A cherry Firebird angled across a compact spot. A P-Safe Explorer sitting idle on the grass. A BMW coupe that’s pulled so far out of its spot, it may as well have still been driving in.
Is LMU the SoCal capital of poor parking? The subpar parking often seen on campus inspired the hilarious (and enraging) Piss-Poor Parking Instagram account (@_lmupisspoorparking_) followed by more than 1,300 people. It’s operated anonymously, and the admin keeps submissions anonymous — all of which are from LMU students.
The account was started in the fall semester of 2021 in response to what any student who parks a car is well aware of—there are some terrible parkers on campus.
“My friend and I both really disliked parking on campus and noticed [that] some just seemed so absurd, we had to document them,” the account’s admin explained. They were quick to point out, however, that the blame doesn’t lie with the parkers alone. “It’s not just bad parking, but bad parking lots. And all the spaces are compact and there’s not enough.”
While the account hates on LMU drivers, there has yet to be any hate sent back.
“All feedback has been positive, whether [the parkers] let me know directly or I’m walking around campus or eating and just overhear people laughing about it. I’ve only had one person ever apologize, which I found funny.”
The lone apologizer did not screw up their parking job in a major way, but were posted nonetheless. “They, I guess, felt bad and just apologized and said they will try and do better,” PPP’s admin recalled.
The admin’s favorite post—the one at the top of this story—has more than 800 likes. “It definitely wasn’t intentional, and [the car] obviously got moved, but still… how do you end up in that situation?”
With the school year well under way, the Instagram account continues to gain traction. The page’s owner is open to the idea of passing the account on to a younger LMU student. “Depends, though, because if the school ever expands parking or has less compact spots, hopefully there will be less bad parkers.”
