Bureaucracy

According to the online tracker, the girls' renewal passports and their old ones with their attached Australian visas would be returned by April 8. Yesterday, April 10, I received a letter explaining that the agency needed more information for two of the three applications. Worried about the time it will take to procure additional copies of certain documents (and by the way, documents that were necessary to obtain the original passports, and the same documents that were presented and checked off by the postal clerk who processed their renewals this time) I requested the whole package be returned in order to physically drive the paperwork to Miami and have it all processed in one day. I'm running out of time here, folks. It was explained that I would need to submit this request in writing. And I still don't have the letter for the third application yet, which must be returned with all this additional info as well. So efficient, aren't they?

Also in yesterday's mail, an envelope from the IRS. Not the thin, gold, check-enclosed type, but a fatter, white one. One which contained a request for, yes, more information. Here's the thing: This year I filed separately, I don't itemize, my return is about as simple as it gets. They're already getting more than they deserve, but I willingly pay for the convenience of getting them off my back as quickly as possible. I spent about 30 minutes on the phone this morning getting that straightened out. While I waited on hold for the next available automaton to assist me, I was treated to a suite from The Nutcracker.