EITM: Thud Gates 7/17/24

A car to arms.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
Is it a big business to fixparking gates? But I know you parking
arms. I don't know what youcall it. We're keeping some company in
business. It was down again today. Yeah, they're broken, but it
was fixed yesterday. I know,because people just drive through them. That
that I refuse to believe that.I refuse, Well, how does it
how does it end up on theground? You think? Three times a

(00:22):
week people just drive through the armon? What what do you call those
arms? Yeah? The arms on? But is it a parking gate?
Of parking? What is that?An arm gate can also be more like
the face. This is an armthat goes up and down? An arm,
yes, the big like like plasticarm. Yeah, and it just
goes up and down three days andthree days a week. I refuse to

(00:45):
believe this building is not that busy. I was with Diane and then when
it was down again this morning,it was yesterday down again being intentionally dismantled.
Is that or is it just isit just is it just broken and
it's not getting fit so like theyput like tape on it and it just
falls down. I have no ideabecause then or is whoever they're hiring to

(01:07):
fix it is doing a horrible job, or cars are running in bay.
God, the ind gate was brokenlast Friday when it was pouring and nobody's
cards were working to let us out. So then you just backed up and
you went out through the inside,which you're not supposed to do. Well,
whatever, then don't then fix it? The it works, it's not
yours? No, no, Butbut how how does it keep breaking?

(01:34):
I don't just need an entire newgate. But that is a new gate,
isn't it because they switched out thecards. But did they switch out?
Yes, they switched out the car, but the gate is also new.
I didn't realize. Yes, thegate is also new. Is the
long one that you can't drive aroundthe other? That's why people drive through

(01:56):
it? Why do you think?What does snap? It's it's pretty cleanly
off. When did snap? Ifsomeone drove through it? Because havn't you
noticed that when you swipe, whenyou swipe to come in, even if
the gates on the cement are onthe ground, you still see that little
bracket go up. So it's like, okay, I'm good. Is it
meant to in case in case ofan accident? Wait? What? I

(02:20):
don't what you still see you dostill see the metal go up? Yeah,
in the housing of the of they where this. God, you
guys watch for that. So Iknow that I'm going to be able to
get out, unlike Friday the oryesterday. Did you get out yesterday?
Yeah, you got out fine yesterday. Oh so you weren't behind the ninety
five year old woman. And that'syou can't control that. That's that's some

(02:40):
that's some doctor's appointment person. Shehad to walk from the passenger side all
the way around the car because whoeverwas driving didn't know how to operate the
machine. Her husband, I believe, was driving, and it was uncomfortable
because I was between the two ofthem. Yeah, people car in their
front seat, between Ellie and thecar trying to get Oh my god,

(03:02):
did you shrug when he was honkinghis horn? No, When she opened
the passer, first of all,they pull closer to the machine so you
can reach, but they can't reach, and they're trying to scan the bar
code and the door's open, andI'm like, oh, what s show
is going on up here? Theykept motioning for my help and I just
kept looking down. No, andit's horrible. I've gotten out and help

(03:24):
people before, not me, theals we're also honking for the non existent
attendance. Yeah, they were honkingthe horn. I was like, I'm
with you, a hog, moveyour ass, honey. But then the
worst thing that can happen. Firstof all, and you can see,
like when the arm goes out thewindow. This is gonna sound bad,
and I don't mean for it too, but there's a lot of vanes and
spots on that arm. So whenit goes out and they can't reach the

(03:46):
thing and the door has to open. But before the door opened, you
got to put the car in park, which means we stall for a long
time. No, I saw fora long time on the reverse until he
gets in there, Oh my god. And then when who's the oldest woman
alive? It was doctor Ruth.Yeah, when doctor Ruth got out of

(04:06):
the passenger's side, I was like, she take a minute to go around
your What was the worst part though, what was the worst part? But
she didn't go around the back,did she? Yeah, she went around
the back. Yes, she wentaround the back. No, she went
I'm saying to Diane, No,no, no, that wasn't the worst
part. No. The worst partwas also the saddest part and made me

(04:26):
feel bad for all the times Ilooked down when they were trying to flag
me over. Wait, can Iguess because there were two parts that were
bad. So the older Aldercocker woman. Honestly, it probably I'm not exaggerating.
It took her forty five minutes towalk around the car. Stop it,
it took it. It took her, and you're on an incline that

