As the time to continue driving legally was coming to a close these last weeks of February, I finally made the early morning commitment to standing in a long line at the DMV. I was a little worried that I had gotten there too late (7:20) but I was still the 10th person in line when it opened at 8.

I was also concerned that I needed to do something else before I would be able to switch my stuff over. I took my Iowa title, proof of insurance and LA license in hopes that would be what I needed. See, the website is pretty much unusable and didn't help at all, so really, it was a total shot in the dark.

But, once I got inside they assigned me a number and within 10 minutes I was already being helped and what I had was all I needed. I was done by 8:25, which was nothing short of amazing. My next challenge was to get brake tags. In some states there is emissions testing, but here they make you go and get tags to prove that all your lights, wipers and horn work.

The first stop was a bust because for some reason they were closed for the day. The second was a bit of a drive and after waiting anxiously in line it was my turn. Things were going well until she went around to the back of the car and don't you know I had a burned out tail light! So now I have a "rejected" sticker on my windshield.

Fortunately, I have a spare bulb and will only have to pay once. The "rejected" sticker keeps me from getting a ticket and gives me 30 days to fix the problem and return to have it reinspected, with no additional charge. I felt pretty dumb that my stuff wasn't all in working order, but at least I now have almost everything I need to be a fully legal Louisiana driver.

Except, perhaps, any memory of the good driving skills I was taught in driver's ed....