Renewing my driver's license was a pain this year. [View all]
In California, when you hit 70, they make you take the written test again. I hadn't taken it since I was in high school. I remember easing through it back then so I figured it would be no sweat. Boy, was I wrong. There was a lot I'd forgotten. So I studied like hell. I used the free tests online every day and compiled my own cheat sheet on my phone with questions I'd had trouble with. Even that didn't help at first. I kept getting all these questions that I hadn't had in my studies.
The worst was how many days do you have when you come to California to get your car registered. My recollection from back in the 60s was two weeks. I was wrong. It was 30 days. But why am I getting asked that question? It's totally irrelevant to me since I've been living here so long.
Finally, I did pass. But the whole experience was really demeaning. I want to say it's ageism to make me take the test again, but I also understand why they're having you do it. But my driving record was fairly clean. I had one moving violation (for a cell phone) in recent years. No speeding tickets, no accidents. Why am I having to do this test again? It seems unfair.
A word of advice to anyone whose license is coming up for renewal: Make use of the free driving tests online. DO NOT pay for cheat sheets. You can make your own up as I did for free. (Some of the prices being asked for these cheat sheets made me laugh.)
= new reply since forum marked as read