Reserving Food and Parking Lot Next Door
QUESTION 29: RESERVING FOOD
The dining room at my son's yeshiva has a rule that half hour
after a meal begins, if food is left over, people can put away
food to eat later. My son's friend said he went to get food
exactly a half hour after the meal had begun, and no food was
left - but he saw that others had already put food aside in
bowls. He wanted to know if he could take the food from those
bowls.
RABBI BELSKY
Do you mean they piled up extra food?
QUESTIONER
Right. The other boys must have assumed that no one would come
after half an hour. But their assumption was wrong.
RABBI BELSKY
The other boys put it in their bowls before the half hour -
but they did not acquire that food.
QUESTIONER
So he can take from those bowls?
RABBI BELSKY
He has to be careful that another boy shouldn't come over
and say, "You're taking my food." He may get into a fight
with his friends. But as far as the rules are concerned,
the other boys have no right to the extra food before
the half hour.
QUESTIONER
So they didn't actually acquire the food?
RABBI BELSKY
No, because the Yeshiva didn't release it. Still, I would
advise a bochur (student) against taking it. Better leave
it where it is.
QUESTION 30: PARKING LOT 'NEXT DOOR'
The parking lot next to a hospital charges several dollars,
but a block away is a small shopping center. Can one park
at the shopping center, and then walk to the hospital? There
are no signs up that say "for customers only". Does it depend
on how crowded the shopping center parking lot is?
RABBI BELKSY'S ANSWER
I would say that al pi yosher (to be straight), the proper
thing is that if it's crowded, people shouldn't take the space
because it was built especially for the customers. But if the
place is empty, and the shopping center doesn't have laws
explicitly prohibiting such a practice, then I believe that
they're amenable. The proprietors of a shopping center like
the fact that people park there, because they feel it creates
good will, because it looks as if more people are shopping
there. Also, they probably feel that people who park there
will gravitate towards the shopping center and shop there.
NEXT WEEK'S QUESTION 31: PARKING FOR A MINUTE BY A BANK
The parking space in front on the bank says 'No standing".
Can I wait in my car for a minute while my wife runs in
quickly to take out some cash?
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