I bring you the second half of a musing of the mundane and necessary renewal of the driver's license. I did learn "smiling" for your license's picture is acceptable.
An Honest Account of What Happens at the DMV: Part Two
Overheard in the DMV line on a Wednesday. “I was here earlier. The line was longer.” Another waiting person chimed in to add, “The other location had even longer lines. That’s why I came here.”
People stand in a haphazard queue, which stretches around the block. Older couples lean on one another while the younger set stares at their phones in the midday sun. My impatience nudges me to walk away, come back another day. I reason I have weeks before my driver’s license expires.
Quit now or wait? The debate ends as I start a conversation with a friendly woman nearby.
Rumor has it that anyone with a camera card can walk in without waiting. Supposedly, a guard will come out and usher the camera card renewal folks inside. Let’s try it. Four of us, clutching our camera cards as if they are passports to enter DMV’s short line, walk to the door. No guard is inside or outside. Only an empty chair. No instructions on the door. Only the hours.
Sun is beating down, and there’s not a sliver of shade. I’m hot and thirsty. Today, I have a book but not a hat. A middle-aged woman exits the building and looks relieved to see the sunlight. “What a pain in the ass. Good thing you brought a book,” she said, looking at my paperback. “I almost finished my book,” she said, waving it around.
The door opens, and a guard appears. We flash our cards, and the guard dressed in gray escorts us to a booth. The search for a short line works. An efficient worker doles out the magic number (A-279).
Uplifted. I feel the weight of the wait disappear because numbered slip states only two people are ahead of me. My book stays closed. I chat with my new DMV friend who is fidgeting and looking at her phone. She has to leave soon to pick up her kids. Her number is next up.
Vexed. We watch the numbers and wonder what happened to “A” numbers? Only those with “I” and “E” before the number are called.
We wait and watch. What is going on? I open my book, but I can’t concentrate. It’s quiet except for an automated female voice announcing the numbers. Finally, it’s my turn. I follow the directions: “Look at the blue square. You can smile if you want to.” Of course I smile!
X. I sign my name after the X on the screen.
Yay! My new ID card will arrive in four to six weeks.
Zooming away after a productive? afternoon at the DMV.