Meter Maid

- Justin Ray

I found the KBIA 8 hours segment about the meter maid to be somewhat lifeless at times, and probably could have been half as long as its eight minute-plus length. The piece seemed to rehash the same element of people not liking getting a parking ticket and its effect, or lack thereof, on Kim Heibel during her day-to-day activities. That being said, it did offer a glimpse into a basically thankless job that I don't want to try to comprehend waking up to every day for 21 years. The character of this woman to brush off being a faceless figure of disdain in the eyes of nearly everyone she comes in contact with during her workday is quite resounding.

I particularly enjoy this story format because it permits listeners to create the visualization in their minds as the story goes along. Maybe this makes me a less sophisticated acquirer of news, but I cannot say I've listened to a great deal of NPR in my day. A few samples of this format may have inclined me to seek such a station during those 14-hour road trips from Columbia back home to Houston.