bureaucracies and other beasts

I think today I'll embark on a fool's errand, also known as converting my driver's license from Ohio to Massachusetts. (I was wrong, by the way; it's going to cost me $110, not $90.) The list of proof of identity that's on the DMV web site is a little overwhelming. I can provide proofs of residency and date of birth, but my passport has expired and I have no idea what constitutes "proof of signature". My Ohio license has my signature on it, along with my Social Security number (I know, that's a bad idea, but I don't have any other proof of SSN). I figure the worst that can happen is I sit in the DMV for three hours and then they send me away because I don't have the right documentation. At least then I can find out what, exactly, the right documentation is. And if it all goes well, I can change my voter registration at the same time.

I've got a rant about Social Security numbers, too, but that's for another time.

Friday the 13th has fallen on a Tuesday this month...

I never could get the hang of Tuesdays.

My T pass decided not to work in any of the turnstiles at Roxbury Crossing. It worked on the way home, though, so at least I didn't demagnetize it by accident or something.

The DMV trip was, as I expected, a fool's errand. Apparently I need four separate documents to prove identity, residency and signature, and I only had three because they won't count an expired passport as proof of signature. So tomorrow I'm going back with my lease (signature), birth certificate (identity 1), electric bill (residency), passport (identity 2) and Ohio license (Social Security number), and if that doesn't do it I'm going to call somebody and complain, because I don't have any more forms of ID. (The ones I had today should have been acceptable, damn it! The list provided by the DMV said "three documents, at least one from list A" and I had two from list A. Bureaucracies. GROWF.)

On my way out of the DMV I smacked my previously-bruised elbow on something, and it still hurts.

I went to Chinatown to get some lunch and burned the entire inside of my mouth on it.

When I got home, I couldn't get the front door unlocked for about five minutes. The key went in, but wouldn't turn. I was just about to give up and sit down on the doorstep and sulk when it finally decided to work.

I'm half tempted to declare that the rest of today can go suck on a warthog, turn my phone off and play Civ III until midnight. But I won't.