Tags

June 10, 2020

We finally got the paperwork for Melissa’s car over the weekend and time was running short to get it registered.  No problem. I could do it Monday.  First, I went to the online registration site.  I worked through the forms until I was asked for the temporary tag number.  I do not know about you, but I do not even know my permanent tag numbers, let alone the temporary one.  I waited until Melissa got home with the car, checked the tag, and made a copy of the insurance and our licenses.  I got back online and hit another snag.  It seems I needed to mail my information and they would get back to me.  Since I only had a week to register, I decided it was better to go to the office.

Today I gathered all my information and headed to the Assessor.  Registering last year, I learned I needed proof I had paid my taxes before the Revenue Office would deal with me.  As I came through the Courthouse door an officer stopped me and asked where I was going.  He asked me to step back outside and told me the building was closed.  I got a paper with the Assessor’s contact and was told I had to go online or call.  I checked online and ran into similar snags, and then called.  The woman who answered was polite and quickly assessed my vehicle.  She said she would fax it to the Tag Office, and I could complete my registration today.

I had gone home to contact the Assessor online so now I had to get back out.  This seems like a bigger hassle now since I have been confined to the house for the last eight weeks.  I collected all my insurance cards and car registrations and went to the office.  I had been warned by the officer at the courthouse that they were only allowing four people at a time in the building.  When I arrived, there were ten people standing in line outside, plus the four inside.  I waited for a while and then decided to go home.  I chanced it again this afternoon and the line was clear.  Now I am legal.

THOUGHTS:  It seems everything is a little different now than it used to be.  I wondered why since the courthouse is closed, they kept the door open?  Two women who worked in the building walked past the masked officer and myself as I stood in the door.  Neither had a mask.  The Tag Office only allowed four people at a time in the building and had placed a plastic sheet across the bay of windows to protect the workers.  Neither of the three women working behind this sheet were masked and their conversation made it clear they were not worried.  When we get so many mixed messages it is hard to know what is best to do.  I will continue to be one of the fewer people still wearing their mask.  It is not about me.  It is to protect you.  If you venture out, stay safe.