Do You Have a Reservation?

I'm gonna rant here so if you'd like to stop now and cruise on over to someone elses blog, feel free to do so. I'll wait.
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For all of you who are still here: let's chat about this whole reservation system that has been slowly transforming the child-friendly gym goers into a "no families allowed" crowd.

Because I pay $40k in tuition per year I get to work out at a swanky gym that is part of the school. It has the latest in cardio equipment, an awesome Olympic-sized swimming pool and televisions conveniently located wherever some serious pain-inducing working out is in progress. I like it there. It's (mostly) free. I know it's part of my tuition but let's focus on the positives, shall we? The only problem I have with swanky gym is the stupid "childcare reservation" system.

Now, c'mon, when was the last time the "parental" you made reservations? Reservations at a nice restaurant for date night? Sure. Reservations for that impromptu weekend trip to Maui? Sure. Well, not really. But, work with me here. But, a reservation to exercise? A reservation for something that I really don't want to do in the first place? Parents can't be expected to remember to make a childcare reservation because they might want to exercise Thursday morning.

What happened to "drop-in" childcare? We still have that, I was assured, but not on busy days, which, I was also told, is every day but the weekend. Of course you're not busy on the weekend. Weekends are for sleeping in not sweating to the oldies! Now, not only do I nothave a reservation, I am also not going to work out today or tomorrow or...ever, really. But! If I buy a yearly membership, then I can make a reservation up to two days in advance. Um, I don't decide whether I'm even going to the gym until the moment I actually do so it's really unlikely that I will know two days in advance.

What really irks me, though is that swanky gym is not the only local gym with this policy. My local rec center has the same stupid reservation system. The local rec center, for which I pay taxes to support, won't let me drop my child at the childcare center -- again subsidized with my tax dollars -- unless I have a reservation? You guys are one step up from the Y but I'm the one being unreasonable. Yeah. I totally see that.

So, the result is less stay-at-home-parents at the gym, more singles, and more Mom Ass spreading throughout the nation like a plague.