Passport

Just like I almost always have a pen and notebook with me, I also usually have my passport. It's a quirk that makes no sense to anyone but me.

Lots of people keep their passports in a bank deposit box or a home safe. That makes sense from a security standpoint but it doesn't work for me. I prefer it in my possession -- you never know when you might want to leave the country on a whim!

An acquaintance of mine recently went to the bank to pick up her passport, along with her husband's and their four children's. They were all in there with one exception -- hers. So she put her entire family on a plane to Cancun and then waited until Monday to fly to Chicago and stand in line at the passport office. I would laugh at this story except we've been through it. Several years ago, the husband had to go to England or Ireland on very short notice. His passport was due to expire so he made the divergent trip to Chicago as well.

You used to be able to go to Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean with only a birth certificate; no passport required. I'm not sure about Canada but you now need a passport for Mexico and the Caribbean. With all the hoopla about homeland security and terrorism, I think we'll soon see a law that requires all citizens to have a passport just like we're required to have a social security number.

One of my girlfriends has been struggling with getting her married name (she divorced about 10 years ago) off of legal documents so she can obtain a passport in the correct name. Government paperwork is a hassle but she'll get it done.

The oldies don't have passports. Neither do my parents. It makes me nervous. What if I traveled somewhere and disaster struck? What if I really needed them? (My parents -- not the oldies.) They couldn't get there unless they knew to divert to Chicago and deal with the one day passport office.

It must be generational. Both the daughter and the baby have passports.

The daughter lives in Texas and the proximity to Mexico is minuscule. I wouldn't be surprised if Texas passed the first law. You've got to have a passport to enter Texas.