The four-year ritual is upon me, renewal of my Minnesota state driver’s license. I turn a whopping 56 in February (but don’t feel, or act, a day over… well– it’s all relative, I suppose :-)).
As I suited up (long underwear, scarves, double mittens) and went to jam my foot in my right insulated boot, I felt something I had not noticed yesterday. A round, red, sparkly cat toy! Bagheera’s favorite! Long-lost, apparently since the boots were worn last winter. Looking for him, I could see he was already dead to the world, buried under a quilt. Play-time would have to wait.
The birth certificate
This year I go to the DMV armed with my birth certificate. At some point I became “Chris Louise…” on my license. The dreaded nickname– ‘Chris’; the name that causes airport security to look me over thrice because it does not match the name on the ticket; the name to which Chris Alfieri ( a BOY) and I both responded when the teacher called upon us (to our mutual horror) in the 3rd grade.
Happy endings
The woman at the DMV was lovely, my name is now amended and Bagheera is, once again, in possession of the fave toy. My boot fits better, too.
West Seventh Freelance 
Yeah, you seem like a very young soul.
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The craziest thing just happened…I edited a typo and all you kind people who ‘liked’ this post ‘disappeared’…except your comment, nephew! 🙂
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The license renewal at age 56 must be a bureaucratic ritual. I went through that process about 15 months ago.
Like the airport security screener, when I’m occasionally carded when I order an adult beverage, the server always casts a suspicious look when looking over the driver’s license. It makes for an amusing moment for my late teen daughters.
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How lovely to be carded when ordering an adult beverage!! Your daughter’s should think themselves lucky to have a youthful, hip dad 😉
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Better to find a cat toy in your boot than a fearful spider 🙂
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