A good day

It is 7:31 p.m. as I start this post.

I have not had my supper.

I have 1.5 hours of work yet to do.

But, dear Lord, it has been a Good Day!!

This morning, I had to go to the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles) to renew my driver’s license. Despite receiving a card that alerted me to my expiring license AND an unexpected bonus of now the DMV does renewals by appointment … AND making an appointment months ago … I had faint hope of things going well because … the DMV.

In nearly 40 years of having to deal with the DMV, I have had maybe one time where things went lickety-split. Typically it has been a show up, get a number, wait-wait-wait, deal with a crotchety-crabby person and FINALLY come away with whatever.

But, today … I arrived for my 8:00 a.m. appointment at 7:45. There was shade parking for the Jeep and Mr. Bear. I entered a new building to see a small crowd. Oy-vey! It is a 30 mile drive and I needed the facilities and WOW – they were beautiful. The new building was not fancy but it was light and clean and pleasant. I returned to the area by the inner door to the DMV … more folks. I asked: “Does everyone have an 8:00 a.m. appointment ???”. No, but 3 of us did.

At 8:03 a.m. the DMV doors opened to a reception person!!! Prior DMV involved entering a waiting room with a counter beyond and the aforesaid crochety-crabby persons behind the counter did NOT even make eye contact with any new arrivals. A number thing was just inside the door. Various signage referred to various documents to be filled out. Gah. But this morning, the reception person quickly asked “purpose, appointment?” and gave appropriate paperwork and direction. I was ticked off the appointment list, handed my form and about 3 minutes later was the first to be called for processing. Hoo-rah!

And then!!!

And then, I proceeded to an actual chair in front of a desk and was dealt with very professionally and efficiently – so efficiently that I was back in the Jeep and headed for home at 8:15 a.m. with my temporary renewal license … permanent license to be mailed to me tout suite!

Good Grief.

Smallish town Montana, acting like the big leagues.

I was thrilled.

It set me up for the whole day.

All the rest of the day as I worked and took care of Bear, Auggie and me … I kept thinking that what I thought would be a gruesome start to the day turned out to be so pleasant.

A good day!

5 Responses to “A good day”

  1. Margaret

    What a pleasant surprise! I am not looking forward to renewing my licence in September – I am sure the experience will not be at all like yours plus it is very expensive. Great photos of Bear and Auggie!

    • Liz

      Well, I will keep a good thought for you, Margaret! I was a bit surprised – probably not near as much as you must pay, but it was $42 U.S. At my age, I renew every 8 years so not a big deal, but I know there are many in this area that make $7-9/hour so a $42 hit IS a big deal.

  2. Margaret

    Thanks for the thought. We have to renew every 3 years and as well as the fees for the actual licence, we have to have a certificate from a GP which costs €50 and an opthalmologist which is €20, plus numerous photos – one for each certificate and some for the licence. The licence itself cost €120 three years ago but it is probably a lot more now. So the total is about €200 or more and the average income here is about €600 a month. So we pay about $233 every three years!

    • Liz

      Good grief – that is astounding!

      Our license has a photo but they take it on site with a web cam type thing. They also do a vision check on site. The health issues – they ask the questions on the form and you sign “under oath”.

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