(04:46):
that old gal could have gone overlike that. The more you exaggerate,
the worst I sound. Anyway,she makes it all the way over to
the pay machine and as soon asshe gets there, son of a bitch,
the arm goes up. Well,so now you know it's going to
be another forty five minutes for herto get back. As she gets behind
the car, the guy pulls up. Yes, oh through, Yeah,

(05:10):
so he goes through. He's probablyworried. It's only going to stay up
for so long. Yes, Iagree with Diana and Kristen. I'm gonna
tell you right now, stop laughing. She so, she's like, well,
now I got to keep walking upto get into the car, and
that's when the gate came down.Did it hit her? Yes? Why

(05:31):
are you laughing. It didn't hither on the head. It hit her
on the side, like it iskind of that kind of him checked her
a little bit there. You oughtto be a shame, No, didn't
you almost yes, because it's alreadysloped by the way. How great was
it though, when she got outof the car and started walking back.

(05:51):
Did you see when she was walkingaround the car? I was looking she
got out of the car again,it's a forty five minute walk. She
gets out, so she's like,she's she's walking like like she got her
theater ship. She's walking. Shelooks at Tyler Tyler's car. It gives
her the shruggy emoji. She did. She did take a while, but

(06:14):
again I had an important text toattend. Took her longer going back on
account as she got hit by thegate. That's horrible. I totally see
somebody could get sued for that.Yeah, I was two cars back.
I couldn't do anything yourn at thatpoint. Why he pulled through. He
was so nervous, but then hedidn't expect it to come down and strike

(06:35):
his life. He also did reallypull up far enough, because then you
stalled as to whether you were supposedto swipe because it was she still had
to get the car, and thenshe had to put on the seatbelt.
See I was no better though.That's the reason I hesitated to pull up
and swipe, because I thought itwould go up and eventually just come back

(06:56):
down again. And then I'm honkingon the horn for the guy that doesn't
exists, promotioning to Elliott, HeyI need help, And Elliott now has
an important text he has to writeback to right And in the meantime,
I've gone through two cigarettes while I'msitting there. Would she would she got
out? Honestly, and I knowshe's part of the greatest generation? Would

(07:18):
she got out? My first thoughtwas, Oh, Christ, how long
are we going to be here?All you want to do is leave?
But it is. It's so goddamnhot outside, and she takes forever.
And when she gave the shruggy emoji, I was like, Oh, my
god, move already. So whatis not what happened yesterday? What is

(07:43):
going on? Oh with her withthe arms on our party? I have
no idea. But it's not it'snot people driving into them, Diane.
Three people, three people a weekare not driving it unless they're doing it
on purpose. What about someone's bitlike remember in the bathroom there was the
booger wall, where like somebody's bidwas to like flick boogers on the wall.

(08:03):
So somebody's bid is I'm going toknock them you damnage your car.
I wouldn't doubt if it's an Itcan't be every single time, but I
would bet it's happened more than oncethat somebody's coming here at one of the
stations and it is late for ashift and their card's not working. Well,
they forgot to tell you why.That's not true because they all know
there is no such thing as beingearlier late for a shift. There is.

(08:26):
Maybe it's a part timer who careswho We already fired him, Remember
he was trying to Yeah, Carlos, maybe it was his. DJ Kenny
writes that homeless people vandalize those armsall the time for what reason, just
because it's just something to do.I don't know, no if you told

(08:48):
me, because the arm is justlaying on the on the on the on
the Sometimes it's on the little cementmedian, other times it's just on the
ground. Yeah, you're right.Sometimes you do worry about running it over
other times I'm placed, go rightover it. I can tell you one
it was placed where when it wasout of the way of entering cars,

(09:11):
And that would be last week.When Josh took the arm off himself.
He like removed it like with ascrewdriver. He said, it was actually
fairly easy. Why did he takethe arm off? Forgot my card?
I don't wait, Josh, comehere for a second. The I'm gonna
blame him every time now, Butwait a minute. So going back to
Kenny's thing with the homeless, whatis Josh unhoused? God, I hope

