I have an ID...a

Pulled out my student ID card the other day - what, this old thing? Helloooo bangs!
and had a bit of a moment when my eyes settled on three sections of the card:

WHAT!

That's like, tomorrow. I almost mourned the expiration of the student status I held for as long as I can remember. It offered discounts, admission, and a free pass to have the world expect very little from me.

Then I remembered the rest of the cards in my wallet and had a little celebration. Let's take a look at my current cards on hand...

Complete with sideswept hair and drop earrings. I'll say yes bulk food, free samples and the BEST DEAL ON GAS YOU'LL GET ANYWHERE.

Perhaps I'm scamming off my mother's membership, but even if she quit, I'd get my own card. Gas is seriously a good 15 cents cheaper here than anywhere else. If you drive much, the membership pays for itself through gas savings alone. Plus, cheap razors and the exclusive feeling of admission to something special every time they check your card on the way in and receipt on the way out. They treat their employees well, their produce is heralded as the best quality around, and I'm telling you people, the gas prices are amazing. Unfortunately the selfish pieces of crap at Corporate don't donate any of their product to the food banks, but still, Go Costco!

I have child-like awe for the giant moving statue man hammering away in front of the Seattle Art Museum. Whoever had that idea wins.
I got a membership late last year and now get discounts at random stores in the area who love art (like the framers I'm planning on using soon) as well as invites to next month's REMIX, described as an "evening of performances, talks, dancing and more at this late-night creative explosion!" Who wouldn't want first dibs on such events?


I don't frequent the library as much as I want to. Fact of the matter is I love the way bookstores are arranged, but I'm far too cheap to buy books at some 20 bucks or more a pop. For my reading goals and increasingly long to-read list, the library should be the way to go. I wish they were organized more like bookstores and less like 'Fiction' 'Non-fiction' 'Magazines.' I was in a good groove last summer but have lately fallen into purchasing books and accumulating them, a chapter or so into each, on the headboard shelf of my bed. Here's to a reminder that renting books is a GOOD IDEA.



This baby isn't new. This card is flimsier than the rest, but far more important. It means that I have made promises with God and that I'm keeping them, and it gets me into the House of the Lord, i.e., the LDS temple. If you're not familiar with what makes this such an important building, check out this explanation. God has offered temples as a sacred place to find peace and guidance and I often take for granted how easy it is to come to God and how close the temple is to me. I love the grounds, I love the ordinances done inside, I love wandering around like I'll stumble upon God himself making himself comfortable in the study. I love the temple.

A few more symbols of my current identity:

I lost my license some 8 months ago and have been surviving airport security and occasional Happy Hour seating ID checks with the temporary paper copy, my photo debit card and the plea that "I just lost the hard copy, will this do?" Works like a charm. The goal is to make it to the hard plastic version's expiration date, just a couple months from now.

The green and gold cherry on top is my business card, which is new enough to me still that I like to flaunt it around like a trophy.

I'm happy with my ex-student identity, even if means fewer discounts.

I bring all these cards with me everywhere (along with a small stack of gift cards I always end up wanting to use the one day I take them out of my wallet). Is it really necessary?