Have you ever run into one of those situations where somebody wants something important from you, like pay stubs, social security card, birth certificate--you know, those fun, legal documents--and you can't find them for the life of you? Every now and then we have to give somebody something like that, and I go through the ritual process of tearing my house completely apart for that one little item. Or two. Or three. I always seem to have two pay stubs from eight months ago on the refridgerator door. Completely unhelpful. Well, recently, due to *ahem* certain events that have transpired, I had to find all my important records, and, you guessed it, had a bit of a meltdown because I couldn't find the stuff.
My husband and I keep two filing drawers with all kinds of things we feel might be important one of these days, but actually aren't important AT ALL, it turns out. Earlier this week, I was just sure my birth certificate would be in one of these drawers. Instead I found power bill stubs from five years ago and a birthday card my husband got from a friend when he was 18. I'm not kidding. Oh sure, there's every year's tax documents since 1996 in there. But...pshaw. I didn't need those.
I should also mention that my social security card bearing my married name has been lost for about three years now.
So no birth certificate. And no valid social security card. It's basically like I don't exist. Which presents me with a bit of a catch 22 situation, here. I can't exactly fill out a form for a duplicate certificate, because I need some kind of proof that I'm who I say I am--like a social security card. And I can't really send off for a replacement social security card, because...you get the picture. I found myself up in the loft tearing through boxes and boxes of things AND...
LONG STORY SHORT... Sometimes, when you're having a legal identity crisis and tearing your house to bits, you find other long lost treasures. Here's what I found, today:
These are my husband's and my poetry binders from about five years ago. We were taking a poetry course at the community college we transferred from. I'd forgotten about most of those poems and re-reading through them brought back so many memories. It also brought a little bit of clarity back. It's so interesting as a writer, to revisit your early work and see how you've grown and changed. These binders brought a smile to my face and I was able to slow down and breathe a little bit.
And then I found my social security card in a box marked "keepsakes." Go figure.
My husband and I keep two filing drawers with all kinds of things we feel might be important one of these days, but actually aren't important AT ALL, it turns out. Earlier this week, I was just sure my birth certificate would be in one of these drawers. Instead I found power bill stubs from five years ago and a birthday card my husband got from a friend when he was 18. I'm not kidding. Oh sure, there's every year's tax documents since 1996 in there. But...pshaw. I didn't need those.
I should also mention that my social security card bearing my married name has been lost for about three years now.
So no birth certificate. And no valid social security card. It's basically like I don't exist. Which presents me with a bit of a catch 22 situation, here. I can't exactly fill out a form for a duplicate certificate, because I need some kind of proof that I'm who I say I am--like a social security card. And I can't really send off for a replacement social security card, because...you get the picture. I found myself up in the loft tearing through boxes and boxes of things AND...
sometimes when you're having a legal identity crisis and tearing your house to bits, you find...POEMS!
LONG STORY SHORT... Sometimes, when you're having a legal identity crisis and tearing your house to bits, you find other long lost treasures. Here's what I found, today:
These are my husband's and my poetry binders from about five years ago. We were taking a poetry course at the community college we transferred from. I'd forgotten about most of those poems and re-reading through them brought back so many memories. It also brought a little bit of clarity back. It's so interesting as a writer, to revisit your early work and see how you've grown and changed. These binders brought a smile to my face and I was able to slow down and breathe a little bit.
And then I found my social security card in a box marked "keepsakes." Go figure.
awww, what a lovely story! I feel sort of embarrassed reading my own writing, but good at the same time because I have improved. Those pages are invaluable, don't loose them! I also have a request for you: Do you still write daily journals? If so can you talk about how you keep up and what to talk about each day? It would be really helpful because I've tried a zillion times to journal, but always fail after the first 20 pages. Another thing is...show us some more of your poetry and prose! I would love to read them.
ReplyDeleteAbbi
Hi Abbi! I do keep a journal, but not daily. I write every few days, sometimes once a week, sometimes once a month. I don't force it. I just go to my journal when I feel the need to journal. I feel like that makes the record more meaningful and more accurately representative of me. I usually just write about stuff that is weighing on my mind at the time and about how various events and circumstances are affecting me in the moment.
ReplyDeleteI'd be happy to show you some of my writing. Let's get together soon!
I'm glad you found your SS card! :) And poetry, how fun! :)
ReplyDeleteya, let's! Have you written anything new lately? I've been starting a few new stories and not finishing any :( I don't like complaining about writer's block, cause it's "lazy". But I really don't know what to write. Ahhhhhh.
ReplyDeleteAlso, on Tuesday @4pm, I and 3 other classmates are reading "our work in progress" in William Decker writing studio. Come by if you have time! I know it's on Valentine day so if you can't, I understand. The funny thing is none of us will be able to read our whole story since time is limited,, so it will be interesting.
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ReplyDeleteGood thing you found what you were looking for in the end! It’s not easy figuring out where to keep the most important documents, like birth certificates and IDs. This is why off-site records management is a good option to consider. You would at least have peace of mind that your most important documents are all in one safe place, and that you’d have easy access to it, even outside of the house. Choosing off-site management can also save you a lot of physical space; storing your records elsewhere means you won’t have to have filing boxes or cabinets that clutter up the house, which would reduce stress and confusion as to where you put which specific document.
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