(09:35):
the no. No, but forKenny's thing. Don't talk yet, Josh.
For Kenny's thing, if you toldme it was somebody who was homeless
that was doing it, if theywere selling it for like like the liquor
money, but just to take giveme for this parting arm the may it's
got copper in it. Why didyou take the arm? It was the
day of the card's going to work? Like Dan said last week, they

(09:56):
weren't right Friday, Yeah, andI swipes Swiss what nothing? You guys
were already here. I came itwas like five after five nothing nothing.
I'm like, great, my car'snot working. I got fired. But
then I was like, let mesee what happens. I I backed up
a little bit, I lifted it, put it down on the me.
It was very easy. But it'snot bolted in at all. But I
don't understand why it slides in thatlittle bracket. Yeah, you just lift
it up on one. I meanit's it's top heavy. So but why

(10:22):
wouldn't you just go park upstairs wherelike in front of the bank. Yes,
I'm not parked in front of thebank guaranteed to especially during the week.
I'm not. I'm not park atthe seven eleven park. So now
I'm not leaving my car outside thebuilding and walking in here. Please no
steal non pops there. I gotfunk pops in there. Also, I

(10:45):
got a lot of cliff bars thatI stole out of the kitchen. What
do you have in there that's sogoddamn valuable that you can't park like outside?
We have a locked garage for areason. When you come here at
five locked, the door comes down. It's locked with your he once,
why I park to morning at sevenam? The garage is light outside,

(11:09):
worried about animal when people coming inwhile I'm parking. We had that homeless
guy underneath the thing that back duringCOVID the I understand he's the one who's
taking all of the arms off parkoutside. Who the hell do you think
you are? You can't park outside. The company pays for the parking.
I'm gonna use it. Yeah,so you break the arm, break

(11:31):
it. I lifted it off thebracket. You can easily slide it right
back on a bacon that's not broken. It was already broken. So then
let me ask you this, Afteryou went through where the arm is,
why not put it back? BecauseI wanted to get up here. I
had stuff to do. I gotit, I got to record to do,
I got weather, I got Igot stuff to do. And then
I had to scan my card outto get back in again, because you

(11:54):
can't leave until you scan it first, like you can't like once you go
in, you can't use your cardin again till you use it out,
which is why I feel like anidiot every day when Josh has already taken
the arm off and the the andyou have to swipe. You still got
to swipe when you come in.I know, so it works on the
way out, but I'm like,if anybody's watching like they're They're like,

(12:16):
idiot, what is the city ofdoing. There's not even a goddamn arm.
What is he doing? It's likewatching that old lady get out.
And now every morning we come in, I see it's in the last three
or four mornings. It's on thatconcrete median. So okay, somebody heard
on the radio hose saw me doing. They're like, oh, let's do
it. You know what I neverthought about like robbing the place, But
now I know. All I gotto do is take the arm off.
You know what I think I'll getJosh can't get out them the drive up

(12:41):
inside? How I got out Friday? The no no, but so like
like this morning, the arm wasn'tthere. Who took that off? I
don't know. It's not one ofmy accomplices, no no, But is
that somebody who's like, well thecard wouldn't swipe, I'll just take it
off. I mean the card wereworking this onre because I saw the bracket
go up and down when you scanit. Why do you lose watch the
bracket I get out, you can'tget out. So if you can't get

(13:05):
out, you push the button andthey go. That was what the woman
said that when she got hit bythe No. But I love that we're
saying, what company is that youpush that button? That it could be
it's it's I'm like, I tendto push it before I know where they
are. I'm like, I'm tryingto get into work and I have no

(13:31):
idea what they say. You're askingfor you a number on your card.
I'm like, I don't freaking know. But the richest part of that story
is that we're saying that we allsit and watch the bracket go up because
we have to get out. Meanwhile, last Friday we just said the gain
on the other side didn't work.We couldn't get out. You just never

(13:52):
know. No, I know,I don't watch the bracket to see if
it goes, and I know thatit works. So when we leave,
I'm not trusting out about oh thisisn't work. It again, got push
the button. Deal with all thatcrap. By the way, if it
doesn't work, just the thing up. I never had the chance to do
it. So is that how italways is? Are those things set up
that you could just take them off? Maybe just I know the in one
does not have bolts? To keepit in because it's on the ground so

