Driver's Licensing

Theo and I had been needing to get some errands done, so we thought we’d rent a car for a few days and get them all done… which we do every now and then. It sure beats taking the bus everywhere, which can be time consuming and very inconvenient sometimes. Owning a car is so expensive here, I’m sure we’re saving money by doing it this way.

So the main thing I wanted to do was get a drivers license, even though I never drive. Many, probably all, of the jobs I’ve been applying for require a driver’s license, so I want to be a step ahead. And, I’ll likely to be driving to this future job as well.

I looked up the requirements for a Queensland license online. If you live in one of the specified countries, you are not required to take a written or driving test. Woohoo! I scored big on that one, since the only time I’ve tried driving on the wrong… I mean, left side of the road was in New Zealand 4 years ago. I did just fine on the beautiful, curvy country roads, but as soon as I got to a town, or a roundabout (god forbid!) I would panic. I seized up when it was time to make a turn. My brain just wouldn’t allow me to break the driving rules ingrained in my mind. They are hard to change for a reason. Normally, following these rules keeps me alive. And I’ve been in many car accidents, most of which didn’t even require breaking any of the standard rules to nearly kill me. So in NZ, I would just pull over to the side and let Theo drive in the cities. So that’s the extent of my left-side-of-the-road driving skills, yet… I was issued an Australian driver’s license. So I’m giving all you Queensland drivers fair warning!

It was so easy, too. I just needed my old Kansas license, passport, proof of residence and two other forms of ID, which I used a debit card and credit card to satisfy. I filled out a form… paid a fee… and took a picture. I was done is less than a half hour! I can drive now… or so my license says.

Here it is – with the details blurred so you don’t steal my identity:



Disappointing, I know. It looks like a high school kid made it. Actually, I think I’ve seen fake IDs by high school students that looked more professional than this! My face is off center. The sepia tone of the photo looks like it was taken in the ‘70s. And it’s quite flimsy.

Nerd note:
To be nit-picky about language again, I’m confused about the spelling of the word license. It took me forever to remember how to spell it in the US, but after I realized the “C comes before S in the alphabet trick” it stuck. Here, it’s spelled ‘licence’ with two C’s, which you think would make it easier to remember, but then other forms of the word replaces the 2nd C with an S, such as ‘licensing,’ or ‘licensee’ (as on the ‘licence’ itself). Not being consistent might be more confusing. Weird.