The other tax season

pink rhododendron
Originally uploaded by modernemama

I had to go and pay the half-yearly property taxes today and as usual it was a totally painless experience (well apart from parting with an obscene amount of money, that always hurts). I still haven't got used to the difference in the Town of Huntington and the Town of Hades where we used to reside.
There I used to stand on line for hours because there were never more than two people serving at any one time and the officials always had something better to do (order lunch, partake of free donuts, count the trolls on their desk) than serve the people who elected them. And when I finally handed over my check I was usually greeted with a snarl for my pains.
Here I have never queued, there are plenty of staff to serve you and they are polite and smiling. It just makes tax paying more efficient and pleasant. I think it must be something to do with this Town. I had to renew my driving license in person last month. When I did that in the other town it took four hours. Here I was in and out in 10 minutes and I had fun too. A fun time at the DMV? Maybe I'm living in an alternative universe.