(14:16):
much. They finally got frust goddamned to park it at the bank.
I just figured if anyone else couldtake it out, I could take it.
So I tried. I literally justgot out. I'll try it,
and it worked. And in fairness, when people can't get out, when
I'm leaving, if someone in frontof me who can't figure out how to
slide their cart in, I getout. I scan them out and let
them go. And then I comeback and you come in and in and
out again. And many times I'vehit the bars. They've hit me a

(14:39):
million times because there's no space throughthat in the hag in the arm years
younger and the woman who is struckyesterday put a little pep in the steps.
Fine, it's fine. If Iget of, it's fine. But
I'm helping people, and that's themost importing. That is, that is
the most important. All right,very good, You're good, Thank you,
Josh, thank you that he's doingthat. How was it off today?

(15:00):
Though there's nobody I'm the first onein here. Nobody took it off
today. Now, Christen, whatwere you saying about access? Ohay,
turn yourself on after hours, andyou see, because she lives nearby,
you see a lot of people strugglingwith the arm So people, who is
it the same woman from yesterday shruggyface. Hold on, I'm walking people

(15:24):
who clearly don't work here in thebuilding. So I think the P two
door closes at like seven or something, right, But people will take a
ticket, or if get that far, they either put their car and reverse
and go back up the ramp,back up the ramp, or they'll take
a ticket, try and get through, try to access and then end up

(15:46):
having to turn and reverse in oneof those side spots right and then come
back out because you have thirty minutesto get out. So there it's thirty
minutes free. Yeah. Oh,I didn't know that. So they're people
who have no reason to be heretrying to see what's down the ramp.
I'm going down, serious, goingdown the ramp to see what Joss has
in his car. So many carsI can't even like wait. Some people

(16:08):
just pull up to the to thebuilding and go down the ramp to see
what's down there. Yes, I'venever done that. Will you have an
access car? No, I know, Kristan. I'm talking about in other
buildings. I've never pulled up toanother building and been like, hey,
I wonder what's down the ramp.I'm gonna take a ticket. Or do
they think they're just gonna be ableto maybe like score some free overnight parking.

(16:30):
Maybe maybe like the homeless guy duringCOVID, Oh sorry, unhoused during
COVID. I've never seen this phenomenonthat she talks about. I've never even
heard of it. Also, howstupid are you if that's what you're doing.
No offense, they're trying to besmart. Actually the why? But
then who was it? Kenny said? Homeless people or unhouse people take the
take the gates off. You'll alsonotice when there's thunderstorms or a bit of

(16:53):
wind, the next morning the gateis off. We had a big storm
lightning, so I'm here last night. A wind can blow that thing off.
You know, it's not bolted in. That's what I heard. Yeah,
there's no way to win. Butcan I so flimsy? Can I
ask this though? Is it onlyon the one going in because the outbound

(17:14):
one is that is never broken.It's very rare. It's very rare.
The outbound to the get out gateis broke off. It's always the ingoing
one that's broken. Now, I'llgive you that. You're right, it's
occasionally a problem with the exit,but it's it's usually the entry. There's
usually more occasions of the outgoing armhitting old people and younger people. As

(17:36):
while I'm here, all right,very good? Where am I going?
Line two? Hi, yellie ofthe morning? Does this mean? Yeah?
Hi? Who's this? Oh?This is Kristen. I live in
a gated community that has like aguard shack, and they've got one of
these stupid freaking arms that they justput in I guess maybe two years ago.

(17:56):
And I been telling you the truth. Diana's completely right. People hit
them constantly and they will be thewhole thing will be out of service,
for they have to have whoever itis. They break away intentionally because if
there were the catastrophic situation, peoplehave to be able to leave, so
none of them are bolted in.It wouldn't be just that one that your

(18:18):
guy lifted off. They all ifyou just tap them, they kind of
fall off. Wait a minute,it suggested, but you know what security
that makes? That makes sense becauseI never thought And by the way,
his name is not that guy hisname is Shoehorn the Okay, sorry,
so wait a minute, that doesmake sense that you can't if there were
God forbids something going on and youneeded to get out, you shouldn't have

