Public Dis-Services

New Jersey has one-up on Texas any day of the week when it comes to their government offices and public services. Yesterday, Mike and I spent most of the day waiting in lines and driving back in forth from one government office to another trying our hardest to get our legal information changed to reflect our move. The offices are only open from 8:00am-5:00pm M-F so Mike has to take time off work to do this. At the social security office we waited in line (with a baby) for 2 hours before we got to the window. Then the lady at the window told us we needed our driver's licenses changed first then to come back. Now, I need to point out, that nowhere on any forms or websites does it give you this information. You have to wait in line to hear that you are in the wrong place. So we drive to another town in Texas (it isn't a small state) to find the equivalent of a DMV. They call them Public Safety Departments. Well, the first one we try hasn't even been built yet. (Makes you wonder why they are listing an address for it, doesn't it?) But we only find this out after getting on an off the freeway about 5 times and not finding it. We are literally in the middle of nowhere with nothing but fields and construction sites around. So we drive even further to get to another PSD. Our journey should stop here, but it doesn't. A paper sign on the door informs us the PSD is only accepting cash and checks today :( So we drive home and pick up everything we think we will need and then drive back. We are the last ones in line and I can get my Driver's License but Mike can't. He has to come back tomorrow. The next day, Mike drives back before work and waits in line 1 1/2 hours before they tell him he needs to register his vehicle at another office before he can get his driver's license. Once again, this information is not available on a website or any paperwork. You have to wait in line to hear that they can't help you. Furthermore, they could have mentioned it yesterday when we were already there and asking questions about it! This is so frustrating it is unbelievable.