor@reddit

Your phone has a camera. Use it. Learned this lesson the hard way.

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lionbacker54@reddit

Yesterday I looked all over for my wallet. I found it in my back pocket

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MinusGovernment@reddit

My best moment was talking to my wife on the phone at work and telling her I will be leaving as soon as I find where I put my phone. I've never felt more stupid than when she said "the phone your talking to me on?" That was over a decade ago. I still get residual "I'm an idiot" flashbacks every so often when it randomly pops in my head.

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BertaRocks@reddit

I’m at target now. Been here 17 days. I live here now. No need to find the car anymore.

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MinusGovernment@reddit

Taking "influencer" to a whole new level.

gif

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spsled@reddit (OP)

4D chess.

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spsled@reddit (OP)

😆😆😆😆

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RCA2CE@reddit

I don’t lose the car but my understanding of space is jacked up

I park and get out and realize I have my whole ass end in the middle of the road, so I get back in and adjust it again

And again

Until I say fk it

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spsled@reddit (OP)

🤠🤠🤠🤠🤠

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yanknga@reddit

When I pull into a space now, I often have to back out and repack because I’m too far to one side.

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spsled@reddit (OP)

Yup.

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MinusGovernment@reddit

I just park in the neighborhood of the furthest from the store cart corral. Usually no other vehicles around me.

Occasionally when I come back out there will be one car parked right next to me when there were 20 other spots they could've parked not right next to me.

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spsled@reddit (OP)

Same! I’m a parking lot magnet.

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WaterwingsDavid@reddit

Im pretty good with remembering where im parked. Generally I will park next to a cart corral or curb far away from the entrance so less chance of someone parking next to me.

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bobthenob1989@reddit

It’s why I try to avoid Kohls as much as possible. Too many entrances. 🤣

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wormil@reddit

Walk to the end of the row nearest the store, turn around, and look at where you parked.

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killslikeaninja@reddit

I just park at the far end where cars are thinned out. Or take a picture of the pole number.

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mydarkerside@reddit

iPhone has a parked car location feature. It drops a pin to show where you parked.

https://support.apple.com/guide/iphone/get-directions-to-your-parked-car-ipha13ef1c2e/ios=

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Biguzsdikkus@reddit

Got me a hanger tag so I get the front row. My knees are shot

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Alternative-Law4626@reddit

We mostly park at home and walk where we need to go. Problem avoided. But, if we do have to go somewhere in a car, this hasn’t been a problem.

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KnightKrawler68@reddit

The only time I have an issue is with rental cars. Especially if I take one to a concert in a not familiar area.

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ONROSREPUS@reddit

This is what happens when everybody has a mobility blob instead of something unique. Most of my automobiles are unique and easy to spot in the lots. Plus my memory still seems to be pretty good for short term memory. Long term on the other hand is getting a big more spotty, or I just don't care to remember it anymore.

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HammerMeUp@reddit

I always park towards the back where I can pull through. Most often I park in the same spot or very close to it at the places I go so I know where it is. One thing I use to be good at is parking good and straight, even when towing. Now I can't seem to achieve that as much.

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spsled@reddit (OP)

I can’t seem to reverse in properly. I’m always at an angle now.

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pchandler45@reddit

I started taking a picture of my car when I park it a few years ago

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darkest_irish_lass@reddit

If you're in apple maps, find the blue dot that is your location, press the dot and hold. A little box pops up to Mark Location. Then give it a name ( I use Today so it's easy to replace the next time)

Don't forget to erase the previous pin when you set a new one, otherwise you'll be walking back to that parking spot at the concert you last went to

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pchandler45@reddit

Thanks!

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flyboy_za@reddit

Haven't forgotten forgotten yet, but sometimes absent mindedly go to my usual area only to remember I had an errand to run during work, and when I came back I had to park in the far area because the close area was full. So that's happened twice in the last year or so.

It's very rare I don't get a bay within a 20 second walk of my building because I arrive so early, so it's proper muscle memory to head down the stairs and hang a right instead of a left.

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iloveairportsushi@reddit

I’m at the airport so often that I have to write down my spot on the stub each time. Every trip blends into the other and I never remember where I parked it.

That being said, I always go down to the bottommost level so I at least know it’s always level 2. I try to get the same aisle each time also… but still I have to write it down.

