April 19, 2008
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a recent conversation in the police station
In Ireland to get your passport you have to have a member of An Garda Siochana witness the signature portion as well as for the signatures of the parents when getting passports for children. Well Wee Blonde Child’s passport was due to expire and there was only one year left on Healthy Weighty Wee Man’s passport so we thought get them both new ones at the same time. So off we go get the applications fill them out and send them off. Seems we did it wrong. So the portion of the application that was wrong was sent back to us and we had to go and get a Garda to fill it in.
This is how the conversation went….
Insane Mother of Three: Hello. I need this portion of my childrens passport application filled out. I didn’t do right the first time, so they sent me this in the post. (*I present to him the letter that accompanied the page of the application that was returned)
Garda: Where is the rest of the application?
IMT: Still at the Passport Office. That is all they sent. I had my chemist, Donnough Connolly, fill in that portion and they told me that was not good enough (the portion of the application where the signature of the parent was witnessed by a professional person known to you and who knows you for a period of not less than two years. Our chemist has known us for near on four FULL years and has known said children since BEFORE birth! ~ I bought my prenatal vitamins from him!). So here we are.
Garda: They sent you only this page?
IMT: Yes.
Garda: For that?
IMT: (thinking did I studder???) Yes. Is there a problem?
Garda: Yes they have just destroyed an official document. Over something so trivial.
IMT: **thinks ~ and this is abnormal for any Irish Government Dept how??
Garda: ** picks up phone and dials numbers from top of letter from passport office** “The number is engaged.” **continues to read and re-read all documents presented to him.
Garda goes away and comes back two minutes later. People are starting to queue behind us.
Garda: The number is still engaged. This is an outrage. Thye could have sent the whole package back not just ripped a page out of a new one. That is un-necessary destruction of Government Property. ***and proceeds to fill out forms***
This whole process took about 15 minutes. While not a long time but still a wasteful time of Garda resources even though I still think the police force it self is still a joke ~ but that is another posting topic.
