Places to park (or NOT)

Since I am without apartment but with camper van, I have had opportunity to sample the lifestyle of sleeping in a car parked on public streets.
Before we get to the sleeping, I should clarify the legal aspect:  If you find a nice bit of curb in an area with little traffic and not too many street lights and notice the absence of parking restrictions (i.e. 1 hr, 2 hr only) then you can park there all day and all night. Aside from the fact that the quiet and dark areas of the city are not only sought out by those looking to sleep but also those looking for less dormant activities (and I don't mean jogging ;-), there is one other huge hurdle one should be aware of.  You can park in your spot 24 hours. You're parking.  The very instant you fall asleep, you're no longer parking; you are now camping.  And that is illegal on public streets. I don't think this law deals effectively with Vancouver's increasing homelessness but it is a must-have for people in Kerrisdale or Point Grey, who want to be able to call the cops the second  that someone in a $5,000 residence parks in front of their upward of a 1.5 Million residence.
I was unaware of this until Burnaby Police woke me at 4:30 am with flashlights stabbing into what was effectively my bedroom (Does one have less rights to privacy in a car than in a house?) and after I had my pants on and had unglued my eyelids, asked me the deep question "What are you doing?".  The obvious answer "What do you think I'm doing at 4:30 am? Sleeping, of course!" is obviously the wrong answer given the odd legal situation.  I didn't know that the first time though, so Burnaby police explained to me the parking/sleeping conundrum stated above.  They were very nice about it and let me go back to sleep until the sun rose if I promised to never do it again ;-) And think of this:  judging by a comment overheard before I opened the door, "Probably smells like pee in there" (I think their noses were spared in my van), the cops can think of much more fun things to do on their nightly journeys than waking unwashed people and sticking their noses in smelly vans.  But they have to uphold the law.  Thus the odd "What are you doing?" question.  So if you want to protect copper noses and catch a few Zs, here is what to do:  Get yourself a portable DVD player, put a DVD in and leave it on the menu page, so the screen has some movement, and put it somewhere in the van where the flashing light does not bother you.  Now the police doesn't have to stop and smell your bedroom because you are obviously watching a movie; right ? ;-)  Just don't try this trick in Point Grey or Kerrisdale; I'm sure they have other by-laws in their arsenal.