> I never used to even bother looking for a parking space near the front of the building/store/whatever, because I figured there was little chance there'd be one open when I wanted it. It finally occured to me that that pessimistic attitude gave me absolutely *zero* chance of getting a parking space at the front. So now I look. And some days I even get a front space.


If a parking lot looks really full, I usually don't look for a space right at the front. It's not pessimism. It's an assessment of how much extra time it will take to drive across the lot, search for a space, and then drive back to the other side in the event that no spaces are available. If I think that the chance of an open space near the front is sufficiently low, then I don't bother to search and take up fifteen or twenty more seconds of driving time. Parking at the back to begin with only usually adds thirty or forty more seconds of walking time, anyway.

Of course, many other factors are involved in the decision (if it's raining, I'm more likely to look for a closer spot to the building; if I have a lot of time before a class or appointment, I'll look for a close spot so I can get out more quickly afterward, etc.)

I suppose that under normal circumstances, I'll try to minimize the expected value of the total amount of driving/walking time, based on empirically determined and/or subjectively rationalized probabilities. It's not pessimism that makes me not want to look for a close parking spot on some days, it's optimization applied with utility theory.

--gremlinn