Ally McBeal's Big Day Out
Flashback 6 months (Jackie Collins style): The girl returned to her car, pushing her Gucci knock off sunglasses on top of her newly streaked hair. She was plunging her hand through her oversize handbag, trying to find her keys amidst the 16 lip glosses, when she spotted a piece of paper fluttering on her windscreen. A parking ticket! She ripped it out from under the windscreen wiper and studied it. Her blue gray green eyes widened - $400! She pressed a hand to her heaving boswams, trying not to hyperventilate. But only the bumper bar & tow ball was in the naughty zone! An hysterical rage rose within her, vowing to find the person who had imposed such an unnecessarily harsh fine. The girl placed the ticket in her handbag. She would do whatever was needed to make Sydney City Council pay.... When the time was right she would have her revenge....
Present Day (okay, Friday): Girl dresses in pin-striped suit and goes to the big court house, full of lawyerly types and police. She learns quickly that one must bow to the magistrate, and that rustling sweet wrappers is frowned upon. It takes half a day to get her case before the magistrate, by which time she has made up a little speech and practised an earnest expression. Result: Reduction of fine to $100! Girl has a hairy moment when fine is initially reduces to $200 and she blurts out "Can I say something else?" and magistrate looks down at her like she is a bug... after quivering a little, she says that she feels that fine is still too high so after an agonisingly long pause, he finally decides on $100, plus court costs. Not ideal to have any fine at all, but certainly better than the $400!