When we last left our heroine, it was ten am and her cat had a fat lip and she had just been pulled over and the cop took her license plate. She was left crying, missing the appointment, and unable to remove her car from its parking garage while she waited for a taxi to take her to the MVD to straighten this whole mess out.
It took an hour for the cab to get here. Because they got the apartment number wrong or I gave it to them wrong or something. ANYWAY, then the cab thought for some reason that I wanted to go to Mesa and there was another freaking debacle with me going "WAIT! THAT'S THE EXIT! TAKE THE 101 NORTH! WE CAN STILL GET THERE! NORTH! ACK!"
Anyway, the driver apologized, comped that bit of the ride, and said he was too wrapped up in my cautionary tale of woe and misery to remember where he was driving. I got to the MVD and told the information desk that I needed to show someone my insurance card and then get a new license plate and registration.
Waiting, waiting, waiting. They call my number and take my card. And this is when I learn What Went Wrong. There was a letter sent to me in August. It said "We want your proof of insurance." I do not remember seeing it, but I'm bad with mail so I'll give them the benefit of the doubt.
The cop had been adamant while we were yelling over traffic on the enterance ramp and I was sobbing and during that really fun time... It was like
"Now, do you understand what you have to do?" "Drive directly home, thanks for letting me do that, and call the MVD and ask them what they need." "NO. Don't call them. Just go down there and give them your insurance card." "Okay, I'll do that." "You understand what you need to do? I am trying to be a nice guy here." "I'm not mad at you. This is your job. I will go straight home and call the MVD." "NO! Just go there and give them your card."
So, I gave them my card. And they said "August" and I said "What?" And they said "Insurance company must now fax this form to this number saying you've always had car insurance" and I said "No problem. I'll call them right now."
Then the insurance company said "It'll be two pm before we can get to that. Lunches and all" and I said "*Sigh*"
Then the clerk outlined my options for me. Door Number One: Wait there til two pm. Door Number Two: Pay $1 and get a three day permit. Door Number Three: Pay $50 to be "reinstated" as though there had been a lapse in something WHICH THERE WAS NOT. I HAD A LAPSE IN REGISTRATION AND I PAID A LOT OF HUNDREDS OF DOLLARS OVER IT AND I DID NOT DO THAT AGAIN I LEARNED MY LESSON.
So, Door Number Two it is. Still convinced that aside from the whole turning right on red thing, I am totally innocent in all of this, I gave them $1 and they gave me a piece of paper. I walked out to the bus stop and started waiting.
SHIT! The insurance agent just called, they have my form at the MVD. Time to go back there... and then straight to work. I'll finish my tale of woe after work when hopefully it will have a happy ending.
