Thursday, October 18, 2018
This morning I had an appointment at the DMV on Fell Street to obtain my Real ID — a new thing which is required if you want to travel domestically by plane without having to carry your passport. I prefer less bulk whenever possible and especially when traveling, so for me it’s a must to get this new kind of ID card. I prepared all my documents in advance. I rode UberX there. My appointment was for 9:20 am. I arrived 12 minutes early. There was a line of maybe 25 people from the outer door but I knew this was not my line since I had an appointment. Inside there was a shorter line which I quickly learned was the correct line for people with appointments. This is altogether not clear when one walks up. I waited in that line for perhaps 20 minutes. The despair is thick because everyone knows the DMV is a cruelly inefficient experience. The younger employees seemed to be making the best of it. The older ones seemed resigned to their fates and seemed lacking of joy in their lives. A woman examined my paperwork then a few minutes later handed me some of my paperwork stuffed into a red file folder and a sheet of paper with a code handwritten on it. I was instructed to go to the sign labelled F. At window F another woman took my red file folder and instructed me to sit and I would be called. After about 10 minutes I noticed my code appeared on a television display overhead seemingly instructing me to go to window 13. I went, but someone was already at window 13, so I waited behind that person. Ten or so minutes went by and the woman at window 14 asked me why I was standing there and I told her why. She then asked me to talk to the man at window 12. The man at window 12 was busy with someone else and I didn't feel I should interrupt so I continued waiting. The woman at window 14 continued talking to another customer. I waited another 10 minutes or so before the customer ahead of me at window 13 left. The man at window 13 then told me that the display is sometimes incorrect and that I should only approach the window when I hear the automated voice call my code. I sat and waited. Eventually my code was called to window 18. A woman processed my forms and returned all my paperwork. It took about 10 minutes. I was instructed to go to window B where my photo was taken. The man at window B then directed me to a line near the start where two people were ahead of me. The woman serving this line was also serving another line for the written exam area. She appeared to not realize for a few minutes that the man at window B was feeding her customers because someone else was on break, so there was some delay due to that. Finally she processed the papers for the woman ahead of me as well as me. I received a temporary ID, and my real Real ID is expected to arrive in the mail. I emerged from the DMV, thankfully surprised that I still had my sanity. Total time: about one hour. All while I waited I could tell how anxious all the customers were due to disorientation (where do I go now?) and unfairness. During my waiting I also overhead someone on his phone explaining how his appointment was canceled because he didn't have the right documents. I spent a few minutes outside the DMV recovering then decided that I needed a short break before going to work. I walked to Sightglass Coffee on Divisidero Street. I had never been there before. It's a beautiful space. I asked for a dirty chai but they didn't have chai so I ordered a latte instead. A small bite as well: a seasonal muffin which turned out to be blueberry. I'm not sure why they call it seasonal when blueberries are readily available in San Francisco year-round, but whatever. Price for these two items was $9.49—a bit pricey, I thought, but both items were indeed perfect. After using the restroom and finishing my refreshments I was physically and psychologically ready to be on my way. I rode Muni 24 and 1 to UCSF Laurel Heights. At work I washed my hands again—after visiting the DMV it seems like the prudent thing to do over and over again. Styling work: microsites identity retheme and resolving 'mobile primary nav menu and search menu not keyboard accessible at browser widths less than 800px'. Walked and rode Muni home. Dinner at home with Patrick: Good Eggs bockwurst with pretzel rolls and root veggie slaw, sparkling water for Patrick, Hint for me, Oktoberfest-Marzen lager for both. Watched Star Trek: Discovery Short Treks: Runaway on CBS All Access with Patrick followed by two season 2 trailers. Watched 22 minutes of Kathleen Madigan: Gone Madigan on Amazon Prime with Patrick. House chores. Installed fresh batteries in candles, finding that one battery had exploded inside one candle and that candle is now broken. I tried to fix it but failed. Organized mail and reconfigured mail filters. Caught up on journaling.