Bad Hair Day

It rained here the other day, thanks to me. No, I cannot call forth rain from the heavens and I did not wash my car - which seems to produce a storm every time. No, I did something every woman knows will absolutely guarantee poor weather: I fixed my hair! You see, I renewed my driver’s license the other day. (Yes, that means it’s almost my birthday!) With that in mind, I thought it would be wise to have a decent hair-do, after all, who wants to me immortalized for the next several years with a bad hair day! Mother-Nature did not agree.


So, after I primped, I dutifully completed the document mailed to me with the required personal information, I located two forms of acceptable proof of residency, and I headed to the DMV.

The line at the DMV was not terribly long -- after I located the correct line to stand in -- the signage is not the best so I waited in the wrong line for about 10 minutes before being directed to the correct area! Once in the proper line, however, I was helped rather promptly by a very polite man. He verified my information and administered the eye examination. I had a fleeting moment of panic when he tested my peripheral vision and asked me to indicate which side of the screen was flashing the light: do you ever find yourself saying, “turn right” only to find that you are pointing left? Hmmmm. Apparently my dyslexia took the day off because he indicated I had passed the test. Whew!

Next I was asked to sit for the photograph, my least favorite part, especially since I was sporting semi-rained-out locks. But I humored the nice man and sat staring at the blue dot, waiting for the flash. Then came the unpleasant part – he asked me to move my bangs away from my forehead! I discovered that the state of Nebraska has joined 17 other states that now utilize a central processing method to issue driver’s licenses and state ID cards. Apparently this new system includes a face recognition scan to protect against identity theft. The DMV man explained that the recognition software must have a good portion of a person’s forehead visible in order to work. After I recovered from my shock (I don’t generally show my forehead) I parted my bangs until he was satisfied, after all, I really couldn’t add to the “bad-hair-day” effect any more than it already was!

As a result of my harrowing experience, I am now in possession of a temporary paper driver’s license. I was assured that my official license would be mailed to me shortly, after all identity checks were performed, in a secure and unidentified envelope. Despite my sarcasm, I am very thankful for the new protective procedures. In a 2006 study, the Federal Trade Commission estimated that identity theft cost consumers an estimated $5 billion and businesses $48 billion between 2003 and 2005. The report suggested that nearly 10 million Americans were victims of some form of identity theft during 2005. We’ve all seen the humorous commercials that show a female identity theft victim making purchases with a dubbed-over male voice. But it is really no laughing matter when you consider this crime touches such a staggering number of people!

The Writer Agency, LLC. and our insurance companies can help you protect yourself from becoming a victim of identity theft and we can help restore your life in the unfortunate event you suffer this crime. Click this link http://www.fami-idtheft.com/protection/protection.htm to read more about how to protect yourself or contact our agency to discuss this issue further at 308-436-4202 or http://www.insurance-by-katie.com/ . (And remember this motto – show your forehead --- protect your identity!)