Parking Wars: Now That’s Drama!

I write a blog for some people I know who run an airport parking website. Although most of my posts aren’t about parking itself, last night I stayed up late and watched A&E and found a show about parking which was quite interesting. It’s called Parking Wars, and chronicles the daily routines and tribulations of parking meter maids, parking office workers and the people who are in charge of the big bad boot.

The boot squad consisted of a 40-ish dweeb with a weak chin and a younger black woman who ride around together. She pulls up the scofflaw vehicle’s addresses on a laptop, and he wields an automatic wrench to quickly affix that dreaded yellow boot to the offender’s car. Of course, they hope that the boots are in place before the owners show up, since that’s when the action starts. There’s always a litany of reasons why they shouldn’t be booted. One guy ran up shirtless, saying that he was a veteran of the Gulf war, and that he hadn’t worked in months…a good story but the boot was affixed so the booter told him “sorry once it’s on there I can’t get it off.”

Another man threatened to saw off the boot with the hacksaw he had in the back of his work truck. For this, the Boot Squad quickly dialed a tow truck, hey, he who threatens the booters gets towed. Even though the slender, angry man tried to recant his threat, there went his truck full of tools to the pound.

Increasingly reality shows like this prove to be far more entertaining than scripted dramas. What could be more compelling than looking through that bulletproof glass and listening to the heartwrenching reasons why people don’t have updated insurance and why it’s a travesty that their cars are now locked up?

In another street scene the show’s producers played up the sparks between a coy meter maid and a studly violator. Animated hearts popped up on the screen, showing that they both were hoping that after the ticket, they’d get each other’s phone number. But she walked away, saying he lived in Florida and she lived in Philly, so why bother?