Passports please!

Due to certain people winging I haven't updated my blog in a while (you know who you are - Ed) here goes with an update ...

We are off to Romania at the end of May for a friends wedding and for a while I have been meaning to get my passport renewed for a while as it "died" last August. After completing the form in my bestest handwriting I took it to my work and getting my manager to authorise the form and photographs seeing as she is an "upstanding citizen" (Yea right! -Ed). After completing the form for me, she realised that she needed to give her passport number, which she didn't have on her, and which she forgot 5 days running ... grrr!

Anyway, finally she got me the number and I decided to get it sent off as soon as possible. I went to Post Office 1. After hanging about in there for 20 minutes while one girl working there was yawning her head off and the other asian girl, looking mean! Finally it was my turn "Cashier number 2 please". I got the grumpy one! Looking back quickly, I realised that the queue had got even longer, it was basically out the door! I got to the counter and asked whether or not they did the "check and send" service. "Yes we do", said the grumpy mare! Passing her the form, my old passport and photographs she quickly went for my photos. "Your smiling, there is supposed to be no facial expression"! Grabbing my stuff quickly, I left ... am I smiling?! Am I hell!

(Ain't he cute?! -Ed's wife)

Having got back to work, I was pretty annoyed ... I wasted half hour of my lunch break to be told I was smiling. Ok, maybe I have a slight grin on my face, but what annoyed me was this ...

and get this guy ...

I ask you ... what are these people doing? Particuarly the man ... SMILING! Grrr ... and this comes direct from the passport office website! It made me so mad, then I realised, the woman couldn't be bothered to check my passport, as the queue was out the door and sleepy head next to her was virtually unconscience!

So, after work I went to Post Office 2 ... no one behind me, as they have a sepereate area for passports, "Cashier number 5 please" ... went up, and was a little nervous ... just in case I got a repeat performance from lunchtime I brought the official leaflet from the passport agency with me ... she checked all my details for around 5-10 minutes then wanted payment and nothing was wrong!

Conclusion: Don't go to Post Office 1 in your lunch hour. If you must, don't see grumpy!

To top my day off, I just missed the train at the station and then had to wait over half hour for my bus home from the station in the rain! ... what a great day!