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Carrollz@reddit

I have never forgotten where I parked my car, however I've known so many people that have, both young and old, that I'm very intentional about parking and if there's ever any doubt I take a picture and/or make a note and I make sure I know exactly where I'm going before I start to head back to my car. Part of my female safety training.

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Long_Bit8328@reddit

I always park as far as possible from the store for the forced exercise. Which in turn makes my vehicle easy to find.

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ElsieDCow@reddit

I have found that when I clear my mind at yoga, I erase my memory of where I parked.

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Stubborn_Strawberry@reddit

No problems yet. I park far away from the entrance and cart kiosks. I don't mind walking. Plus it's a green SUV so it stands out amongst the sea of grey.

However, I'll walk into a room and forget why.

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spsled@reddit (OP)

Aaah. Yes. The wonder years. I wonder where I parked, What I was about to say, what was I going to do …

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DarlingTreeWitch@reddit

I have a red Subaru with horrid gold trim. I can spot it across a parking lot so fast now.

Forgetting what I got up for, daily.

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Beautiful-Event-1213@reddit

If it's someplace I go regularly, I always park in approximately the same place. That helps.

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Solid-Bee-1613@reddit

Parking garages I will take pic of the row and level. There used to be a truck in the same color as mine with a dent in the same spot in the grill. We shopped at the same stores for a few years. Parked next to each other and across from each other several times. I definitely started really paying attention around town for a while.

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NPC261939@reddit

I've been doing that since I got my license sadly. I now find landmarks to I can locate my car when coming out of Costco. Nothing like aimlessly pushing a months worth of groceries around looking for my damn car.

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Mission_Wolf579@reddit

In frequently visited parking lots, I park in the same general area every time. In unfamiliar lots & garages, I take a picture.

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Adventurous-Boat-48@reddit

I do the same! One less thing to remember.

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jen_esse@reddit

This is the way.

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rimshot101@reddit

I bought a white SUV after failing to notice that half the cars in America are f*cking white SUVs. I've almost gotten into the wrong car like ten times now.

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Fluffymanolo@reddit

I did get into a wrong car once. It wasn't even the same make and model, just a similar style and same color. It was at a gas station and it was parked next to mine and I was texting and not paying attention. I sat down and nothing was in the right place and it didn't smell right. THAT'S when I realized I was in the wrong car and quickly got out. This was only like 2 years ago, so can't blame it on youth...

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tandem_kayak@reddit

Same with my.medium grey/blue SUV. I put a bunch of stickers on the back window edges (not blocking anything) so I can tell which one is mine.

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Truckerlightning@reddit

I was just telling my wife I did this and committed to it WAY too long. Like I didn’t question the car… I questioned myself. I’m out there aggressively clicking unlock and doing that little side-step shuffle like maybe it’ll work from a different angle, having a full identity crisis in the parking lot… meanwhile my actual car is 30 feet away like ‘wow… unbelievable'.

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73rd-virgin@reddit

(57) That happened to me when I was 22. I had been at the mall and when I was leaving, I couldn't find my car anywhere. Found a payphone and called my friend to pick me up.

As soon as he got there, he immediately saw my car. That was the last time I wore my (clip-on) sunglasses at night.

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rynoxmj@reddit

gif

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73rd-virgin@reddit

That song was probably the biggest influence of my adolescence.

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handsomeape95@reddit

Just get one of those Jack in the Box antenna balls.

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Truckerlightning@reddit

I had one of those. Someone stole it while I was shopping. 🫤😠😤

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handsomeape95@reddit

It was funny (irony I suppose) because eventually everybody had these. You couldn't pick yours out in the parking lot, so they really served no practical purpose.

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Fluffymanolo@reddit

That happened SO MUCH in my youth that I pay very close attention to where I park now. If I know I'm going to be all day or at the airport, I take pictures of where I parked. Otherwise I'd never find my car. This has always been a thing for me.

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Square-Wing-6273@reddit

I've been known to drop a pin on Google maps if I'm in unfamiliar areas, take pictures of garages and surrounding landmarks and where I parked, and my phone tells me where my car is, so that helps.

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stuck_behind_a_truck@reddit

I take a picture in a big space.

Fun fact that I learned too late: Disney is so organized that they absolutely can tell you where your car is parked in the Disneyland structures. I learned how at a Disney Institute class.

