The Antithesis of Frugal Friday (or How to Support Your Local Government)

Because sometimes we all need a good cry

Written from my husband's perspective:

1) Get caught in a speed trap in po dunk Oregon.

2) Miss your court date because you don't want to drive 3 hours to complain about speed trap. They've gottcha.

3) Pay ticket late. Grumble about government agencies and speed traps and corruption. Wipe your hands of the whole ordeal.

4) Wait two years.

5) Make an illegal turn.

6) Get pulled over.

7) Find out you forgot to pay an additional $75.00 fee for license re-instatement (i.e. you've been driving on a suspended license for two years).

8) Watch second police car pull up.

9) Be surrounded by police.

10) Watch police impound your car.

11) Walk the rest of the way to work to call wife. Keep in mind your wife worked all night. She's sick. She had a long long night in which she had to call the police on a loony bin client.

12) Have wife bring passport and social security card to DMV with pajama clad four-year-old in tow.

13) Pay $75.00 re-instatement fee - cash only. DMV has an atm. Pay off label atm fee.

14) Pay $25.00 for new license because police took old one.

15) Go to police station. Pay $100.00 for impound release forms - cash only.

16) Go to impound lot. Attempt to retrieve car. Attempt to write check. Cash only.

17) Drive to atm. Remove additonal $165.00

18) Drive back to impound lot. Retrieve car.

19) Put court date on calendar. Hope the $504.00 of tickets will be reduced.

20) Go to work in attempt to replenish hemorrhaging bank account.

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The moral of this story? Don't be fooled. We all pay taxes in one form or another. Sometimes they're hidden.  Sometimes they're overt.  

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I'm trying to put a positive spin on this one but am coming up blank. All I can come up with is ... at least my local government is well funded. Very well funded.

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I hope others out in bloggerville are having a wonderful and frugal Friday!

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Addendums to the day:

1) When you open the refrigerator and the bottom door shelf falls off spewing it's contents all over the kitchen by all means replace the shelf and put all the contents back in place.  Because the shelf definitely won't fall off again the next time you open the refrigerator, right?

2) Know that today is not your day.  Welcome the Charlie Brown cloud floating over your head. Accept with love the bathroom towel hook that decides to spontaneously disassociate from the wall.   Run your finger over the big gaping hole.  Try to look a the bright side - now you get to learn to plaster and dry wall. 

3) Do not turn on the television.  Do not watch the stock market eat away your retirement.  JUST DON'T DO IT! 

4) Know that when you get up, tired as you are, to fashion a lunch for your child that said child will be sound asleep when you return with her meal.  

5) Just close your eyes and take a nap.  Good night bloggerville, good night.