So, according to my husband, today I made it official. I am officially a Vermonter. Well, technically I think that happened back in 2002 when I established residency and starting paying in-state taxes to Vermont. Or maybe in 2004 when I registered to vote in Vermont. None of this was official enough for Ray. The thing I was lacking: a Vermont issued "Operator's License". In English, a Vermont Driver's License.
So I got up early this morning, gathered my one million documents to prove who I was, and drove to the DMV. The big issue here was not only did I have a New York State Driver's License, but it also had my maiden name on it and my parents' old mailing address. I had to prove (1) who I was, (2) where I currently live and (3) what my name is now. Ray, for reasons I still don't fully understand, decided that coming with me to the DMV for this momentous occassion was better than sleeping in, so he tagged along. I arrived early, hoping that the line would be shorter first thing in the morning. I was simply amazed, by the time I finished filling out my form, there was no line, and I went straight up to the counter to be "processed".
This is where things started to go down hill. All of my paperwork was in order, and I had all of the necessary back-up documentation. The problem turned out to be the eye exam. Now, in an effort to be fully honest here, I had been a tiny bit worried about the eye exam. Way back when (in middle school) I had been prescribed glasses for distance. Over the years (in a strange reverse-of-nature) my eyesight had improved, and my prescription had decreased. When I got my license at 16, I was able to pass the eye exam without my glasses (and therefore had no restrictions on my license). Now, the last time I had been to an eye doctor was very early in 2001. I was long over due. And while I was concerned I might have an issue with the eye exam, I wasn't fully prepared for what happened.
I failed the eye exam.
I was pretty shocked, embarrassed and a bit upset. It didn't help too much that Ray thought this was HYSTERICAL. So I was sent away from the DMV with no new license, and a form for my eye doctor to fill out. Fortunately, some luck was on my side, and by chance the eye doctor's office had an available appointment for me at 11:30 that day. Ray decided it was Take-Your-Husband-To-Work-Day, and tagged along with me to my office for a few hours of work and then to the eye doctor's appointment. My eye appointment went fine, the eye doctor was very nice, he even said he wasn't sure why I had failed the eye exam at the DMV, and he wrote me a prescription that I only needed to fill if I wanted to (or, if I suddenly started doing a lot of night driving). And he filled out the necessary paperwork, giving me his blessing to drive without the aid of glasses.
So after a very quick bite of lunch, Ray and I went back to the DMV for round two. It was just after midday at this point, and I figured the line would be terrible. Isn't that what everyone always complains about at the DMV? Waiting in line? Again, no line (yippie)! Once again I presented all one million pieces of paperwork, including my eye doctor note, and we're ready to roll. As I am about to write the check, the woman behind the counter asks me if I would like a two year or a four year license. At this point, if I never have to come back to the DMV it will be too soon, so I opt for the four years. It is at this point that the woman behind the counter informs me that my birthday is on Sunday (a fact of which I was aware, since that's when my New York license runs out). She tells me that my new license will also expire on my birthday (which I had guessed). What I had not anticipated is that because I was at the DMV before my birthday, the first year of my license would in fact last from Friday, January 23, 2009 to Sunday, January 25, 2009. But if I wanted to come back on Monday, making a third trip, then the new license would actually be good for a full four years.
At this point I was done. I didn't want to run around any more. I didn't want to have to lug 14 pieces of ID with me any more. And to top it all off I had a HUGE mailing waiting for me at work that had to go out that afternoon. I needed to get this over with and get on with my life. I opted for the 3 years and 2 days to save myself another trip. The only thing left to do at this point was take my photo. I've had kind of good luck in the past with license photos, but this is where my luck ran out. I will pre-empt this next sentence by warning you that it is 100% vanity: I have a double chin in my Vermont license photo. Had I known I would have a double chin for 3 years and 2 days on my photo ID, I might have come back on Monday. But double chin it is!
Fortunately, the double chin was the end of the event. I double checked that they spelled my name correctly, had the right mailing address and was on my way.
This is a photo Ray took of me at the very end of the day on Friday. That's me, legally driving a motorized vehicle in the state of Vermont, with said state's permission! Ray says all I have left to do to become a "real" Vermonter is chug some maple syrup....