License to the Past

Hi again...

One day last week I saw a student driver car going by, and it brought back some memories.

Back when i learned how to drive, I already had a lot of seat time behind the wheel. My dad always had a go-cart or an old tractor or something to drive around the yard in. I also spent many summers helping my friend on his farm. So i was used to driving old trucks around.

But what I really began thinking about was the old Registry of Motor Vehicles building on Montvale Ave. And I remembered the office trailer across the street that was used for the road tests. And I remembered the old Registry Police and how grumpy they were. And also the people who worked at the windows, and how they could be just as grumpy. It seemed like anytime I showed up at the round building, it was to wait in a line that snaked it's way around the inside of the building and out to the parking lot. Finally I would get to the window, only to be told in a stern voice that I was in the WRONG line! Back then, each window specialized in one thing. There was a tax window, a license plate window, etc.etc. Nowadays every window handles it all. And it's done most of the time with a smile and the occasional "have a nice day."

I remember the RMV police as being all spit polished and sharp creases. If you ever got pulled over by them, you could pretty much bet you were going to lose your license, or you were walking home because your car had issues. You could get pulled over for a small infraction such as having a scented pine tree hanging from your mirror (which is still illegal) and if you had a bald tire, which was common on my cars, they would not hesitate to jack up your car to check the front suspension ready to impound it if it was unsafe, which also was common on my cars.

I remembered the day I got my motorcycle license. It started out as a very bad day at the RMV, but it ended well. It was April 10th, 1980 or 1981, I can't remember the year for some reason, and I woke up that morning all set to go except for one thing: It was SNOWING! Not hard, but enough to coat the side streets. I called the RMV and was told "If you can get here, you will get a road test." I asked my dad to follow me, and off we went to the office trailer. When I got there, I walked into the trailer soaking wet. The RMV officer looked at me incredulously, and he began yelling at me for having no common sense. "Who rides a motorcycle in a snowstorm?" he yelled at me. I tried to explain that I called, but he was having none of it. Finally in a last act of desperation I told him my father was outside and that he followed me in his car. He glared at me for what seemed like an eternity. He then walked over to the trailer door and looked outside. Then he motioned me to follow him to the counter, I stood there while he was writing and writing and I thought for sure I was in a big jam. Then, still glaring, he handed me my pink slip, which was the temporary license at that time. He must have noticed the shocked look on my face, because he leaned over the counter and said "Anyone who could drive a motorcycle here in a snowstorm deserves a license." I think I saw the faint crack of a smile, but don't hold me to that. So in the end, I didn't have to do the road test! I walked out with a license just for showing up, and I was beside myself, I was so happy!

Even to this day, with the personnel at the RMV being much more pleasant, I still do not leave with a smile. It's more of a feeling of relief! I still walk in there, take my number and wait until I am called. I approach the counter almost timidly, half expecting to have the wrong paperwork or missing documents.

All of this came flooding back to me because I saw a Drivers' Ed car out on the road. It's amazing to me that sometimes something so small can trigger such long ago memories.