Department of Environmental Irony

I was playing tennis this morning at Fort Lowell Park, well away from the street. I noticed a heavy smell of car exhaust wafting over the court and turned toward the parking lot. A large government vehicle — enclosed, about twice the size of a pickup — was sitting there, idling.

Five minutes later, the vehicle was still there, still idling, still sending exhaust fumes onto the court. One of the players went over and asked the driver, who was sitting in the cab, if he would either turn off the engine or move away from the courts. He said OK. Another man climbed into the passenger seat, and the two of them drove away.

As they were leaving, I noticed the letters on the drivers' door: AZDEQ.

Note: I hate to ruin my own story, but I was told by one of the players that the truck probably ran on diesel, and it takes more fuel to turn the engine off and on than to leave it running for a few minutes. But I'm not about to let a questionable fact like that stop me from reveling in the irony of the moment.