With my new passport in hand, it was time to race to the Chinese Consulate Passport Visa Office.  This is where my luck ran out.  Stupidly I followed the map from yahoo maps even though the place was just off Wilshire, but near the Hollywood area.  I directed Michael to the 405 (yes, I had him drive, again) then to the 10 - "Okay, take the 10 and this time you can go toward LA" - The traffic was so horrible, what should have taken 15 minutes took 40.  The office closes at 3, I ran into the building at 3:03 ... just hoping!  Up the elevator, into locked doors.  I asked the janitor if they had just locked them.  She smiled a little smile and said in broken English "Go stand by that door, people come out"  I did hear people inside, and sure enough the door opened and a slew of people came out with numbers in hand.  At the same time a father and daughter had stepped off the elevator and were angry that the place was closed, they had been told to come pick their passport up after 2:30, not that they closed at 3.  One of the ticket holders said they had locked the doors and given out tickets right at 3, there was no way they'd help us.

The daughter pulled her dad through the exit door "Oh yes they will!" ... I followed, got into line behind one other girl, and just pretended like I'd been in there all along.  I get up to the window ...

"Do you have num'ba?"

"No, I don't"

"You were late?!"

"Yes, but only a couple minutes!"

"We close at tree."

"I understand, PLEASE I'm flying out next week, I drove all the way from Bakersfield"

"Give me"

"Okay, I'm just writing my passport number in, thank you so much!"

"You no passport?!"

"Yes, yes I have one, right here, I just got it ... thank you so much, I really appreciate this"

I hand her the application through the hole in the glass.

"Give me photos, give me passport, when you want to pick up?!"

"Tomorrow"

"Okay, you pay when you pick up"

She threw my application onto a stack and yelled "Next!"

I left, relieved I had turned it in ... only to have my relief turn into sickness as I realized I may not have signed the damn thing.  How could I be so STUPID?  Oh, because it was 3, I hadn't ate since 9, and my hypoglycemia was setting in.  Oh and the Chinese lady was scary.

Pumpkin had snuck in along with a woman who had been banging on the door, we walked to where he had parked as the sickness and thought dawned on me.  Too late to go back, I'd already pissed her off by sneaking in once.  It was just going to have to be done another day.  Pumpkin or someone is going to have to hand carry my application to them on Monday.  He asked me how I could do something stupid like that.  I told him to shut up, I already felt bad enough.  I was angry at the traffic, I was angry at the sun, I was angry at myself.  Normally I am so "Together" ... I needed food and I needed it now, I was becoming irrational Queen Bitch. 

We are in the ghetto, a bit lost, I was spaced out, stressed out, in a hypoglycemic daze.  Pumpkin spots a KFC and says "KFC, we'll get you some mashed potatoes, okay?" (I love potatoes).  "Okay", I sigh,  I felt defeated.

Inside we order, the man at the register was super nice.  We get our food and sit.  There is a mother with all her bambino's also dining ... okay, one rather chunky big boy was wandering around the restaurant with his scooter making a clucking popping noise with his mouth.  I couldn't take it anymore, sensory overload.  I snap I just had to get out of there, I want to go, I'm not hungry anymore - I'd barely touched my chicken, had had a few potato wedges and half the mashed potatoes.

He grabs our food to take to the car so we can eat where it is quiet.  I'm demanding him to just get me out of the ghetto, I can't take it anymore, just get me home!  I got him to the freeway, told him the way home.  I directed him to the 170 and told him to take until it merged into the 5 and if he couldn't find his way home from there he was helpless.  Then I went to sleep.

I woke up as he pulled off for gas in Gorman and said "Oh, we need gas?  Okay.  I want M&M's"  So he gassed up, I got my chocolate, began to feel human again, and we made it home.  Somewhere along the way I told him I appreciated all he had done today, for driving, for the panties, for putting up with my grouchiness - that I was just mad at myself.

The first thing I did was run a LUSH bath, he went to the store for groceries for the dinner I was going to make, and cleared off the dining room table.  I finally got out of the tub smelling like chamomile, citrus, and roses, and was a much happier Kindra.

I'll get that VISA yet.