Lawson

Lawson

April 12, 2016 has not been my day.  To be sure it is a worse day in many places, but I have not enjoyed it.  You see, yesterday I received a postcard from the Georgia DDS (Department of Driver Services) alerting me that I needed to renew my license before June 1.  I was told the six most common legal documents to bring along in three categories:  Identity, 2) Social Security Number, and 3) Residential Address-- certified birth certificate, valid U.S. Passport, social security card, W-2 form, utility bill and bank statement.  I wonder if it has ever occurred to these people that the card they mailed to me came to my residential address? 

I had everything except a utility bill because these all come in Stell’s name.  I set off for the DDS office, a bit of a drive.  Fortunately, there weren’t many people.  I filled out the form and quickly my number #B266 was called.  I handed the young woman all “my stuff”, and when she opened the Passport, she said, “This isn’t you.”  Right she was – it was Stell.  Oh [shit I thought but didn’t say], I accidently brought my husband’s passport.  Okay, well I have everything else, and I have my birth certificate.  Well, she said my birth certificate doesn’t have my current name.  Well, think about it.  Probably a majority of women don’t have their current last name on their birth certificates, unless they are a Smith who married a Smith, or a Patel who married a Patel, or how about a Roosevelt who married another Roosevelt. 

So . . . . I drove all the way back to Oconee County and asked Stell if he knew where his passport was.  He said, yes, that it was in the safari vest he wears when he travels.  Then I handed him his passport, and he realized that my passport was in his vest.  Clearly, we had mixed them up on our return from Mexico.  Well, the good news is that he wasn’t about to check in at the Atlanta Airport for Greece only to discover that he had my passport. 

I drove back to the DDS and within five minutes had my picture taken and received a paper driver’s license until the new one is processed.  What a rigmarole.  The card I received noted, “Must complete a vision screening in person at a DDS Customer Service Center.”  Well, I asked if she wasn’t going to give me an eye examination.  No, she said, I didn’t need it.  Go figure. 

Running low on gasoline, I stopped at the RaceTrack filling station.  When I went into pay, “Lawson” said he liked my scarf.  That was the one and only nice part of my day.  I really like Lawson.