I know, I know – it’s only August 1st. But man, does time fly! It feels like just yesterday I was starting my new job and being told that we were in the “slow season.” We had awesome summer hours (every other Friday off, and on the weeks with no Friday off – a work from home day!) but sadly, this week they are coming to an end. And that basically means that my “summer” is over. Sure, it’ll still be warm and I can bask in the sunshine on the weekends (not that I do that now), but my work days are about to get a big longer, and a lot more hectic.
Yesterday was my last “work from home” day, and in celebration of my final day of “summer” I spent most of it at the DMV, trying my best to officially become a Rhode Island resident.
Wait, did I say celebration? I meant to say, “in an effort to really compound the sadness of the situation.”
(Note: I’m quite excited to be a Rhode Island resident ~ some of my most favorite people and places are in Rhode Island, and living in a “boarder town” my entire life has made me feel more like a Rhode Islander than a … Massachusettser? I just wasn’t excited to go to the DMV.)
I arrived at the DMV yesterday morning at 8:39am – 9 minutes after they opened – and was greeted by a completely packed waiting room. Naturally. I took my numbers (A019 for my license, B320 for my registration) and joined the horde of waiting folks. And then, after about 20 minutes, I realized that since I didn’t have Rhode Island auto insurance, standing in line for my registration was useless. Ugh! So I begrudgingly gave up my place in line to drive over to my aunt’s house to get some insurance. I called my current insurance provider and they quoted me about $60 more for a Rhode Island policy than for a Massachusetts policy, so I said “thanks, but no thanks,” and called another company.
An hour or so later, I was the proud owner (holder?) of a Rhode Island auto insurance policy (and also, a Massachusetts one – since I can’t cancel that until my car is registered in Rhode Island), but there were no working printers to be found, and I needed to print out the paperwork to present to the DMV. I tried my aunt’s printer, no luck. Called my grandparents who live down the street, no answer (but it turns out their printer is in Florida anyway – an excellent place to keep such an item). Went to my other aunt’s house, her printer is also being weird (no idea why). Called my cousins, all sleeping. So – I headed to the local public library (which was located right next door to the DMV) where I printed out the forms I needed and … about 2.5 hours after leaving the DMV, walked back in.
As I prepared to pull a new number I looked up at the “Now Taking” sign and saw that BOTH of my numbers were up! I ran into the room where they keep the DMV employees (… yes, they keep them sectioned off, away from the angry public) before someone tried to crush my hopes and dreams, and hopped into the little booth thingy.
First task, getting to work on getting me a Rhode Island license. We completed lots of paperwork, I handed over my Massachusetts driver’s license and passport and then … tragedy struck. Turns out that since I ran out of checks and only have a Visa cards, I would need to go across the street to the ATM and get cash to pay for my license and registration. A bummer, but we proceeded with the process, the woman telling me that when we were done I could just run across the street and jump right back into her little booth to pay her.
But the bigger tragedy was that, after getting new insurance, rushing around trying to find a printer, walking back into the DMV at the most perfect moment, then going through all the random things that need to get done to become a resident of another state it turns out I was missing key pieces of documentation that I would need to register my car: the title, and a VIN check.
So, after a grand total of about 4 hours doing DMV related things (I wasn’t at the DMV the entire time, so I can’t really complain too much about the length of time), I went home with a temporary Rhode Island license, and a Massachusetts license plate. I also found out that if I get my documents notarized, I can have someone else complete my registration for me. And since my boyfriend has a much more flexible schedule than I do, I nominate him to do it for me … I mean, he has to eventually do his own, so why not kill two birds with one stone?