Thursday, August 23, 2007

Did You Just Call Me a Dipshit?

Lula needs her birth certificate for her first day of preschool, and I’m a bad mother who forgot about it until now. Lumpyhead had a copy of his birth certificate by the time he was two months old. Poor, neglected second child.

What do you mean you don't have a copy of my birth certificate? I better not miss school because you're a dipshit.

I have resubmitted the paperwork. Again.

I’m pretty sure the people at the Virginia Department of Vital Records are now just fucking with me.

The first time my application was returned due to an unacceptable copy of my identification. Which: okay, right, I'll grant that the picture on my photocopied drivers license is too dark. But since I'm mailing it in and not actually presenting myself for confirmation, do you really need to know what I look like? To what will you be comparing the now-crystal-clear version of my image, exactly?

I attached an enlarged, beautifully rendered copy of my drivers license to the application and sent it back.

Yesterday I received another "try again, idiot" note from our fair Commonwealth. This time, the box indicating "no signature" was checked. I looked carefully, and I had indeed signed the form, next to the word SIGNATURE that the helpful folks at the Department of Vital Records highlighted and circled in red. Highlighted and circled, right next to my signature.

Um. . .

A hand-written addendum to the no signature box said simply “Need live signature.” I have no idea what that means. I’m pretty sure signatures are not living things. I don’t know how to resuscitate it or keep it twitching on the page, and I cannot beam it via satellite to Richmond, for that matter, if that’s the definition of “live” they’re talking about.

On the first try I had filled out the form, stuck it on the copier with my ID, pressed “go,” and mailed it in. (One page! Oh the efficiency!) Maybe because the signature was photocopied it was not acceptable (something they could have told me the first time, perhaps? The first time, when I sent in exactly the same application?) so I signed the form again - in blue ink so they could tell it wasn’t a copy - right next to the first signature.

I half expect my application will be returned to me in a few days, unfulfilled for some lame-ass reason like "unable to complete your request because it is partly cloudy on a Tuesday."

Let's just forge one. Com'on, it's not like it will be the only fake ID I'll ever have.

10 comments:

Miguelita said...

I would love to type some pithy comment, but those cheeks just kill me. Too cute.

Em said...

Your pre-school won't just accept a photocopy of the birth certificate? What a pain in the ass!

Melissa said...

I never manage to get a birth certificate for months and months.
I do have to go in person, so there's that excuse, but still.

I'm guessing your next one comes back asking for cute photos of the baby, just for entertainment purposes. It gets boring in some of those government offices.

Anonymous said...

She can borrow Claudia's. Just tell them she is really short for her age.

Daddy L said...

Through the continued submissions of forms (and money) I ended up with four birth certificates for The Boy. I asked for a refund, you can guess how that went.

Miguelita said...

I returned to wish you a Happy Birthday. Sarah said we had to or.... something about shots and rants.

Gidge Uriza said...

I am supposed to tell you happy birthday but I'm not sure if I am supposed to be drunk when I say it or if I'm supposed to assume YOU are drunk or if Sarah was still drunk when she wrote that post.

Whatever.
Happy Birthday.
Jerkwad (was I supposed to cal you that? Sarah confuses me)

Anonymous said...

This is a request for drunken birthday photos. Oh, and a comment to say Happy Birthday.

mo-wo said...

hahahaha

man she is cute.

ps.. It took me 8 months to register the nuthatch's BIRTH let alone get a certificate!

Anonymous said...

They either want you to sign in front of them or have your signature notarized, so they know it's really you.

Because allll kinds of pranksters are trying to pimp their way into preschools and kindergartens across the nation (???)