STUDENT PARKING LOT ESCAPADES: ONE REPORTER INVESTIGATES

I drove around the east parking lots for about an hour a couple of
weeks ago to see what was going on. I had no expectations, just a
reporter's curiosity.

The first person I see tells me he's John Thai, a first year student.
"I have witnessed students sleeping in their cars," he says. "And I
know a couple of people who smoke pot in their cars before and after class."

Next I meet 21-year-old nursing student Amanda Meeks, studying in the
passenger seat of her sedan. "I have been in here studying math for
over three hours since this morning," she says. The inside of her
automobile is clean and orderly, just like a school desk. I can tell
that she has had the air conditioning on because the air is frosty.

I make my way to the rooftop of the Stelling parking garage. A young
student is smoking pot out of a glass pipe in her car. She sports a
psychedelic shirt and asks me to call her Miss Morgan. Miss Morgan is
a first year student with an interest in hotel management. About her
marijuana use, particularly in her automobile, she says, "I do it
because it's relaxing. Class is stressful, so it's a nice way to just
sit back and have a good time." We discuss whether smoking marijuana
has a negative effect on grades.

"I know a lot of people who smoke pot and get really good grades. My
father smokes tons of grass and owns a very successful business," she says.

On the second level, I spot a green Ford Explorer parked in the rear
corner of the lot. A loud radio talk show about sports from the 4x4
echoes off the side walls of the parking structure. I pull up next to
it and meet Pete Cadano, who is studying to be a nurse. He tells me
that he has been parked there for a few hours even though he doesn't
have classes today.

"I don't get along with my step aunt, and it is better than staying
at home," says Cadano. "I come here, park my car, and listen to radio."

I decide to call it quits and drive toward the exit. Two young men
are parked caddy corner on the lower level. I slow down and notice
the driver's head disappear into the passenger's lap. Oh crap, I
think. For a brief moment I question the lovers' right to privacy,
but then think about the act they are choosing to perform in public.

I slam on the gas and peel into the parking space next to theirs. My
car is still moving when I get out of my car. And there they are. One
guy is sucking harder than I've seen anybody suck before ... on a
bong that his friend is holding. Oh, I think, just a couple of dudes
getting high.

I have caught them and they become a bit paranoid, but they relax
when I explain what I am doing. The men have been friends since
elementary school. "We smoke together just to relax," one says. "I
just like the way food tastes after I smoke a couple hits," says the other.

I ask about test scores and the correlative effect that smoking pot
has on students. The first one says sometimes when he smokes pot, his
grades go down.

As I drive home, I think about the De Anza parking lots and their
roles as welcoming and safe environments for students, as well as
places to leave our cars.