A Trip To The DMV

Today I had to go get my driver's license renewed. I made an appointment online for ten in the morning.

I showed up at nine-fifty like a good little girl.

My two lovely younger children, "A" and "SJ", went with me. I forgot SJ's leash in the car.

Dumb dumb dumb.

I was given a number at the front of the line. (F003) I thought I heard it called immediately, but when I looked up somebody else was walking up to the window I had been paged too.

I took the savages, er children, to a side room with a water fountain to wait. They were noisy like a couple of jungle animals, but we were out of the way. (I will add that "A" knows better than to act that way. She was grounded from taekwondo tonight.)

I kept them contained to the best of my abilities. I heard numbers like H005 and G003 called. Ten minutes went by. It felt like forty-five.

Then I heard F004 and F005. But wait, I was F003. Now I knew what the "F" stood for. I went and got back in line to get a new number.

This was when all hell broke loose.

SJ began running around the DMV and shrieking in glee. I was trying to stay in line and couldn't chase him. "A" was acting like a baboon also. This is the point where I am looking desparate. What does the beeyotch in charge of the line I'm in do? She turns aside to help someone else, leaving me standing there.

Another lady that worked there came up to me and said, "Are those your children?"

"Yes," I reluctantly admitted.

"Well, you need to keep them quiet. People are testing."

I said, "Well, I'm sorry. My son has special needs. If I hold him in place, he will have a tantrum and be just as loud."

She opened a window just for me and whisked me away.

I picked up SJ and held him. He began shrieking at the top of his lungs. I told "A" she'd better sit down or else.

People all over were glaring at me like they had never seen a kid have a tantrum before. Why do people think they have the right to judge the parenting when they know nothing about the situation?

One nice lady at the DMV gave me a blue candy stick for him and that quieted him down. I'm sure it had milk product in it though, as he has the runs tonight. Normally I would have turned it down, but I was desperate.

The lady finished my paperwork. She said, "Meet me at the photo window. I'll take your picture.

As I was backing up, I heard an irritated voice say, "Excuse me. I'm behind you."

A man in a wheelchair was behind me. I apologized. He proceeded to park himself so I was blocked away from the photo window and couldn't get to it.

The lady was at the photo window waiting and I asked, "Excuse me, are you waiting in the photo line?" (Yes, I would have asked this of anyone blocking the way at this point, wheelchair or not.)

He freaking snarled at me, "YES I AM."

Alrighty then.

There was one other person getting a photo done who turned out to be his son. So no, he wasn't in the fucking line. He was just watching his son and blocking me from getting in the line.

Finally, he moved his ass and I got my photo done wearing my best "get me the hell out of here" smile, and then I did get the hell out of there. This was a bit past ten.

I try very hard not to take my son places where I don't have to. I didn't take him to restaurants even before the special diet started. I learned the hard way in October that he couldn't go to special events. (the retirement home fiasco) I can't watch my daughter do taekwondo unless my husband is home to watch him.

But I HAD to go to the DMV and I can't pay a sitter forty dollars every time I need both kids watched.

I need to get a thicker skin and not let these things bug me, I know. There will be many more moments like this.

But why do people have to be so mean?

Yuck.

I felt like crying most of the day and didn't start feeling better until around four.

So now I have unloaded on all of you. Sorry. But I had to unload.

And SJ is crying again so I also have to go. Thank goodness the weekend is almost here.