Super Quick post:
Heading down to Miami for my nephew’s wedding was the first time in MANY years I had to pack a suit in luggage on a flight.
Between DS and myself, I was a little concerned about dealing with wrinkles using the usually terrible hotel irons, so did a little research on the InterWebs and found this simple, yet terrific suit-folding video.
If you need to fold a suit, heed this man’s advice on the packing technique: it leaves the suit jacket almost entirely flat and was 99% unwrinkled when unpacking on site.
After last year’s wonderful summer Post Office Soup Nazi (POSN) Returns experience, when DD18 came back from school at winter break I set up a FOURTH appointment at our post office to apply for her passport.
As you might imagine from my posts in the TP forum (and my forum sub-nickname) for the last eleventy years: I am quite detail-oriented.
So, I read all the rules, I know all the rules and after the same POSN USPS worker came up with different reasons EVERY TIME we tried to get DD’s passport application submitted, I traced down every spurious Reddit and/or FB thread related to getting a passport with a learner’s permit, which apparently is the latest thing that set the USPS worker off.
Also: She REALLY, REALLY does not seem to like me for some reason. Hey, that’s fine, but I always go into any meeting cheerful and prepared, documents all in order and paper-clipped up with post-its defining what they are.
The last time we sat down it took about 3 seconds for her to tell me it was wrong - then she asked me a question, and when I started to answer she told me I was talking over her. It was odd. Should have seen my DD’s face!
So, now that DD is back home again I booked another appointment in the next town over, which nicely has Saturday passport application hours, so I didn’t have to take even more hours off from work.
Walked in, new USPS worker looked at my paper-clipped pile of documents, check, photo - and said, “Oh, boy, you’ve got it all set up!” Looked through them, filled out his portion, had DD present ID and sign, stamped paid, out the door in about 9 minutes.
So: 18 months and FOUR appointments later: DD Passport application submitted.
It’s the extra work. I wonder how many passports she’s approved.
This reminds me of a CVS observation. The manager, who has always been decent in the past, had a really bad attitude with a customer. I thought this lady must have done something wrong. It turns out, all she wanted was her original print back out of the photo machine. It malfunctiones. She called corporate and they advised her to tell the manager to call in. Gave a number and everything. Well that manager just didn’t want to. That lady had been there AN HOUR AND A HALF. The manager kept saying to come back later, that she was busy. (She was not). The lady needed the picture for her son’s graduation that night. She was supposed to bring 2 copies. Little man was in a suit and all. I lingered much longer than I needed to. I advised her to call the cops
As crazy as that sounds, that was indeed likely a call the cops situation.
With my postal worker, she sent through our other 3 applications at different times 2 years ago.
Then, at some point she decided that doing exactly the same thing we had done with my DS at the time, who also had just turned 18 - wasn’t good anymore. And, she insisted that because DD had a learner’s permit, BOTH her parents had to be there to sign a form saying the birth certificate and social security cards we were submitting were indeed DD’s.
But, I have since learned that she was referring to a DS-17 form to be used when the secondary identification docs didn’t meet full ID criteria - BUT, a DS-17 not only does NOT require BOTH parents of an 18yo adult, but only needs a single other human that has known the adult and can attest that she is the person on the docs.
A friend of mine went to go print her passport photos at CVS. At first, the cashier thought it was just a regular 3x5 picture, 97 cents. Then he noticed they were passport photos, and then re-rang it… $14.58.
Thankfully, renewing a passport is much easier. You can do that online yourself, including taking a photo and uploading it. No other people to deal with.
You don’t even need this for a minor pre license age.
DD could get her passport with only one legal custodian present. They had joint legal custody. The other parent has to have a notorized letter saying they agree to allow the other parent to get the passport. She turned 18 before we ever really needed it so it was a moot point. But it’s crazy how unstandardized the “rules” are from place to place. People just insert their own opinions way too often, lol
This isn’t a Deluxe It Up core topic, but since this thread has become sort of my resort catchall thing - just wanted to point out to anyone interested that this Meyer’s Clean Day Rain Water Scent hand soap is just like the POFQ scent on site (or the soap they have in the rest rooms, maybe?)
Every time I wash my hands my brain immediately jumps to sitting and eating dinner and beignets at POFQ.
Don’t see how that’s possible. Sounds like she has a bug up her rump!
I’m so glad you went somewhere else!
We went to the library here, and it was reasonably efficient. Three of us are good for quite awhile. I’ll have to renew my younger DDs sooner. Hopefully it won’t be a big deal.
Luckily the Parish Clerk of Courts is about 10 mins from home. They take appointments for Passports and it’s a 1 stop shop. Super easy to deal with. We expedited ours and had them in about 3 weeks.
I just checked the USPS tracker and see that the application was already delivered in Philadelphia at 5:02AM Monday morning! That’s pretty incredible, considering our passport appt in NY was 11:30AM Saturday.