Say whatever you want about Disney but they have a very deliberately designed culture created by a former airline engineer hired by Walt Disney. It’s a very systems-oriented culture. This feeds my soul (I don’t work for them) but would be murder on “free spirits).

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tango421@reddit

I photograph the spot with my phone. Especially those places with sector markers

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Sufficient_Stop8381@reddit

Somehow my applegooglewebs marks it when I get out

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stanley_leverlock@reddit

I put an Airtag in my glovebox. Takes about four seconds to look it up on my phone.

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Spare-Good-5372@reddit

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Johnny_2Times@reddit

Finding mine is easy. Lifted quad cab Dodge pickup front row with a handicap hanger in the window. Yes, I'm really disabled.

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siamesecat1935@reddit

I've always had issues unless I park in the same place each time. I come out and have no clue where my car is if I have to park somewhere else!

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ConsuelaShlepkiss@reddit

Parking lots are the main reason I go to stores early in the morning -- less vehicles! Also, less people in the store, which makes for a more pleasant experience.

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EstimateAgitated224@reddit

I got a new car like a month ago, think midsize grey SUV ugh.

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Stubborn_Strawberry@reddit

We got green.

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kermitsfrogbog@reddit

This is why I like color. Stands out in a sea of blacks, greys and whites. I miss the 90s colors. (sigh) I settled for red.

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REDDITSHITLORD@reddit

I have a minivan with a rooftop tent. I can always spot that beast.

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N-Y-R-D@reddit

Wandering the parking lot helps me get my steps in.

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gabrielroth@reddit

A $30 AirTag solves this

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MissMurderpants@reddit

I’ve put stickers in my side back windows. One per side. Easy to find in a sea of similar 4 foot black sedans.

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Bob_12_Pack@reddit

It hasn't been a problem for me until just recently. I was traveling for work and left my truck at the airport for a week. Lately it's been suffering from an intermittent parasitic draw so for good measure, I disconnected the battery. Our airport has been under construction so the parking is all discombobulated and when I returned I realized I didn't make a mental note of where I parked, and the FOB was useless since the battery was disconnected. I just went through the mental process of "OK, where would I have wanted to park" and actually located it fairly quickly.

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Ray_The_Engineer@reddit

I'm a "Car Guy", so park my car or truck out in the hinterlands of a parking lot, to try to keep careless people from smacking into it. I don't mind walking. As such, I always know where it is.

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JuJu_Wirehead@reddit

My car is bright red and hard to miss.

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kermitsfrogbog@reddit

Kind of ok with the fact my new car comes with a GPS tracker.

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No-Ambition7750@reddit

If you use apple CarPlay, and I would assume also on the android side of things, it tells you where you parked your car.

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PenTestHer@reddit

My car has an app that tells me exactly where my car is so no memorizing or guessing on my part.

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Izmeralda@reddit

This used to happen to me, until I started trying to park in the sane general area of any parking lot I visit.

For example, at places with large parking lots like Walmart, Aldi, Whole Foods, Lowe's, I always park in the row to the right of the exit doors. So, not the row right in front of the exit, but one over, to the right. I might park on either side of the row, but my car will be in that aisle. Since I started this, I haven't lost my car.

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EnjoyingTheRide-0606@reddit

I’m a creature of habit. I always park in the same area where I shop.

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Roseliberry@reddit

The best thing in the world is proximity radar and cameras. I’m doing great with parking!

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Reader47b@reddit

That's not happening anymore than usual - I've always done that, probably since I was a teenager. Only I didn't have the beepy thing back then.

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KurtStation68@reddit

Everytime I forget something, I always wonder if it's start of my downfall. Writing myself a grocery list of life, or taking a picture of where I parked. Usually it's little random stuff, but how much before it starts adding up.

I try not to live too routine, but maybe I need to start keeping with it.

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Athrynne@reddit

The last car I bought is bright blue so I never lose it in a parking lot. Really helps when my husband picks me up at the airport.

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Dogzillas_Mom@reddit

Same! We are in big trouble when that color becomes more popular.

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Dogzillas_Mom@reddit

I have a bright blue race car with an enormous (and completely unnecessary) spoiler. It stands out in the sea of white and black cars.

But I don’t usually have much problem remembering the general area I parked in. Maybe get that checked out? Wouldn’t hurt to see a doctor.

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