(18:41):
to. Dukes have hazarded through thefear. It's like the doors of the
site, right, if you justpull on those, I think it's for
three seconds they open, so thesame thing. That's interesting. I didn't
think of that, But you're tellingme. Cars just bump them all the
time. Oh, they plow throughthem like foule through them. There's a
whole guard track of people sitting insideof there, and they plow through them

(19:03):
on a very regular basis. Likethe whole entry gate entry will be screwed
up for like a huge piles oftraffic people trying to get in and out
because they've installed these gate arms andsuddenly and people are just crashing into them
all the time. I don't knowif they're not used to it, don't
know whether the gate arm is goingto be up or down. They also
have like a little traffic light besideours that is what they used to use

(19:26):
instead of a gate arm, andso I think sometimes the traffic light will
be green and that the little armis down. That's pretty good. No,
no, because I was reading athank you, ma'am, thank you.
I was reading like, there's acemetery in Knoxville that has an arm,
the same thing. I've never seenone at a cemetery. The somebody

(19:48):
went barreling through it. So nowthey've got to fix it. It's going
to take a while to repair it. The cemetery is closed. Oh so
people can't go in and view,like, visit loved ones TFN. That's
horrible. Well, don't go barrelingthrough the cemetery. There was a green
light for burying and then yeah,I just went right through. I guess
though, when you think of thethings that could happen. At least there's

(20:11):
no vandalizing of the tombstones. No, just the gate. Now I can't
get to the tombstones because the gatesclosed, but I swear they're in pristine
condition. Line three, thank you. Hi Ellie in the morning, Hey
is this mate? Yeah? Hi? Who's this? Hey? Ab?

(20:32):
I just wanted to give your headsup. The arm was still on and
intact when I left last night.What time did you leave last night?
AB? I left it, youknow. End of my shift so midnight.
Be honest, were you here tillmidnight? Or no? You want
to make me give away the secretsof radio every everybody, I did a

(20:56):
whole thing last week. I don'thave time. Trust me, You're not
the only one that doesn't. Yourwhole shift Middays hasn't done a whole shift
in forever since my Jones left anyway, not left the station, but the
ship. Anyway. I gotta stopyelling what time did you leave last night?
I left at ten thirty last nightso I could be on my way
to cover for said midday shift nowright, Oh very good? Yeah,

(21:18):
no, I like that. Ilike that. Good for you, Good
for you. The so at tenthirty last night, the inn, the
the the gates on the arm,the arm was there, correct, both
in and out? Yeah no not. You'll see when you get here.
It ain't there. I'm on myway now. But honestly, don't you
see like the the the don't youagree at this building? I don't have

(21:40):
any other buildings. You've worked inthe arms. You're always broken. I
don't understand it. Oh yeah,multiple times a week. And Diane thinks
it's because people are just storming throughthem in their cars. I've never seen
that happen, but I wouldn't thinkso. I just I don't understand it.

(22:02):
I want to open up a repairshop that's just right next door.
All right, ab hurry up,all right, all right, talk to
you later. You'll do the wholemidday shift. Trust me, got like
two plus hours sitting in traffic.He's fine. Line four. Is it
the case where somebody, like Iunderstand Christen says, a lot of people

(22:22):
just show up in the middle ofthe night. I don't get that.
But is it? Is it justpeople know just bump it and they fall.
It sounds like because they're taking tickets. No, they don't know.
That's true. That's true. Andif you took a ticket and you couldn't
get out, you would just bumpthe outbound one. Well, two wrongs
don't make it right. In thiscase, I need to make her right

(22:45):
back on rocks. I'm sorry,but I have to leave ty Ellie in
the morning. I used to runValet's sides for hospitals and we went through
at least one day to week.But is that is it? Is it
just do people just get pissed andjust crash them? Absolutely? Especially doctors.

(23:10):
Why are the doctors man, I'vegotta be in surgery, the Diane.
Seriously, that's why saving lives man. Also, don't doctors park it
like in the fancy lot that's rightup close. Not necessarily they do,
but I used to have to opentheir gates for them in the morning as
well, and if they did notcome on, they're just going to go
right there. They do not care. Yeah, doctors, and Josh,

(23:34):
hey, I'm not paid, soyou can park it outside. You can
pull it right out.