Today I waited for an hour to get a replacement social security card. My original was lost when my wallet was stolen in 1998. The line was so long and slow. It wouldn’t move for fifteen minutes at a time. I was worried that I’d get a parking ticket as I only put in enough change for an hour, but I got back with exactly zero minutes left. What luck. The worst part is that at the beginning of the line you can’t really see how far the line is going or where it’s going to, so you feel a little like a cow being led into a slaughter house.
Some people would stand in line for an hour and when they finally got to one of two windows they would be informed that they were lacking some vital document which prevented them from obtaining a social security number for their children to which they greeted with understandable frustration and disbelief. I watched with ambivalence and suprisingly little sympathy as it meant that I would be able to move forward a small degree more quickly. While waiting in long lines you find yourself becoming more misanthropic and apathetic to the plight of those in line with you. You smell the sweat, breath, shampoo, and thick cologne of the other people in line and the heat of their bodies rises up like a steam that surrounds you, and you begin to wish you were somewhere else and you begin to notice how really ugly and oppressive everyone and everything is until your festering impatience is mingled with disgust and physical discomfort.
But then it was my turn and within literally one minute I was out of that Kafkaesque, bureaucratic, nightmare world. Sweet relief! I actually ran back to my car in the 100+ degree weather.
Here’s a completely unrelated photo of my cat kicking back. She just decided to relocate to my lap where she’s asleep purring:
That’s one CUTE cat!
She made up for my kindness by peeing on me. She’s so fickle.
What a tummy!
Meow meow sarah meow love meow meow.
Omg the cat is dead :(