time keeps on slipping at the dmv

i had to renew my driver's license this past weekend. once every four years the nj dmv demands that we show up, wait in lines, go through what's generally considered by most as an aggravating experience, and pay $24 at the end for the privilege to claim that you have a brand new, up to date, not expired so you can still get in the club, driver's license.

it feels like a scam. like if this system of identification wasn't already in existence, and i just thought of it now, you'd probably call bullshit on me and refuse to go along with the program. but yet, somehow here we are... sheepishly toeing the ol' dmv line.

i get it... i'm not calling for revolution here... this is what we're stuck with. dmv's are packed constantly with lines of people with $24 in their hand. the whole thing's clever as fuck and i almost wanna admire it if the concept didn't nauseate me.

but while sitting in the dmv, i can't help think about time passing. not just the time i'm wasting away in the dmv itself. i'm thinking about life in four year increments. i'm 32 now. i'm thinking about my life the last time i did the whole dmv song and dance. what have i done? what have i been up to? what have i accomplished? what have i failed at?

shit gets pretty heavy. i start thinking about how time flies. these four years from 28-32 didn't last as long as my four years in high school. i can't prove that to you. scientifically, i'm dead wrong on this... but in my mind, high school seemed like a good chunk of my life. 28-32, not so much.

since the last time i've been here people have graduated high schools and colleges and begun their lives. a lot of people got married and started families. a lot of people hit rock bottom and got scary. some people even died. that's what four years is all about, i can't promise you much about the next four years, but people will die. people will cry. people will laugh and smile as well. there'll be tragedies and accomplishments. people will do important shit. and some people won't do anything important at all.

the whole thing sorta blows my mind. that's why i'm glad the cycling of these thoughts in my mind immediately come to a halt when i hear my name called out. license is done. i can go home.

wonder what shit's gonna be like when i'm 36.