March 19, 2010: Angela Antics

True Story: 

I've never been outside of the country so I'm getting my first passport at the age of 27. Sad, I know but it is what it is. So today started off with the scraps of the  to-do list that I didn't  fully complete yesterday

TO DO List

Get your passport pictures taken at Walgreens/CVS

Go to the post office and pay the gazillion dollars for the passport

I started off my day at CVS taking photos. Not only did they take the pictures with a standard point and shoot digital camera, they also used the Kodak kiosk to print them. And you charge $8.99 when I could have done all that myself, plus the picture is semi-horrible which is typical for me, so no surprise there. Mind you, I went to Walgreen's yesterday and took pictures. They came out horribly also, especially since the clerk forewarned me that the pictures weren't going to be that great because my white shirt would blend in with the background, and my transitions lenses were dark because I'd just come in from outside. BTW: Great weather in Houston the last few days.

So off I was to the post office with a certain aire of confidence since I'd already had my passport application filled out and ready to go, or so I thought. So I get to the post office and much to my surprise there is no one in line. "Thank God", says the impatient ADD child in me. I walk right up to the counter and again I'm shocked to find that the clerk is, dare I say, nice. She's nice and actually said, "Good Morning". "Wow", I thought, "my day is going so well." He he. 

Of course my confidence was dashed when she asked me for my birth certificate. "Um, what??" Here is about the moment when I realized that I hadn't really read the instructions on the application so I'm not aware that I need additional identification outside of my driver's license. And then the clerk points out that I didn't fully fill out the application, meaning the entire back side of the application is blank, probably because it has been in my car for the last 3 months. Um, yeah. 

So off I go back home to locate my birth certificate. Surprisingly I'm not frustrated or anything yet. A little disappointed in myself for not being on top of things but I'm used to my little nuances by now so I'm not perturbed by this little snafu. Upon arriving home I go through all my files and stacks of papers only to come up with NO BIRTH CERTIFICATE (the caps indicate the level of my frustration compared to my previous sentence). "Yes, I lost my birth certificate again," is my first thought, but I realize that I'd recently gotten it replaced when I was carjacked earlier in 2009. (Another story for another day). So that meant that I have to have it but I just don't know where it is which is still not helping the situation. 

At this point I am aware that I need to take a step away from this situation so I go into the living room and proceed to flip through my expensive cable channels looking for a distraction when I realize exactly where by birth certificate is..........

As you know I am a first year teacher and this school year has been a whirlwind. Amid the whirlwind I had taken my birth certificate to the HR office of the school district to put in my employee file and then I filed my birth certificate in my personal items drawer in my desk AT WORK. Yes, I know where it is. No, I can't get it today because the school is closed because of spring break. Wow, I'm proud of myself for actually filing it away in safe keeping. Of course, it's someplace that's not convenient when I really need it. 

Did I mention I had a serious case of insomnia last night?? Sleep deprivation is no joke people. 

This is my life people and reality blogging at its best. lol.

After all this I'm still having a great day. Hope you are too.